Organics Unlimited, a San Diego-based grower and importer of organic fruit, is pleased to award Project Amigo with a grant to assist with 2017 operations and projects. Through its GROW fund, Organics Unlimited donates a percentage of every organic bananas sale back to the communities in rural Mexico and Ecuador where the fruit is grown.
“Some of my favorite moments are when I learn of the results of our grants,” said Mayra Velazquez de León, president of Organics Unlimited and GROW. “It shows how our customers’ banana purchases create change and provide a better life for children and families living in the low-income areas where bananas grow.”
GROW by Organics Unlimited is a longtime supporter of Project Amigo, a nonprofit that helps provide access to education for youth in Colima, Mexico. A portion of the grant provides 34 educational scholarships to middle school and high school youth in the community of Cerra de Ortega, allowing them to continue their studies through support with fees, uniforms, school supplies, meals and transportation.
This year’s grant will also fund some new community health programs including an extensive education campaign for disease prevention. Throughout the campaign, GROW scholars will assist the local health center to expand awareness of procedures particularly for the fighting of dengue fever and chikungunya – both of which have spread to epidemic proportions in the area during previous summers. Additionally, this year’s grant will help to expand community health care services with additional equipment, supplies and the funding of necessary medical personnel.
“We cannot thank GROW enough for its ongoing support of bright, deserving students in Colima, Mexico,” said Jenna Saldaña, executive director of Project Amigo. “With this grant, GROW scholars will continue working toward their dreams of completing university, finding employment in their field and breaking out of the cycle of poverty their families have been caught in.”
Over the past decade, through retailer and distributor support, GROW organic banana purchases have raised over $2 million in aid for communities near Organics Unlimited banana farms in Mexico and Ecuador.
For more information:
Mayra Velazquez de León
Organics Unlimited
Tel: 619-710-0658