About David
ImageThe fourth of seven siblings of immigrant parents, David Benavides was born and raised in East Los Angeles. He was the first of the family to attend college and the first to run for elected office. David attended Biola University, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree. During his university years he was introduced to a Santa Ana-based non-profit organization, KidWorks, which focused on mentoring and empowering at-risk youth and families in some of the most under-resourced neighborhoods of Orange County.

In the summer of 1996 David moved to one of Santa Ana’s most challenging neighborhoods, the apartments at the 800 block of South Townsend Street. His plan was to live in this community for a period of 8-weeks while he took part in an internship centered around mentoring at-risk youth. Seeing the need for community revitalization and stemming from his passion to give back to the community, David chose to stay in his new Santa Ana neighborhood and for the past fifteen years has worked tirelessly to help lead efforts to revitalize his community and to contribute to positive changes in the City of Santa Ana.

ImageDavid served as the Director of KidWorks in Santa Ana for over six years. He prepared this organization for growth and later continued providing leadership for five years serving as Board Chairman, he now serves on the Advisory Council. After a $3M capital campaign, in October of 2005, community members, leaders, and local officials were present at the dedication and grand opening of KidWorks’ new state of the art 10,000 square foot community center located across the street from the City’s corporate yard.

David has served Santa Ana as a member of the business community. He has served as a Realtor and Associate Real Estate Broker with an office in the City. David has been a member of the Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Realtors, California Association of Realtors, and the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals.

ImageFor over six years, from 1999 to 2006, David served as Chairman (4 years) and Vice-Chairman (2 years) of Santa Ana’s Weed and Seed Steering Committee (S.A.I.N.T.), an inter-disciplinary effort focused on community revitalization in some Santa Ana’s most distressed areas.

Responding to community concerns David helped found two neighborhood associations. One is the Casa Bonita Neighborhood Association (just north of his neighborhood) and the other is the Bella Vista Neighborhood, where he served as President for several years and where he currently lives.

Prior to joining the City Council in 2006 David was a recipient of the Neighborhood Hero Award presented by the Communication Linkage Forum (Com-Link) in 2000. He was also a recipient of Santa Ana’s Community Building Award. In 2001 David received an Exceptional Volunteer Recognition from Santa Ana’s Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Agency.

 

ImageDavid is a Board member of Biola University’s Alumni Association. He is a member of the Rancho Santiago Community College District’s Community Advisory Committee and serves on the United States Selective Service System’s Local Board. He is also a Board Member for Comunidad Latina Federal Credit Union in Santa Ana.

Prior to himself being elected to the City Council David served on the Santa Ana Planning Commission where he was appointed by the City Council. In 2005 he served on the City’s Charter Review Task Force where he was appointed by his predecessor former Councilmember Alberta Christy . He along with 13 other community residents were charged with the responsibility of reviewing the City’s Charter to make important recommendations to the City Council for changes that would benefit the City’s residents; those recommended changes were passed by the voters in the 2006 general election.

As a Councilmember, David is committed to creating and developing programs aimed at serving Santa Ana’s youth and families. David places a strong emphasis on supporting community revitalization efforts and mobilizing people and resources to Santa Ana in order to improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods.
ImageDavid is a member of the City Council’s Transportation Committee, Public Safety Committee and Neighborhood Improvement/Code Enforcement Committee. As an Alternate Director, David helps represent the City of Santa Ana on the Orange County Sanitation Board.
David is proud to live in Santa Ana and refers to the City as the vibrant heart of Orange County. He has been married for over thirteen years to Emily, a Santa Ana school teacher. They are homeowners in Santa Ana and are the proud parents of daughter, Anaís, who attends elementary school within the Santa Ana Unified School District, and son, Aedan, an energetic pre-schooler.
 
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