UnitedHealthcare Donates $125,000 to Latino Leadership to Expand Programs for Families Displaced by Hurricane Maria

UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Florida donated $125,000 to support Latino Leadership’s programs that help families affected by Hurricane Maria relocate from Puerto Rico to Central Florida.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180622005073/en/

UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Florida donated $125,000 to support Latino Leadership's programs that help families affected by Hurricane Maria relocate from Puerto Rico to Central Florida. Left to right: Joe Angelastro, Latino Leadership board director; Marucci Guzman, executive director, Latino Leadership; Marytza Sanz, president and CEO, Latino Leadership; Michael Lawton, CEO, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Florida Lenys Alcoreza, VP-National Sales, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan (Photo: Jonathan Avila).

Just days after the hurricane, Latino Leadership and the Florida State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce established the Puerto Rico Family Response Center to provide emergency relief and referrals for housing, employment, schools and health care.

“UnitedHealthcare is partnering with Latino Leadership to address a significant challenge in our state – ensuring that families from Puerto Rico have access to the resources they need to lead a healthy and productive life,” said Michael Lawton, CEO of UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Florida. “We are grateful for the opportunity to support Latino Leadership’s compassionate and hands-on approach to helping Puerto Rican families get a new start.”

Many of the Puerto Rican families who arrived in Florida after the storm relocated to Orange, Osceola and other Central Florida counties. Latino Leadership recently expanded the Puerto Rico Family Response Center into a permanent one-stop resource centrally located in Orlando to serve the Hispanic community.

“Since the first few weeks after Hurricane Maria, as people arrived with little more than their suitcases, we worked to fill the great need for shelter, medicine, food and clothing,” said Marytza Sanz, president and CEO of Latino Leadership, which has helped more than 9,000 families transition to Florida. “As their needs have changed, with the support and welcoming spirit of partners like UnitedHealthcare, we can help more families fully rebuild their lives in Central Florida, their new home.”