Trudy Hilton
Trudy Hilton is a Native Islander of Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras born on November 4th, 1990. She grew up in the community of Sandy Bay, her mother was a single parent who struggled to raise four children. Like many children in Roatan she was co-raised by her grandfather and lived with the neighbors for some time. Despite poverty, she always stood out in school and was given a scholarship to ESBIR from grade two through grade eleven. She did well, but her family did not have the money after grade eleven to send her to university. She worked several jobs in the tourism industry until eventually she ended up at Familias Saludables, (the HIV project) as the director’s assistant.
Her skills and knowledge were challenged and she realized she was destined for more.
A few years later she accompanied her boss to a conference in the USA and visited afterwards with friends who agreed to sponsor her for College there. She quickly did the testing completed all the application forms, acquired a visa, and was off to college in Colorado. Where she made the Dean’s list her first year there and continued to thrive straight to graduation as the president of the International Honor Society, PTK. Post-graduation she returned home with her Associates of Arts in Political Science.
Once home she returned to work at familias saludables only this time she focused more on youth empowerment and moved on to starting her own program in partnership with medical interns from the US and the mainland Honduras.
Roatan Peer Health Exchange being her passion, has been the foundation for her approach for working within the community. This work opened the door for her role as vice mayor, which has been the platform for bridging the gap between the resources and the need in the community. Over the past few years, she has obtained various training, courses, awards and recognition for her leadership and service, the most recent being the ´´The 2nd National Competition for Women in Science´´ and the ´´US Ambassadors Distinguished Appreciation Certificate´´.
As current Vice-Mayor for the Municipality of Roatan 2022-2026 her duties include representing the mayor in a number of meetings, events, activities and programs. Coordinating donations and resources when available. She is an ambassador for the people of Roatan and is the liaison for several sustainable programs between the municipality and organizations like UNICEF, USAID, CONPAZ, UNFPA, etc. that focus on women’s empowerment initiatives, reproductive health, social welfare, socioeconomic programs, entrepreneurship, workforce development, education, training, among others. Hilton is also the Co-Founder and Director of Roatan Peer Health Exchange, an organization dedicated to improving local access to reproductive health education, HIV/AIDS awareness, family planning and youth empowerment.
Whilst serving as vice mayor has been a learning and growing curve for Hilton, she has decided that after 7 years of working in the municipality she will be focusing on her passion to serve through Roatan Peer Health Exchange and her continued personal growth after the end of her term.
Sarah Saldana
My name is Sarah Saldaña, and I’m a proud Hispanic woman born and raised in Texas. I chose a career in speech-language pathology because I’ve always been drawn to the power of communication and the connections it builds. That passion led me to pursue both my bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Lamar University, where I now have the privilege of serving as a clinical instructor—currently in my fifth year.
My expertise lies in working with the birth to 3-year-old population, an area that has truly captured my heart. Before joining the University, I worked in home health early childhood intervention, where I focused on counseling and educating parents and families on child development and speech intervention. It was during this time that I discovered how deeply empathy and connection are at the core of my work.
That same passion is what drew me to the Utila, Honduras project. I dove into the opportunity headfirst, seeing it as a chance to bring together everything I love about this field—clinical work, cultural engagement, early intervention, and community impact. The project allowed me to serve a community in need while honoring my commitment to making a real difference, one child and one family at a time.
For me, speech-language pathology isn’t just a profession—it’s a way to create meaningful change through empathy, education, and human connection.
Angela Claire Bjoroy-Karlsen
Was born into a multinational family. Due to her parents' work she had the possibility to travel the world, and at a young age, she was aware of the greater differences there are in the world. It sparked an interest in Anthropology, for which she has her university degree. In 1992, with the support of her parents, she joined the Norwegian military. She was the only female in a class of 1169 recruits at bootcamp and during officers' selection. Later, as an officer, she was often the only woman among the men. This gave her the knowledge that you can do anything you set your mind to, and the stamina to do so. A strength she has relied upon several times later in life, in her own battle against cancer and supporting her husband, Roger Bjoroy-Karlsen, in his Battle with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She has in her professional career mainly worked with personnel management and or crisis support. In 2015, she was appointed second in command of "Ankomstsenter Finnmark". The world's most Northern refugee camp is set up to detain and process refugees crossing Norway's most northern border with Russia. 2015 was the year when Europe noticed the full brunt of the Refugee Crisis that had been brewing in the Middle East and North Africa. In 2020, Angela and her Husband moved to Honduras, where upon she and her husband reached out to the local government, offering their knowledge in crisis management. Within three weeks of their arrival, Honduras went into a total lockdown due to COVID-19. And true to form, she was appointed to a position on the Governor's volunteer Crisis team. This also became her way into Rotary. Even though Angela might have had a short time in Rotary, she has already had several board positions. She was appointed as the club's first Interact Chair during her first year as a Rotarian. In 2023 a group of Rotarians including Angela and her husband became convinced that The Bay Islands of Honduras, were in need of a second Rotary Club, that could cover the whole of the Bay Islands, and that would be open to, and would encourage people, from all three islands to become members, to best be able to do projects on all of the populated Islands. Angela was unanimously voted as Charter President for The Rotary Club of Roatan Utila Guanaja.
