Happy New Year from the entire NOHHF family to yours!

“2020 was certainly an unprecedent year in which we experienced personal losses, but it was also a year wherein we achieved things we never envisioned could be possible. After the Covid-19 pandemic hit our community, our human interactions were transformed in unimaginable ways, forcing us to adapt and rethink every aspect of our lives. 

The New Orleans Hispanic Heritage Foundation was no exception. Without the possibility of holding our annual fundraising event, the Azúcar Ball, we had to think out of the box in order to continue our mission to support talented and high-achieving low-income Hispanic high school students in our area. The NOHHF Board of Directors, our Executive Director and our beloved volunteers worked tirelessly to continue serving our community through our programs. There were moments when we thought we would not be able to fulfill this important mission, but an extraordinary response from our friends, loyal sponsors and individual patrons throughout different funding campaigns allowed for our work to continue uninterrupted. 

I want to especially express my gratitude and recognition to our partner sponsors Pan American Life Insurance Group and Entergy, and to all our Azúcar Ball loyal sponsors who supported us even after the decision was made to cancel the event. I also want to thank all of the individual patrons that financially contributed through the year. This generosity made the new year more promising than ever! 

When we believed we had seen it all, an incredible 16-year-old girl and her amazing parents swam a 3-person relay on December 27th to cross the Mexican English Channel in Cozumel, promoting a funding campaign to support the Foundation’s mission, and raising a spectacular $10,000. What a way to end 2020! Thank you to Carolina, Mauricio and Susan Prieto!

Now that a new year is here with hope to end a devastating pandemic, the NOHHF family embraces 2021 with optimism and courage. We are ready to work for our community, our outstanding students, provide new cultural programing, and kick off a promising mentoring program that will enrich our Hispanic youth, while continuing our well-established scholarship program. 

A Happy New Year from the entire NOHHF family to yours!” 

Maricarmen Huelga Aldana, President of the NOHHF Board of Directors.

To see our President video message Click HERE.