Pepsi Bottling Group Helps Local Hispanic Community.

It was impossible to miss the Hispanic Heritage Month celebration at The Pepsi Bottling Group’s (PBG) headquarters in Somers, NY. The smell of Hispanic cuisine filled the cafeteria, a local vendor displayed Hispanic crafts and Westchester artist Angel Pena’s paintings decorated the company’s lobby.

But PBG demonstrated its support for Hispanic Heritage Month outside its offices as well. The Pepsi Bottling Group Foundation (The PBG Foundation) awarded two grants to local organizations that serve the Hispanic community in Westchester County. The PBG Foundation awarded one $1250 grant to Neighbors Link of Mount Kisco and another $1250 grant to Services, Education and Resources (SER) of Westchester.

“We at PBG have thoroughly enjoyed celebrating the richness and diversity of Hispanic culture over the past month,” said Angela Buonocore, Vice President of Corporate Communications at PBG. “But we wanted to go further to honor this culture by supporting our local Hispanic communities in a meaningful way.”

“I am just thrilled that The Pepsi Bottling Group has reached out to us,” said Diana Campos, Executive Director of SER of Westchester. “This grant will help us with our after school and in-school programs for youngsters.”

“We’re grateful for this very generous donation, which will go directly into our education programs,” said Carola Bracco, Executive Director of Neighbors Link. “We teach English programs five mornings and evenings per week to Latino immigrants, so this money will go to buy supplies and materials for them.”

SER of Westchester’s mission is to serve the community by preparing children, youth and adults for the workforce through innovative education and technology. The organization focuses on promoting English literacy skills, academic enhancement, job training and life skills. SER currently administers education programs at schools in Port Chester, Greenburgh and New Rochelle.

Neighbors Link, based in Mount Kisco, works to strengthen the community by enhancing the healthy integration of recent Latino immigrants. The organization was founded to meet the needs of 3,000 Latino immigrants who represent 26 percent of Mount Kisco’s total population. Neighbors Link provides adult and pre-school education, computer skills training, employment and economic development counseling and help for personal and family issues.