Roy Rivera Barcenas is Building Community Through Service and Connection

For Roy Rivera Barcenas, public service has taken many forms. It has meant connecting families with resources, building relationships between community members and government, volunteering his time, and making sure Nebraska’s Latino community has a voice in the spaces where decisions are made.

Born and raised in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Rivera Barcenas came to the United States at age 24 as a first-generation immigrant. He eventually made Lincoln, Nebraska, his home and began building deep connections within the city’s Hispanic and Latino community.

His path toward public service took shape through his work as a Crisis Assistance and Prevention Coordinator with El Centro de las Américas, where he advocated for Hispanic and Latino families and helped connect them with resources. That experience helped turn community involvement into a lasting commitment to service.

Today, Rivera Barcenas serves on the Nebraska Commission on Latino-Americans. The commission serves as a link between Nebraska state government and Hispanic and Latino communities, advocating for community needs while helping people access services and opportunities. Having Latino voices within civic institutions creates opportunities for communities to be part of the conversations that affect their families, neighborhoods, and futures. For Rivera Barcenas, that work extends into his professional life in Lincoln.

After beginning work with the City of Lincoln Parks and Recreation Department in 2019, Rivera Barcenas later joined the Lincoln Police Department. He currently serves as executive assistant to the chief of police. The department’s 2025 annual report describes Rivera Barcenas as an information resource to the chief and department managers who coordinates requests, maintains records, and assists with special projects.

His work has also focused on building connections with immigrant and refugee communities. The Lincoln Police Department’s 2024 annual report, which named Rivera Barcenas its 2024 Professional Employee of the Year, highlighted his work supporting diversity, participating in cultural competency efforts and co-founding the department’s Hispanic/Latino Forum. Rivera also helped create the department’s Observations for Services Tool to connect people with community-based resources. By the end of 2023, the program had referred over 205 individuals and families to 18 community organizations. 

Rivera Barcenas serves on the board of the Great Plains Trails Network, which supports the development of commuter and recreational trails throughout Lincoln and Lancaster County. He also serves on the board of the Lincoln Parks Foundation and volunteers alongside his wife, Stephanie, serving meals at the Gathering Place.

In May 2024, another chapter of his story began when Rivera Barcenas became a naturalized U.S. citizen, a milestone also recognized in the Lincoln Police Department’s annual report.

His story reflects something that deserves recognition during Hispanic Heritage Month: Civic leadership does not happen only in elected office or behind a podium. Sometimes, it looks like helping a family find a resource. Sometimes, it means volunteering after work. And sometimes, it means being in the room to make sure a community is represented.

Rivera Barcenas has built his life in Nebraska around connection, service, and community. His journey from Tegucigalpa to Lincoln is uniquely his own, but the impact of that journey reaches far beyond one person. It can be seen in the relationships strengthened, communities represented, and doors held open for the people coming next.