Lidia S. Martinez began her career at Southwest Airlines in 1990 as the receptionist for the Vice President of Marketing.  Lidia’s hard work was recognized with several job promotions within the Marketing Department.  In 2004, she was named Regional Manager of Hispanic Community Affairs where she played an integral part in identifying the airline’s role within the Latino community and successfully opened many of its doors.

In addition to her work at Southwest Airlines, she serves on numerous boards and is involved in a variety of organizations dedicated to empowering under-represented communities. She has served as the National Board Vice Chair for the Los Angeles-based National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC), whose mission is to improve the image and employment of Hispanic Americans in all media including radio, television, and film.  She is the Immediate Past Chair and continues to serve on the MANA National Board of Directors.  MANA is a DC-based organization with Chapters across the country that empowers Latinas through leadership development, community service and advocacy. 

She currently serves on the California State University Foundation Board of Governors, the Board of Directors of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) and the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute (USHLI).  Martinez also represents her company on the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Partnership Council, the California Latino Caucus Institute (CLCI) Corporate Advisory Board, and the National Education Association (NEA) Business Advisory Council.  Martinez was recently elected to the LEAD San Diego Board of Directors and appointed to the San Diego Union Tribune Editor's Latino Advisory Council.

In her desire to empower the leaders of the communities she serves, Martinez is dedicated in supporting youth and leadership programs such as those offered by Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE),  Leadership California, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, LEAD San Diego and the Women’s Foundation of California.

Because of her immense passion and commitment to her company and the communities she represents, Martinez has been awarded the President’s Award—Southwest Airlines’ highest achievement award for employees.  She has also received several awards from the company’s Legislative Awareness Department to honor her commitment of company-wide legislative and grassroots initiatives.  Martinez has also been honored by many local and national organizations for her work in the non-profit community.

Her continued success in her various positions at Southwest have led to an expansion in her market reach and an increase in her responsibilities.  She now serves as the company’s Manager, Community Affairs & Grassroots for the West Coast, and continues to support national efforts in New York City and Washington, DC.

Born in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua and raised in El Paso, Texas, Martinez studied at the University of Texas in Arlington where she received a Business Administration degree with a focus in Marketing. She and her husband Ted have two children, Melyna (25) and Teddy (21), and grand-puppy Marley (3).  They currently reside in San Diego, CA.