MAY 2019 | VOL. NO.

THE ANACAONA
The Official Newsletter for Puerto Rico Rise Up, Inc.

Spreading joy through books

What happens when three non-profits join forces?

Turns out, many good things!

As we continue to grow and develop our initiatives, we wanted to share our�

exciting, newest project that took place this past April 8th and 9th!

PRRU teamed up with Access Books, a California based non-profit� organization

specializing in literacy and access to books for all. Since their�
establishment in
1999, they have provided over 1.6 million books to over 200, 000 children across
300 libraries! 

Rebecca Constantino, the founder of the organization, reached out to our�

education director, Dr. Margie Gerena Lewis, to combine forces. In addition,�
we
teamed up with another non-profit, San Felipe Humanitarian Alliance and�
organized our first event!

The team included over 30 volunteers from California, Utah, New York and�Ohio
and together we brought books, donations, and artwork to the Ines�Maria
Mendoza school in Camito and the Francisco Jordan school in�Utuado.  The
Utuado community is particularly important for our team�since the passage
Hurricane Maria severely affected them and the�school has 1000 students, most
from low resource areas. Altogether, we�were able to distribute over 10,000
books to the schools.

The artwork consisted of mural painting at the schools to beautify the�

surroundings. This was organized by 4 artists, part of our visiting volunteers. cont.

Article Highlights in This

Issue
Access books initiative cont.
Meet the Team, Mr. Felix
Spreading joy through books
MEET THE TEAM
cont.
Who is our Regional Director?
The painting of the murals gave people from the local community and Meet Félix Seda
schools an opportunity to engage and take part in the initiative. Over
twenty (20) volunteers got together and painted the murals!

Jeffrey Patrick Kinney, the author of a Diary of a Wimpy Kid, donated�

several books, and we had other personal private book� donations
that were distributed amongst the Boys and Girls� Club of Arecibo
and several orphanages. 

As part of the initiative, we stopped by the orphanage Casa Cuna� de

Caguas and delivered donations to the kids there. In addition,� we
held an educational activity at El Yunque Rainforest for the� children Who is he?
of the orphanages Fernandez Juncos and Hogar Teresa� de Todos.
Here, the children learned about the rainforest and� our little Coqui, Mr. Seda is our incredible regional�
explored it’s surrounding and enjoyed lunch� together. director, at only 25 y/o! He is a full-time�
student working towards his Psychology�
Ph.D. after majoring in Biology and�
Teaming up with these two non-profits was an incredible� experience Aerospace sciences in undergrad.
for PRRU! They helped maintain the�flame of hope for a better
future by promoting reading,� education, imagination, and teamwork. What is his vision?
It is motivating to see all�the wonderful people doing good work in
"The organization has successfully� pivoted
the world, and it is a constant source of inspiration for us.
from phase 1 to phase 2 of� disaster relief
by addressing the� declining mental health
state of people�and communities. PRRU
has been� proactive in incorporating
mental health� as part of the disaster relief
after the�hurricanes and been able to
establish�aids for the communities. I find
it a�personal motivator to keep working
with�these communities."

Why PRRU?

After Maria hit the island, Mr. Seda�

formed a team of Jeeps with off-road�
recovery, wilderness skills, and� equipment
to take aid into the hardest� hit
communities of Puerto Rico. He�worked
endless hours with the help of� Puerto Rico
Rise Up. After the dust� settled, phase 2 of
recovery started, and�he continued his
involvement in the� organization helping in
activities while�
finishing his degree.

"PRRU differs from other�organizations

because of its commitment�from the
diaspora to be sensitive to the�societal
problems facing the island, and adapting
to meet these� challenges. This has been
evident from� day one, and this
involvement led me to�report back specific
problems in some�communities and the
deployment of� further resources to meet
their needs."