A local organization is hoping that tequila will help put
students through college, not cause them to drop out.
Gilroy – A local organization is hoping that tequila will help put students through college, not cause them to drop out.
The Latino Family Fund de Gilroy will host a tequila tasting Sept. 15 to raise money for Hispanic students and families. Organizers hope they will raise $5,000 this year and upward of $3,000 through the event.
“We’re a huge Latino population and we want to support the emerging, positive things that are happening,” founding fund member Leighan Perales said. Her husband, John, is principal of South Valley Middle School.
The Perales were among 12 families that formed the fund last year and collectively donated the $10,000 required to join the Gilroy Foundation – a nonprofit that manages and combines money from multiple funds to earn higher interest rates.
The families met at the year’s end to award a scholarship to a high school student attending Gavilan College. This year, the families have not yet decided where the money will go.
Any family that makes a $500 contribution will have a say in the decision, made at the academic year’s end, said Angie Aguirre, who has worked with a number of Hispanic nonprofits and foundations including the Mexican American Community Services Organization. Aguirre’s husband, Javier, is a trustee with the Gilroy Unified School District.
The organization’s structure allows donors to be hands-on, which appeals to Hispanics, Aguirre said.
“Latinos really do have a strong tradition of giving but there is a really serious disconnect with the nonprofit sector and foundations in particular,” she said.
The tequila tasting – hosted by school trustee Jaime Rosso and his family – was designed to follow in this tradition, Aguirre said. Attendees will be treated to about a dozen types of tequila – all donated by the families – Mexican hors d’oeuvres and Latino music. The fund will also host a silent auction featuring items donated by community members.
As with other fund events, the focus is not only on donors giving, but enjoying themselves, Aguirre said.
“There is just a lot of talking and fun and it is very friendship-driven,” she said. “And that’s the way Latinos like to do things.”
