Cadence Latinx Heritage Month Spotlight

September 15 through October 15 is Latinx Heritage Month! This month began in 1968 as a US recognition and celebration of Hispanic Heritage, and it has expanded to recognize the achievements and contributions of Latinx people around the world. We are honored to share our employees’ stories.

Luis Govea

My name is Luis Govea and I work as a developer on the VIP team in the System & Verification Group (SVG) in San Jose. I obtained a bachelor’s degree in Bioengineering and a master’s degree in Computer Science from Stanford University. I joined Cadence a little over a year ago and have been working on PCIE as well as machine learning.

Being born and raised in Mexico, I was heavily involved in the Latinx community throughout most of my childhood. Whether it was celebrating Día de Los Muertos, going to jaripeos, or eating tacos, being Latino was all I knew and I loved it. It wasn’t until I was 12 that my world would be turned upside down. My parents, just like millions of Latinxs, decided to move to the US to give my sister and me a better future. To say the transition was difficult is an understatement. Not only was I leaving most of my extended family behind and everything I had ever known, but I was also moving to a place where I didn’t know the landscape, the people, or the language.

I was fortunate enough to go to a high school in Texas that was predominantly Latinx. Having the support and encouragement of people that looked like me and were going through the same things I was experiencing made the process a bit easier. The biggest change in my life came when I first set foot at Stanford. Looking around, none of my professors or counselors were Hispanic and very few students on campus identified as Latinx. The only people that looked like me were the janitors, the cooks, and the gardeners. Most people would easily get discouraged by that, but I took pride in it. For me, being Latinx represents the idea that we are willing to take the worst and most demanding jobs just so we can provide our families with the lives they deserve. We are hard workers who aren’t willing to give up, who are willing to go the extra mile as a sign of love to our significant others. Being Latinx means that no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in, we will stand loud and proud of our background and our community.

I didn’t graduate from Stanford for me, I graduated from Stanford as a “Thank you” for all the sacrifices my parents made for my sister and me. I graduated from Stanford to show all Latinx communities throughout the US that your dreams are achievable if you put in the effort and dedication. To show that even if all the odds are stacked against you, there will always be a light at the end of the tunnel.

For me, that light at the end of the tunnel became Cadence. When I first joined Cadence, I was completely terrified. I joined in the middle of the COVID pandemic and did not know anything about PCIE. Although at first it was difficult, thanks to the support of my amazing team, I was quickly able to become highly comfortable with the material I was working on. From working on tickets by myself, to leading ML projects, and even to presenting at conferences, I became a true member of the Cadence community. Although I’m barely at the beginning of my journey in this incredible company, I can’t wait for my future here at Cadence. I hope to continue to learn as much as I can and, hopefully, one day also help new members of the Cadence community navigate this company.

Christine Saldana

My name is Christine Saldana and I have worked with the SVG team for the last 7 years as an Executive Administrator. It is an honor to be spotlighted as a member of the LatinX community. I am a proud fourth-generation Mexican American.

My Great Grandmother, who I was lucky enough to spend many years with, was born in New Mexico. Her siblings and parents were born in New Mexico before it was part of the United States. Great Grandma traveled around parts of the USA by train, moving where there was work. She worked in the canneries canning fruits and veggies, depending on what was in season. Just like today, it was very common to see many Mexican people working in the farming industry.

Being Mexican American, we did try to keep some traditions. For the Christmas holidays my family will gather together and make tamales. Some of my family's favorite foods are traditional Mexican food. We love to cook enchilada, tacos, burritos, Caldo de pollo (Mexican chicken soup) on cold days, and a big pot Pozole for the holidays. We gather together in the kitchen, cook together and then sit at the kitchen table and enjoy the meal we created. As a child I remember helping my Great Grandma make masa for her homemade tortillas. We’d roll out the tortillas, cook them on the comol (traditional flat pan to cook tortillas) and then we’d enjoy them nice and warm with butter on top. Being a close family is something that is very important to us and sharing these memories so that our kids can pass them down is the best tradition we can pass along.

Representing my culture and being proud of my heritage is something I hold close to me. In an industry where you do not see many Latinos it makes me proud to work for a company that celebrates our diversity.

Paul Carzola

I am proud to celebrate Latinx Heritage Month as a first-generation Cuban American. In 1960, my parents came from Cuba as young teenagers and met in the United States. Their families had individually fled Cuba due to the civil and political turmoil at the time. As Cuban leadership began tightening controls on the people and businesses of Cuba, my grandparents left everything they had behind to start a new life in the U.S. I was close to my maternal grandfather, Abuelo Pablo, who had always wanted to become an electrical engineer but was never able to finish his degree as he had to work to support his family. He gradually rebuilt his career in the U.S. through many years and challenging work, overcoming language barriers and discrimination to support his family. I promised myself to take his torch and make him proud by getting a degree in engineering. My proudest career accomplishment was putting myself through college by working multiple jobs and never giving up until I earned my degree in Computer Engineering.

I have been with Cadence for the past 17 years, starting as an AE and progressing to a Solution Architect in the System & Verification Group where I helped drive the vManager verification planning and management product. I am honored to have played a key role in helping customers make the absolute best innovative products and take pride in making that process easier and more enjoyable for them.

I am passionate about my career and the future of engineering and have spent the past six years at the local high school presenting at Career Day and helping with a program called “Project Lead the Way” where I help students with their senior engineering projects. I share my educational and professional experiences and try to motivate them to never give up and to learn that with perseverance and determination, anything is possible.

When I think about being the son of Cuban refugees, I think about all the immigrants, regardless of origin, that have come to the U.S. by plane, boat, raft, or on foot who have persevered through struggles and fought to get here. They leave everything behind to create a better life for themselves and their family’s future. I think about the appreciation they must have, as I do, for the opportunities this country offers. I also think about the discrimination they meet and the walls they must climb to be successful. Recognizing diversity is one way to lower those walls and I am proud to see Cadence embracing an appreciation of differences and committing to equity and inclusion programs.

One thing I appreciate most about my Hispanic community is the importance of gathering people together, usually around lots of good food. Living in Texas, I have learned how to make good Texas BBQ and use those skills to gather co-workers at the park, cater to hard working teachers at the local schools, feed people who have been affected and displaced by hurricanes, support teams raising money for charities such as the MS 150, and hold front yard BBQ events with my neighbors. These gatherings help lower the walls between people and help build a stronger community. The theme of 2022’s Latinx Heritage Month is “Unidos: Inclusivity for a Stronger Nation” and is perfectly represented in these gatherings and everything I do.