Resilience in Vieques: Angel and his new freezer
By Carolina Quintero, SEEDS program Coordinator
Vieques is a beautiful island municipality east of the Puerto Rican mainland and home to 21 youth from our SEEDS Youth entrepreneurship program from school: Adrienne Serrano.
However, our Puerto Ricans from Vieques live day to day with many difficulties. From the failures in reliable maritime transportation, lack of adequate medical services, and limited economic development to the absence of hospitals since the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
50% of the Vieques population live under the poverty line. All of them live with the uncertainty of knowing whether they will receive the resources needed or if the sick will be able to attend their medical appointments on the main island.
It is for this reason that our SEEDS program works with students from Vieques, teaching entrepreneurship and financial literacy to stimulate economic growth in the island municipality and hoping to, in the long-term, reduce the poverty rates. One example of this is the case of Angel Guerra Reyes. Angel has been a part of our program since its inception. This year he decided to create his own business of smoothies and shakes called “Sabor Frappe."
Angel is an exemplary case of the issues low-income communities from Vieques face. Angel lives in subsidized housing with his mother and sister, and they have no access to transportation, making it difficult for them to acquire the resources to start a business.
Motivation and teamwork
With the help of Angel’s mentor and his teacher, we guided the student to build his business from his own house. Angel’s mother already sells chips and soda from her apartment to the Vieques community and thus Friends of Puerto Rico invested in Angel’s business with a chest freezer he could set in his home and store the products for his smoothies and shakes, expanding on the small business his mother already runs.
To deliver the chest to Angel, the SEEDS team had to search several stores to find out none of them offer delivery to Vieques. The supplier method to ship is via ferry, which is Vieques’ unreliable transportation method. The team found the nearest freezer, and Angel’s teacher asked a family member to arrange the pick-up and delivery to Angel’s house in Vieques.
Even with all of the barriers the children from Vieques face they are motivated to learn and create their own businesses.
With your continued support, we can continue to empower children like Angel. If you want to contribute please consider donating, becoming a mentor to our SEEDS students, or buying or social impact coffee Café Ama Love.
