Love Promise
Mike Aguilar uses his Westminster degree to make Utah a better place to live
by Nicole Tyler (’18)
Mike Aguilar (MACL ’13) is a self-proclaimed activist, disrupter, and community leader. Born and raised in Davis County, Utah, Mike moved to Salt Lake City in 2010 to pursue a master of arts in community leadership (MACL) degree from Westminster College. Mike credits his Westminster experience for opening many doors for him after graduation, allowing him to put the skills he gained into practice while also pursuing his passions.
Shortly after graduation, Mike stepped in as a board member for the Utah Pride Center organizational team, where he applied his community-development skills to better their efforts. After less than a year on the board, Mike joined the executive committee and had a voice in restructuring the organization’s mission statement, goals, and aspirations.
After serving a term as board chair for the Utah Pride Center, Mike began looking for other ways to give back to his community. This led him to a position with Mark Miller Subaru as director of marketing. In this role, Mike oversees an established campaign called the Subaru Love Promise. Through this campaign, he connects with local organizations that are doing good things in the community and provides resources that allow them to thrive. Mike credits the MACL program as a large part of why he can successfully manage such a large initiative. With the skills gained from his time at Westminster, Mike has been able to help strengthen Mark Miller Subaru by directing a portion of their charitable giving.
Recently, Mark Miller Subaru was selected from 600 Subaru locations to be recognized for its efforts made in the past year through the Subaru Love Promise. This recognition was for a Subaru ad campaign run in 2017 that highlighted the issue of homelessness among LGBTQIA+ youth in the state of Utah. By partnering with organizations such as Utah Pride Center and Volunteers of America, Mark Miller Subaru brings attention and financial support to some of our community’s most pressing problems. As marketing director, Mike carried the torch—and got to be one of the representatives from Mark Miller Subaru to attend the LOGO TV’s Trailblazers Honors this past June in New York City for the campaign launch.
“Activism has always been at my core. It’s in my blood. I know what it feels like to be disenfranchised, and I wanted to stand up for the community so others don’t have to feel like that,” Mike says of his interest in working with homeless and LGBTQIA+ issues.
In addition to his work with Mark Miller Subaru and the Utah Pride Center, Mike has also worked with The Leonardo Museum, The Ronald McDonald House, and Primary Children’s Hospital. In 2015, Mike received an award from Utah Business Magazine as one of “Utah’s 20 in their 20’s” for his work with nonprofits.
About the Westminster Review
The Westminster Review is Westminster University’s bi-annual alumni magazine that is distributed to alumni and community members. Each issue aims to keep alumni updated on campus current events and highlights the accomplishments of current students, professors, and Westminster alum.
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