From there, Leonor started doing even more speaking, and developing partnerships with other organizations. Her current role with GoodLeap still allows her the opportunity to train and speak, and do the things she loves — which is working directly with contractors, the women in the trades, and being a resource that helps others achieve their goals.

For the last five years Leonor has served on the board of directors for Women in HVACR (which she said has been both fulfilling and life-changing), working with members, sponsors, and partners. Together, they’ve created goals and initiatives not only help recruit, but retain women in the industry. Leonor has also had the privilege to travel all over the country to meet directly with contractors, distributors, and manufacturers to help them grow their businesses and customer base.

“I love seeing people be able to implement a skillset that is a game changer for their businesses and personal lives,” Leonor said.

Since she didn’t grow up in the HVAC industry, everything was new for Leonor when she first joined. For example, she didn’t know that HVAC units had to be maintained, or filters had to be changed. Because of this, she’s dedicated to making sure her daughter grows up with this needed knowledge. At just 3 years old, her daughter had already attended three conferences with Leonor, popped her head into Zoom trainings to say hello to HVAC industry friends, and sits beside Leonor as she does things like sends email or film videos.

“I’m so proud that she is already changing filters with me, making friends with my friends, and knowing that the trades is an amazing place to be,” Leonor said.

One of Leonor’s biggest career goals is to learn more about the technical side of HVAC. Right now her focus is primarily on what many call “soft skills” — communication, partnerships, customer service, sales, financing, relationship-building — but she’d love to further her education into the technical side, as it would only make her ability to speak, coach, and train that much better.

“I will always have a continuous goal to offer value wherever I go and to be resource to others,” Leonor said. “There is so much we can all accomplish together.”