Villarreal: VIDA is proud to be working with the Prosperity Task Force

MCALLEN, Texas – Valley Initiative for Development and Advancement is pleased to be working side by side with Hidalgo County Prosperity Task Force, its president and CEO has announced.

Felida Villarreal spoke about the new collaboration in a video podcast with the Rio Grande Guardian.

The Prosperity Task Force was set up by Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez to tackle poverty. VIDA, which celebrates its 30th anniversary next year, seeks to empower underserved residents in the Rio Grande Valley with the tools, education, and training needed to become self-sufficient.

Cortez expressed his full support for VIDA when the nonprofit’s latest annual report was released in June.

“VIDA is an outstanding organization. It is well-managed, has a tremendous board and is one of our best partners on the Prosperity Task Force because they do exactly what we’re trying to do,” Cortez told the Rio Grande Guardian.

“And that’s creating human capital. They’re taking people that have the skill, have the ability, to gain that human capital, to perform at a higher standard, and they’re giving them that opportunity by what they do. So, I’m just so happy that we’re part of them also. And they’re one of our partners, and every day I try to find monies for them to increase their capacity.”

On the Guardian podcast, Villarreal returned the compliment.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the ongoing support of Judge Cortez. He has given us the opportunity to serve on the Prosperity Task Force,” Villarreal told the Guardian. “I think that he is a huge advocate of our program of investing in human capital to address some of the poverty challenges that our region faces.”

Villarreal continued: “He (Judge Cortez) is a strong believer of education, workforce training, and that’s a need that I don’t think that’s ever going to go away. I think the more that we can encourage equitable opportunities for higher education or job training that will enable us to build a competitive workforce that is ready for tomorrow’s jobs (the better).”

Villarreal said combating poverty has to be a collective effort.

“I’m incredibly grateful for his (Judge Cortez’s) support, for his advocacy and I think moving forward, it’s definitely a collective effort. I think we’ve been able to expand our outreach and our impact thanks to the valuable partnerships that we’ve been able to build, including with HidaIgo County, different employers, institutions of higher ed and so many other community-based organizations in our region that are doing wonderful work.”

Asked if there was anything else she would like to say, Villarreal said.

“I would just say, I would invite anyone who may be interested in learning more about the work that we do to visit our website or our annual report card.

“There’s definitely an impact with the supportive services that we provide. Yes, there’s a lot of education opportunities (elsewhere), but we often hear that students may not necessarily finish a college degree or credential after they start. There are so many different obstacles that they face that unfortunately impact the college success, or the training success.

“So, it’s things like childcare, transportation, food insecurity, all these other barriers that must be addressed so that we can continue accelerating student success and student access. And so that’s what VIDA continues to achieve.”

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