Juana Mata is a Children’s Social Worker for the Department of Children and Family Services. She has been working for DCFS for the past 29 years. Juana works with children and their families to assist, support, and guide them through the process of separation, reunification, maintenance, and or adoption. Juana has been interviewed by Telemundo on her Lupus journey, shared her story with the California Chronic Care Coalition, My Patient Rights. She is a former National Ambassador for the NIH All Of us Research Program as well as a Virtual Advisor Team member for both the All of us Research Program and the Scripps Research Digital Trials Center. She has been featured as a Lupus Hero by Lupus LA, written blogs for Lupus Research Alliance and was part of the Advocacy\Lobbying efforts in Washington DC on March 2018 through 2022. Also in March of 2018, Juana was honored as the 48th Assembly District Woman of the Year by Assemblywoman Blanca E. Rubio in the annual event at the Capitol. Juana was the 2019 Lupus Patient Advisor for Patients Like Me, the world’s largest personalized patient platform. In 2018 and 2019 Juana was a consumer advocate for the scientific peer review of Department of Defense. Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs’ Lupus Research Program. Juana also advocates for Fibromyalgia and Mental Health; she attended the first Fibromyalgia DC advocacy day in 2019. Juana is one of the co-founders of Looms for Lupus is a nonprofit organization that provides support for Lupus survivors, their families and caregivers. She dedicated to raising awareness, self-advocacy and advocating for lupus, fibromyalgia and mental health. Juana advocates with local, state and national government officials. Juana lives in Los Angeles County in CA with her husband and Son. She has two sons and two grandchildren.