Mid September marked the beginning of National Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Month and BOCA is very proud to say we have chosen the Hispanic Heritage Fund as the recipient of this month’s donation matching program. Each month BOCA selects a non-profit organization and matches all employee donations in an effort to the people and places we care about.
The Hispanic Heritage Fund was started in 1988 and its goal is to identify, inspire, prepare and position Latino leaders in the classroom, community and workforce to meet America’s priorities. This organization has done some really incredible work, like partnering with Nickelodeon and KID Museum to create an Anti-Hate guide for educators, parents and children to increase the understanding, appreciation and respect for the Latinx community. The fund is also working with TikTok to create a $150,000 Grant Fund aimed at expanding and elevating 30 Small Latinx Businesses across the U.S.
The BOCA team is home to multiple team members with families from many different Hispanic communities, including Mexico and Ecuador. BOCA partner, Sammy Totah, is half Mexican with his family hailing from Chihuahua, Mexico. “Some of my favorite Mexican traditions include Christmas and eating Tamales, eating traditional chicken mole on Dia de Los Muertos and Rosca de Reyes where you find the baby Jesus in the cake,” said Sammy. Sammy has traveled all over Mexico visiting towns including Mexico City, Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta, Cabo, Cancun and Mazatlan. Growing up he listened to a lot of music by Ritchie Valens and as an adult even toured with the legendary Carlos Santana.
BOCA writer, Diego Vasquez, is proud of his Mexican-American roots. Diego’s father grew up on the West Side of St. Paul, one of the most vibrant Mexican communities in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. Diego’s wife is from Ecuador, and so they have visited Quito, Ecuador’s capital, more than 10 times!
Roberto Burgos, BOCA AE, is proud that his parents are originally from the state of Guerrero in the southern coastal region of the Mexican Republic. They both arrived in the U.S. in the mid-1980s and have lived in San Diego ever since. One of his favorite traditions includes Mother’s day on May 10: “I love this holiday because we get to celebrate my mom twice in the same week. Once on May 10th and another on the second Sunday of May,” said Roberto. He also likes the delicious sweet bread his mom bakes for Dia de Los Muertos and posole and champurrado at the yearly Christmas Eve parties.
The Hispanic and Latinx communities have enriched all of our lives in so many ways, from the music we listen to and the food we enjoy, to the culture and family traditions that so many of us have come to know and cherish. While we are happy to celebrate them even more this month, we are truly appreciative of these cultures every day of the year. BOCA values diversity and believes that our differences are what make us.