Cinco de Mayo isn’t usually cause for a huge celebration – but it is when Friends of Pimpollo gets involved. We hosted 245 of our friends this month to celebrate the Mexican holiday in style. We gathered together for a hour-long luncheon featuring authentic Oaxacan red mole at the Salem Conference Center to learn more about Friends of Pimpollo’s programs and education initiatives and to raise money for some gorgeous and deserving students in Southern Mexico.
The program kicked off with a wonderful speech about who Friends of Pimpollo is by the founder and current president, Mr. John Kerr. John reminded everyone in the room of how far Friends of Pimpollo has come from its humble beginnings as a few people who wanted to help out an orphanage. When John first saw the orphanage, it was chaos. More than 100 children with only one adult for supervision lived in dormitories meant to house 40-60 children. Thirty children had failed their classes that year along. Though John had only gone down to Oaxaca and Juchitan for a week with a Medical Teams International Trip, he was so moved by the children and adults he met that he was compelled to return to Oregon and start a non-profit to help them. As John said in his speech, “That’s how one week turned into 20 years of blessings. That’s how one trip turned into 45.”
Ten years later, not a single child at Pimpollo was held back this year. Their numbers have thinned out to around 50 children, and there are 7 adults living on site who offer guidance in life and help with their homework. Our first college graduate, Juli, is back at Pimpollo and putting her psychology degree to good work. The event featured a short video on Friends of Pimpollo, narrated and produced by co-founder Julie Hoy. It showcased our programs when they began and as they are today – still growing. To view the full Friends of Pimpollo video visit YouTube and type in “Friends of Pimpollo.” Julie also spoke of Madre Estela, the mother and co-founder of the Pimpollo home, who passed away in August. It was a devastating loss for all of the children and everyone who knew her.
Today, Friends of Pimpollo is much more than just a supporter of the Pimpollo Home for Children in Juchitan. We work with a community outside the dump in Oaxaca City where we have built a community center and work with four elementary schools as well as adult literacy. Our vision has come into focus here: education. Specifically, our goal is that no child ceases their education because they can’t afford it. We offer scholarships to all ages of students. Four students are in secondary school, four in high school, and ten students are earning university degrees in Tuxtla, Chiapas where they live in a community emphasizing service along with education. We offer adult men and women the opportunity to learn to read and to write, something many of these very poor people have never had the chance to learn. Nearly 100 are taking advantage of our programs and working to earn a certificate of literacy from the government. Julie quoted a woman in the literacy program who said, “Learning to read and write means I will never again be taken advantage of in the same way. Thank you.”
The event was a huge success! In fact, it was the most successful and largest fundraiser Friends of Pimpollo has planned to date. We owe our thanks to Chef Tory Knauss, who was trained in Oaxaca, and his staff who prepared an amazing lunch, the SCC staff, our speakers Greg McManus, John Kerr, Julie Hoy, Dave Hafner and all of our sponsors: Spring Valley Dairy, Allied Video, Wavelength Multimedia, Charlie’s Produce, Merrill Lynch, VIP’S Industries Inc., Columbia Meat, and Sysco.
We already have the SCC booked for next year on Cinco de Mayo. So mark your calendars for another amazing lunch and program. Hope to see you there, and thanks again to our sponsors:
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