September Food Drive! Patrick Harrison - P. Gringo Marketing
November 3, 2011

Septihambre is a bleak local "joke" name for the month of September (Septiembre) because of its substitution of hambre, "hunger." Seasonal tourism trends often mean that savings dwindle through the slow summer months, leaving September as the most difficult time in which to find work and put food on the table.

In response, PEACE, in collaboration with the Bucerias Bilingual Community Center, the Vallarta Yacht Club, Marina La Cruz, Vallarta Adventures, the Four Seasons Hotel, and the St. Regis Hotel, is conducting their first annual Work for Food drive from September 1 to September 30.

The program grew out of flood-relief efforts after the destructive rains of September 2010, and has been judged essential due to continuing job losses and community need. Beautification and improvement projects are under way in Punta de Mita, Higuera Blanca, and Bucerias as community members identify their towns' needs and create jobs for themselves, beautifying their towns in return for food. Two hours of work earns a participant 70 pesos worth of food, which can feed ten people. Donate to the cause here!

Donations needed to supply the program include the following:

• dried beans
• rice
• boxed milk
• cooking oil
• pasta noodles
• canned tuna
• canned or boxed tomato paste
• toilet paper

The following donation drop-off locations will be open between September 1 and September 30:

PEACE Casa Campesina
Otilio Montano S/N
Col. Emiliano Zapata
Punta de Mita, Nayarit

VIP lounge in Marina La Cruz
Marlin No. 39
La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, Riviera Nayarit

Vallarta Yacht Club
Paradise Village Marina
Paseo de los Cocoteros N 001, Local #20
Nuevo Vallarta, Nayarit

Bucerias Bilingual Community Center
Calle 16 de Septiembre #48
Col. La Unidad
Bucerias, Nayarit

PEACE will be at the Mega supermarket for an extra two days this month. In addition to their regular food-collection and animal-adoption station on the second Saturday of every month, they will staff the station on the first and fourth Saturdays as well. That's September 3, 10, and 24, between 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Come by and show your support!

If you are unable to make a food donation but wish to contribute to the cause, donate here! Thank you for your contributions! For more information about Work for Food or how to donate, contact becci@peacemexico.org.

Born in Seattle, WA, Patrick Harrison has been living in PV since 2003. Drawing on his experience in entertainment, radio, retail and sports marketing in major US cities, Patrick opened his own business here in Vallarta, P. Gringo Marketing & PR, a successful Public Relations Firm that targets the English-speaking tourist and local communities. You can contact Patrick at patrick@pgringo.com.