FUERZA Farmworkers’ Fund
(2020 - 2022)

Founded in 2020, at the beginning of the COVID pandemic, by Juan, Gabe Oñate, Karen Valenzuela Bermúdez, and Maria Clara de Greiff, this farmworkers’ fund began by supporting dairy farmworkers in Vermont and New Hampshire with essential and language-appropriate education, information, and resources to protect themselves against COVID-19 at a time when farmworkers were left behind in health conversations. Since its inception, it has raised over $35,000 to directly support farmworkers. It has expanded nationally, partnered with many nonprofit organizations, and now also supports women’s entrepreneurship and new and expecting mothers. In 2024, it won the Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Award for its work. You can check out the book Hands that Speak: Voices from the Upper Valley Dairy Farms here!