AT THE ANNUAL CONVENTION IN OCTOBER, ELFA President and CEO Ralph Petta announced the launch of the ELFA Hurricane Relief Hunger Project to support hurricane relief efforts in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico. The association launched this project in partnership with Feeding Children Everywhere (FCE), a charity that empowers and mobilizes people to assemble healthy meals for hungry children.
A number of ELFA members encouraged the association to launch this initiative to help those affected by the devastating hurricanes of 2017. One of those members was Ricardo E. Rios, Vice President of CEFI, an independent equipment finance company headquartered in Puerto Rico. Rios sent the association an email voicing his concerns about the dire situation on the island. He wrote, in part:
Aid is arriving to Puerto Rico but there are enormous logistical problems to get the aid to the people most in need. Regardless of the amount of aid arriving and logistical issues being solved, Puerto Rico will need a lot and it will take a very long time for Puerto Rico to resemble what it was prior to Hurricane Maria. For this reason, I am reaching out to request that we at ELFA come together to assist Puerto Rico by setting up a Puerto Rico relief efforts fund, and hope we can use ELFA’s communications platform and upcoming Convention to raise as much monetary support possible for the island.
This request, and several other requests from members concerned about the impact of the storms, inspired ELFA to take action. The association worked with FCE to set up a special website—which was featured on the association’s homepage and promoted through the association’s communication channels—to accept financial contributions to the ELFA Hurricane Relief Hunger Project. Members of the equipment finance community stepped up and generously donated a total of $8,138 through the end of November. ELFA matched that donation, bringing the total contribution to $16,276. All funds raised supported children and families in hurricane-devastated areas.
In addition, during the Annual Convention, members supported hurricane relief efforts by participating in a community service project with Feeding Children Everywhere. Member volunteers packed 20,000 healthy meal kits that were shipped to children in need in Puerto Rico. Thanks to the generosity of ELFA sponsors, as part of the community service project, the association donated an additional $11,000 to support the Feeding Children Everywhere Puerto Rican hurricane relief effort, which worked with FEMA to distribute 4.4 million meal kits to children and families in the region.
Ricardo Rios expressed his appreciation for the efforts of ELFA members. “It is a true testament to the strength and character of our association when we not only come together to network and conduct business, but consistently support non-profit organizations and react promptly to catastrophic events,” said Rios.
“We are grateful for the support from ELFA toward critical meals for Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria,” said Daniela Farinas, Regional Manager of Feeding Children Everywhere. “At Feeding Children Everywhere we practice the vision that ‘Together we can achieve a Hunger-Free World.’ Support from partners like ELFA make that vision a reality.”
ELFA thanks all the members who contributed their time, effort and financial assistance to this initiative.
