Santiago was the co-founder of The Writers Blk. poetry performance group that presented at the inaugural and several Luminaria annual events. He was the first board president of San Antonio Cultural Arts. He founded The Red Palm literary magazine. His poetry, feature articles, and book reviews have been published in the San Antonio Current, El Placazo, LareDOS Newspaper, and ViAztlán. Most recently, he performed an original poem during the San Pedro Creek Culture Park grand opening activities. Santiago teaches the 55-word story model he adapted from healthcare. Santiago is also a visual artist in several mediums. Born and raised in San Antonio, Santiago is a descendant of Mission San Jose. When not expressing himself creatively, Santiago has served the San Antonio community in community economic development, affordable housing, healthcare philanthropy and policy, and fundraising for San Antonio Missions National Historical Park.