The Honorable Carmen Bermúdez

About Honorary Consul Carmen Bermúdez

Chairman Emerita & Honorary Consul of Costa Rica
US DEPT. OF STATE: 2002

Carmen Bermúdez was the founder and now Chairman Emerita of Mission Management & Trust Co. Founded in 1994, Mission has, under her guidance, been recognized with several awards including being named the inaugural recipient of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce’s Athena Award in 1995 and being honored by the YWCA of Tucson with its 1996 Women on the Move Corporate Award. Mission was the recipient of the 1998 Western Regional Supplier of the Year Award from the National Minority Supplier Development Council. In 1999, Working Woman magazine named Mission a regional award winner as Most Socially Responsible Company.

In recognition of her tireless devotion to providing opportunities for women and minorities, Carmen was presented the St. Katharine Drexel National Justice Award March 8, 2015 in Bensalem, Pennsylvania. In late 2014, the Tucson Urban League named Carmen the inaugural winner of its Whitney M. Young Award in recognition of her leadership in eradicating poverty through community action. In 2012 as part of the state’s centennial celebration, the Arizona Historical Society published a book presenting Arizona’s 48 Most Intriguing Women, and Carmen was selected to be among those honored. The Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce selected Carmen as its 2005 Hispanic Businesswoman of the Year. In August 2004, Hispanic Magazine presented Carmen with the US-Latin American Friendship Award. In June 2002, Carmen was included in the Contemporary Hispanic Biography book that profiles the International Hispanic Community. Also in 2002, Carmen was named by Costa Rican President Abel Pacheco to be Honorary Costa Rican Consul to the United States, a position she still proudly holds. A naturalized American citizen, Carmen was extremely proud to lead the Pledge of Allegiance at the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York. In 2000, Avon Products, Inc. chose Carmen as one of four Women of Enterprise, and the Star Group recognized her as one of The Leading Women Entrepreneurs of the World, in Venice Italy. Also, Carmen was named Mujer 2000 Woman of Today. She also received the YWCA of Tucson Women on the Move Award (1994) and the YMCA of La Jolla (California) Service Award (1993). In the April 1999 issue of Fortune, Carmen was featured in the Minority Business Enterprises Special Industry Report. In 1999, she was featured in Tucson Lifestyle among “Hispanics Making a Difference.” Latina magazine named Carmen its 1999 Entrepreneur of the Year. Hispanic magazine recognized her as one of the 100 Top Latinas.

While running her own company, Carmen has remained actively involved in numerous national, regional, and local projects. At present, she serves as an advisor to the University of Arizona Career Services in placing student interns with companies in the community. She has also been a long-time member of the Southern Arizona Leadership Council, an organization composed of leading business owners in the community. She was on the Advisory Board for the Department of Management and Policy – Eller College of Management of the University of Arizona, and was a former director of U of A Research Park Development Corp. She was appointed to the Governor’s Council on Health, Physical Fitness and Sports. She was a member of the RNC Hispanic Advisory Board. She formerly served on the boards of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the National Law Center for Inter-American Free Trade and the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce. She has also participated in the University of Arizona Hispanic Alumni Mentoring Project and served on the 1997 Southern Arizona Women’s Fund Grants Committee. Carmen supports the Tucson community as an active member of the Tucson Rotary Club and the United Way Tocqueville Society.

In addition to her accomplishments in business, Carmen has an outstanding record as a national-class athlete, winning local and regional awards in swimming, cycling and running. In 1989 and 1990, she finished eighth and tenth, respectively, in her age category in the national triathlon championships. Carmen competed and finished first in the over-40 age category in the 1993 Escape from Alcatraz biathlon. Having moved to the desert from the ocean, she continues her athletic pursuits as an avid golfer on Tucson’s beautiful courses.