The UC Cooperative Extension community educator taught community members about nutrition, healthy cooking, physical activity and gardening
Martha Lopez, a longtime community educator whose work helped Imperial County families learn about nutrition, healthy cooking, physical activity and gardening, has retired after 27 years with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Lopez retired July 1 from UC Cooperative Extension in Imperial County, where she served as a community education specialist II with CalFresh Healthy Living, UC. The program, formerly known as the Food Stamp Nutrition Education Program, now known nationally as SNAP-Ed, provides nutrition education to families and individuals eligible for SNAP.
An Imperial County native, Lopez was born and raised in El Centro. At 14, she began working alongside her mother in local farm fields, an experience that helped shape her work ethic and deepen her connection to the community she would later serve.
After graduating from Central Union High School in 1985, Lopez worked in retail and as an independent sales representative with Home Interiors. In 1986, she married her high school sweetheart, Edward Lopez. Together, they raised two daughters and recently became first-time grandparents.
Her connection to UCCE began when her sister invited her to attend a nutrition class through SNAP-Ed. The experience introduced Lopez to community nutrition education and the impact it could have on families. She later joined UCCE Imperial County as an extra-help employee and eventually advanced to a full-time permanent position with UC ANR
In 1999, Lopez joined UCCE Imperial County as a community education specialist II. Over the next 27 years, she brought practical, evidence-based nutrition education to families, youth, adults and older adults across Imperial County.
Her work was rooted in everyday needs: how to shop on a budget, prepare healthier meals, stay active and make better use of available food resources. Through CalFresh Healthy Living, UC curricula, including Plan, Shop, Save, Cook, Lopez led hands-on food demonstrations that showed families how to cook healthy meals without stretching already tight budgets.
She also helped connect residents to fresh produce and the benefits of gardening. Lopez started vegetable gardens at Pacific Southwest Apartments and supported local school districts in promoting school gardens and teaching students about growing and eating fresh fruits and vegetables.
Her early work focused largely on children, but over time she expanded her outreach to serve families, adults and senior citizens. Across those groups, her approach remained steady: meet people where they are, offer information they can use and help them build healthier habits one step at a time.
Throughout her career, Lopez established and supported school and community gardens, promoted nutrition education and helped strengthen partnerships that expanded the reach of UCCE programs in Imperial County. Colleagues describe her as organized, punctual and deeply committed to delivering UC research-based information to the public.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lopez helped keep community education moving at a time when in-person programming was disrupted. She adapted and piloted curricula for distance learning and created educational videos for virtual instruction and outreach. Her work helped families continue receiving health and nutrition information during a period of uncertainty and isolation.
For Lopez, one of the most meaningful parts of her career has been hearing from former participants who still use the skills and habits they learned in her classes. Those stories are a quiet measure of impact: a family cooking differently, a child learning where food comes from, a senior making healthier choices, and a garden continuing to grow after the class has ended.
Lopez’s retirement marks the end of nearly three decades of public service, but her work remains planted across Imperial County in school gardens, community partnerships and the daily routines of families who learned from her.
Her career reflects the mission of UCCE at its most personal level: bringing university knowledge into local communities in ways that are practical, respectful and useful.
After 27 years with the University of California, Lopez leaves behind a legacy of service, education and community care – the kind of work that does not always make headlines, but keeps feeding people long after the lesson is over.