Rotary Club of San Juan has organized it for more tan three decades
(San Juan, Puerto Rico, November 26, 2020) For the past 32 years, Rotary Club of San Juan has organized a Thanksgiving dinner/lunch for the participants of Boys & Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico (BGCPR), a non-profit and community-based organization. The event usually takes place at a hotel in San Juan. This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the virtual event reached more than 600 children, youth and their families, as well as the 300 employees of the organization that manages 11 service centers from Vieques to Mayagüez.
In order for the invited families to enjoy the experience, the day before the event each family received a box with balloons, stickers and the ingredients to prepare the Puerto Rican Thanksgiving dinner, along with recipes to prepare the turkey, pasta salad, potato salad and others, created by the BGCPR meals program staff.
The virtual event featured Anaís García Figueroa, BGCPR Youth of the Year, and Giuseppe Miguel Agrelot, a novel television actor and great-grandson of the renowned and beloved actor José Miguel Agrelot, as presenters. Among the special guests, businesswoman and Miss Earth pageant semifinalist, Alexandra Michelle Robles, played Queen Anna from Frozen, and the urban music singers Xylon and Suazo sent messages to the participants, as well as Bryan Villarini, a prominent Puerto Rican television personality, who shared a moving message with the hundreds of attendees at the virtual event.
For Olga Ramos Carrasquillo, President of Boys & Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico, “the event, a gift from the Rotary Club of San Juan to our kids for thirty-three years, had to happen. We had to continue the tradition. Rarely can we bring together hundreds of children, youth, their families, and the mentors and educators of our Clubs. Today is a very special day because seeing them remotely awakens emotions that confirm how much we miss sharing together, and that together we will continue working for a better Puerto Rico ”.
José “Pepito” Rivera, Rotarian from San Juan, commented that “it is a unique satisfaction to have the opportunity to share with children and young people of Boys & Girls Clubs of Puerto during Thanksgiving, an event that we look forward to every year. We recognize the importance of BGCPR work and its impact on the development of Puerto Rican children and youth. With today’s virtual activity, we celebrate 33 years serving voluntarily and with the commitment that moves us as Rotarians to serve others, promote integrity, understanding, goodwill and peace.”
Guests and collaborators included Fahad Ghaffad from the Fahad and Glenda Family Foundation, who is also a member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico’s Legacy Council, and Caribbean Produce Export, the entity that donated the boxes of food and gifts delivered to the families.
For more information on how you can contribute to the mission of Boys & Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico and have an impact on the lives of over 12,000 children, youth and their families, visit donate.bgcpr.org, or make your contribution through ATHMóvil using the pATH / BoysandGirlsClubsdePR. You can also access bgcpr.org or facebook.com/BGCPR for additional information.