Office of the Executive Secretary
Ramiro Cano, Executive Secretary 
Ramiro Cano was elected Executive Secretary and Ministerial Director for the Central California Conference on October 28, 2003 after serving as Senior Pastor of the Milpitas church since 1997. Fueled by his passion for evangelism, he facilitated four Bay Area multi-church public outreaches and sponsored the Ethiopian and Hispanic church plants.
Pastor Cano’s family arrived in America from Medellin when he was 14-years-old. After college, he spent 19 years in the corporate world, and in 1989, God first began to stir Pastor Cano's heart with the tremendous urgency of His soon coming. “I was living the American dream in a plastic materialistic life,” he says. He moved his family to New Mexico, joined a very small church of only four members and began sharing the gospel. The church soon grew to 28 members and in 1993, he was hired as a full-time pastor for the Texaco Conference.
His partner in ministry is Mary Ellen, his wife of 36 years, and together they have raised three children: Patricia, an Adventist school teacher, Antonio, a pastor here in the Central California Conference and Sergio, a graphic designer. They are the proud grandparents of three grandchildren.
Pastor Cano says, "Someone recognized gifts in me and gave me the opportunity to work for the Lord, and I want to pass that on. I am living this wonderful, spiritual adventure, and I know the Lord is not done yet."
Debra Amador, Administrative Secretary to Executive Secretary & Conference Clerk 
"God, if I have to go back to work, I really want to work for you," prayed Debbie Amador, a busy mother of four boys. "You know I don't want to work for a big company like I did before. Maybe I could be an administrative assistant at the conference office? That would be perfect."
The next day the church bulletin listed a job opening for an administrative secretary at the conference office. "God was way ahead of me," says Debbie with a smile. She began work as Administrative Secretary to Ramiro Cano and Conference Clerk in October 2008.
Her responsibilities assisting Cano are a variety of areas including paperwork and research needs. As clerk she helps local church clerks with membership needs, maintains the eAdventist database, and reports conference membership to the Pacific Union.
Debbie and her husband Jose, a family practice physician, met on a mission trip to Mexico. They have four boys, Brent, 15; Ithiel, 7; Othniel, 5; and Ezekiel, 2. The family enjoys time together, especially hiking and playing in the mountains near their home in Mariposa, CA.
Prayer is a lifeline for Debbie as a mother, wife and worker. "I‘ve come to realize that prayer is so essential to every aspect of my life - from the most mundane to the most important. I'm really passionate about my prayer life and helping my kids learn how to pray. I'm so glad God is always there when I need Him."
Debbie's favorite scriptures are:
Isaiah 41:10 "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
Isaiah 49:25 "But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children."