SAN JOSE, California. (KGO) — This week concludes Hispanic and Latino Heritage Month.
Over the past few weeks, a brutal hurricane season has once again thrust Puerto Rico into the global spotlight.
Locally, one group is working to support people who are still suffering while also championing local Puerto Rican culture here in the Bay Area.
Maria Acevedo Campbell has been hard at work for weeks leading local efforts, sending relief to those suffering from the devastation caused by Hurricane Fiona in Puerto Rico in September. Although more devastation has been caused in other areas by Hurricane Ian, many Puerto Ricans are still suffering.
RELATED: At least 25 deaths in Puerto Rico may be linked to Hurricane Fiona, island’s health department says
Acevedo Campbell and her team have been able to coordinate help in just a few weeks from the South Bay thousands of miles away.
“We were able to bring food, we brought water, we brought generators, we brought Luci’s lights”, she said about the group’s work, “We brought many volunteers, we brought gifts for the children”.
And the work just goes on, the nonprofit organization behind it all is the Puerto Rican Civic Club of San Jose, a key local force behind the relief efforts sent five years ago when Hurricane Maria leveled the Island. The lessons learned from that disaster still serve them well today.
“We’ve been working since Maria, so when (Hurricane Fiona) happened, we were ready, organized and prepared to mobilize all the units that we have in Puerto Rico,” Acevedo Campbell said, “And since then, we’ve a coalition with other non-profit organizations, we have been able to touch the heart of Puerto Rico.”
RELATED: How to Help Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic During Hurricane Fiona
The club itself has a rich history in the South Bay, Acevedo Campbell is now its president, she moved to the Bay in her teens, eventually discovering the San Jose Puerto Rican Civic Club.
“I was so excited because I didn’t fit in anywhere, I couldn’t understand Mexican, or South American, or their Spanish was a little different,” she reflected, “I didn’t fit in with the American people because my English was broken, so there was no place for me, and when I found the Dia de San Juan festival, I found home.”
She explained the unique challenges she thinks have caused so many in the Bay Area’s Puerto Rican community to become as tight-knit as they are.
“We are part of the community and the essence of California,” she said. and sometimes we were discriminated against on both sides.”
VIDEO: Bad Bunny brings an entourage of 80 to Bay Area Puerto Rican restaurant
But through unity, the club has left its mark on the Bay Area and beyond.
“One person can make a difference,” said Acevedo Campbell, “it’s just a matter of knowing the right people and being there at the right time, and thinking about the future and what that future holds for our island. “
This Hispanic and Latino Heritage Month, Acevedo Campbell shares this memory.
“We make the difference in the sauce of the United States, we are part of the spice and we bring a lot to this country and we should be included in everything and everyone should be treated equally.”
The nonprofit San Jose Puerto Rican Civic Club says every gift goes a long way, and you can find ways to help the ongoing effort here.
More stories on Hispanic and Latino Heritage Month here.
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