Local advocates and nonprofits have been working for weeks, but now, community members are stepping up to help the disproportionately affected Latinx community in the wake of a spike in cases in northern Utah.
“My phone has been going crazy with people wanting to donate, and people needing help. And so today, I expect to get quite a bit of donations, actually," said Danny Beus.
On top of having a leadership position in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he is in charge of one of nine distribution centers in Cache County organized by local Latinx advocate Crescencio López-Gónzalez to get donations to families in need after contracting the coronavirus.
“I know that there's like local church congregations, LDS congregations and others, that are really stepping up and doing a lot of work focused more locally,” Beus said.
Joining the efforts of Iglesia de Dios in Hyrum and the Catholic St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Logan are nonprofits like Cache Refugee and Immigrant Connection (CRIC) and The Family Place.
CRIC’s board president, Jess Lucero, said 90% of the non-profit’s clients have one or more household members who are employed in production and processing plants in the valley where COVID-19 outbreaks are occurring.
“The families that we’re assisting and getting deliveries out to are in really dire need," Lucero said. "They can’t leave their homes, and they want to do what’s in the best interest of the larger, wider community’s health, as well.”
Lucero operates another of the distribution centers organized by López-Gónzalez in the valley for CRIC.
Many of the individuals are immigrants and reluctant to go to government agencies for help, which is why these non-government bodies are crucial for helping the Latinx community, according to several volunteers. Lizette Villegas at The Family Place, said she’s placed herself in the community’s eye so she is a known-figure rather than a faceless name.
“100% Trust, so those that are reaching out to me know that it's confidential,” Villegas said.
One volunteer created the Facebook group "Latinos Unidos - Covid19 Cache Valley" to consolidate resources and information for the community. A survey on the page revealed that perishables, like fresh fruit and meat, are in highest demand for those in quarantine, but money to pay the bills is also a concern for many.
The full list of donation drop-off sites organized by López-Gónzalez is as follows:
Iglesia Católica de Santo Thomas de Aquino
Phone: 435-752-1478
573 E. 2050 North
Logan, UT 84341
Iglesia de Dios Peniel- Un Nuevo Comienzo
Marisol Montufar y Francisco Montufar
Phone: 435-760-6031
340 N. 800 East
Hyrum, UT 84319
Danny Beus
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Phone: 435-232-3923
386 Sheridan Ridge Lane
Nibley, UT 84321
Elizabeth Springborn
Phone: 435-374-8952
336 E. 700 South
Logan, UT 84321
Emmanuel Baptist Church
Phone: 435-245-5898
310 N. 800 East
Hyrum, UT 84319
Cache Refugee and Immigrant Connection
Jess Lucero
Phone: 307-221-3515
93 S. 1250 East
Logan, UT 84321
Stef Burns
(Relief Society-Hygiene Kits)
