Transparency, Equity, Community First!
About me
Community Advocate | Candidate for Santa Fe City Council
Aurora Martinez brings over two decades of public sector experience to her role as Managing Partner at Noonen- Martinez Consulting Inc., with deep expertise in project development, project management, program implementation, and data analysis. Her leadership is shaped not only by technical skill, but by a lifetime of working-class resilience, intergenerational care, and a commitment to public service rooted in lived experience.
Born and raised in Santa Fe, Aurora grew up in the Hopewell/Mann neighborhood, where her father, a Vietnam Veteran and city pipefitter, raised her, her sister, and her brother with the steady support of their grandparents. Her early life was defined by deep community ties and quiet acts of service. Many neighbors remember her grandfather, a WWII Veteran, for his humble dedication worked several jobs washing cars at local dealerships, cleaning offices, and working at Payne’s Nursery to support his family. Her grandmother joined him in caretaking work, while her father spent long hours maintaining Santa Fe’s water utility, he was often known to help elders in the neighborhood with plumbing repairs they couldn’t afford. Though her parents were divorced, Aurora’s mother, a veteran herself, worked in Civil Rights, adding another layer of service and advocacy to the family’s legacy.
Aurora attended Salazar Elementary, De Vargas Junior High, and graduated from Santa Fe High School in 1992. After exploring school options in Durango, CO and Santa Cruz, CA, she returned to New Mexico and earned an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts from CNM and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from UNM, with an emphasis in Behavioral Research, Research Methods, and Statistics. While at CNM and UNM, she served as a crisis counselor with Agora and contributed to academic studies, preparing for graduate-level work before choosing to enter the workforce.
Her public service career began in child protective services with CYFD, followed by roles in care coordination and behavioral health. She later joined the New Mexico Department of Transportation (NM DOT), where she advanced from Management Analyst to Acting Traffic Monitoring Manager. In that role, she led the statewide Traffic Monitoring Program, overseeing federally funded projects, implementing quality control protocols, and ensuring compliance with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) standards. Her responsibilities included budget management, multi-agency coordination, and adherence to labor and procurement regulations skills essential to the successful delivery of large-scale public initiatives.
At the Department of Finance and Administration (NM DFA), Aurora supported the administration of federal programs by leveraging her strengths in data evaluation, regulatory compliance, and interagency collaboration. Her ability to interpret complex federal guidelines and translate them into actionable strategies consistently improved program outcomes and streamlined operations across diverse sectors.
After years of service in state government, Aurora made the intentional decision to transition to the private sector knowing she could help communities more directly and flexibly through consulting. As Managing Partner at Noonen- Martinez Consulting Inc., she helps organizations navigate the intricacies of public programs with a strategic, results-oriented mindset. Her firm is deeply committed to giving back, and regularly sponsors Santa Fe youth initiatives whenever called upon reflecting a belief that community investment must be ongoing, not occasional.
Now living in her grandfather’s restored adobe home with her son, Aurora continues the legacy of family care and neighborhood stewardship. She is the founder of Los Gatos del Barrio, a grassroots nonprofit supporting feral cat caregivers through mutual aid reflecting her belief in dignity for all and the power of community-led solutions.
Aurora Martinez is running for Santa Fe City Council to protect the neighborhoods that raised her, honor the working families who built this city, and ensure public decisions reflect the lived realities of everyday residents. Her leadership is grounded in humility, transparency, and collective stewardship not political ambition. She believes in informing the public, listening before leading, uplifting sidelined voices, and creating space for meaningful public accountability.