Emilio Nares

Emilio’s Story

When Emilio was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), his parents Richard & Diane Nares, felt their world turned upside down cycling through emotions including fear, promise, desperation, and hope. Despite a relapse, intensive chemotherapy, marrow registry search, and a transplant, the Nares family say they felt lucky. They had family, friends, even strangers reaching out to help them. However, while living at the hospital, it became clear not everyone has the same kind of support.

After Emilio passed away just before his sixth birthday, he passed the torch on to his parents who honored his memory by creating the Emilio Nares Foundation (ENF) to help low-income underserved families meet basic needs, especially transportation. Emilio’s spirit can be felt in the hundreds of young patients ENF helps annually — laughter in the van, a comforting hand during hard times at the hospital, and the smiling eyes of our families. He looks after us all.

Our Patients Are Family

Your donations make a profound difference on their road to recovery

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Awards & Recognition

Richard Nares CNN Hero
President Obama Honors Richard Nares
Richard Nares was selected as a 2015 honoree of “the one hundred,” created and supported by Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center. It recognizes 100 individuals and groups from around the globe whose commitment to the fight against cancer is inspiring and revolutionary.
ENF was selected in 2013 by members of the Padres’ Hispanic Community Leadership Council (HCLC) for its dedication to improving the lives of families and youth, specifically in the area of children’s health. The award pays tribute to individuals or organizations whose work makes a positive impact on those who live and work in San Diego’s Hispanic community
ENF’s “Loving Tabs” shirt project was selected as one of six LEAD San Diego Leadership Action Team Initiative recipients in 2012. LEAD San Diego annually renews its commitment to community service through its Leadership Action Team Initiative, the service-learning component of its 10-month signature program, IMPACT San Diego.
KPBS and Union Bank honored Richard Nares during Hispanic Heritage Month in 2011. The Local Heroes Award is the culmination of a year-long celebration of diversity that recognizes 17 people who are making a difference to enrich the lives of others.
In 2011, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) honored Richard Nares among 10 people who have overcome daunting odds to improve the health and quality of life for disadvantaged and underserved communities across the country.

Corporate Partners

ENF is grateful for this year’s foundations, corporations, and people like you who make our work possible.

American Cancer Society
Angel's Baseball Foundation
Children's Health - Rest Haven logo
Community Health Group
County of San Diego logo
Frank and Ruth Bila Charitable Fund
Hyundai logo
J.W. Sefton Foundation
Las Patrones
Local Media San Diego
Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility
Rite Aid Foundation
Ellis Family Foundation
French Fund
Soapy Joe's logo
The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco, Philoptochos Kids n Cancer
The H.S. Lopez Family Trust
Thorn Brewing

For more information on how to become a sponsor or corporate partner, please Executive Director Elsa Morales-Roth at Elsa@enfhope.org.

Meet our Administrative & Development Team

Elsa Morales-Roth
Executive Director
elsa@enfhope.org

Luz Quiroga

Luz Quiroga
Director of Programs
luz@enfhope.org

Coming Soon

Monica Martinez
Director of Development
monica@enfhope.org

Rosa Moreno
Program Operations Manager
rosa@enfhope.org

Amanda Rodriguez

Amanda Rodriguez
Development Associate
amanda@enfhope.org

Meet our Programs Team

Gaby Perez-Vargas
Family Resource Center Coordinator
gabriela@enfhope.org

Juan Carlos Flores

Juan Carlos Flores
San Diego Driver

Gloria Chavez

Gloria Chavez
San Diego Driver

Manuela Espinoza

Manuela Espinoza
Orange County Driver

Blanca Lopez

Blanca Lopez
Orange County Driver

Ride with Emilio logo

Ruben Acosta
Imperial Valley Driver

Co-Founders and ENF Advocates

Richard & Diane Nares

Richard & Diane Nares

Board of Directors

Elizabeth BrannChair
Paul Hastings, LLP

Nate BeasleyVice Chair
San Diego Gulls

Christine Lazott Immediate Past Chair
Children’s Health Plan of California

Paul Broussard
Cavignac

Jack Corrao II
Corrao Group LLC

Chris Larson
Roku, Inc

Gregg Wolfson
Local Media San Diego

Victor Wong, MD
Rady Children’s Hospital

Andy Zlotnik
Zlotnik Law