A year after Hurricane Maria ravaged Puerto Rico, high school students from the Academy of the Holy Angels in Demarest, New Jersey are still helping the people who were hit the hardest. Fiesta4Hope, an organization they launched, has already raised thousands of dollars for Centro PASO, a small nonprofit based in Puerto Rico.
After a summer service trip to help rebuild Puerto Rico, Rianna LeHane of Pearl River and Catherine Bagin of Glen Ridge, New Jersey organized Fiesta4Hope. The first event was held in early September at Saint Joseph Regional High School in Montvale, New Jersey, and netted $7,000. The students organized a garage sale/ flea market with games, food trucks, and music.
Fiesta4Hope is catching on at Saint Joseph Regional High School, Don Bosco, Immaculate Heart Academy, Northern Highlands, Cresskill, Glen Ridge, Pearl River, and Newark Academies, according to LeHane.
“We have branches in local schools as well as in schools in Boston, Texas, and California. We created a logo, designed a website, set up a fundraising page, a gift registry, an Instagram, and a Facebook page,” says LeHane.
Fiesta4Hope has also received support from Kelley Drye, Province, DDR Corp., Tupperware, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
All proceeds from Fiesta4Hope are sent directly to Centro PASO. Despite having limited funds, Centro PASO provides job training, case management, family counseling, culinary and gardening lessons, a community dining hall, emergency food supplies and medical aid, and an after school program for those still suffering from the effects of Hurricane Maria.
For additional information, email Fiesta4Hope@gmail.com or visit the organization’s website.
