Grower-shipper group aids farmworker community in flooding aftermath

As residents of a small town awaited federal disaster assistance for flood recovery, the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California led an effort to provide health care and supplies to the community.

Pajaro, Calif., suffered widespread damage due to breach of the Pajaro River levee March 10. The Monterey County town is largely a farmworker community, which saw jobs lost after farms, businesses and homes were flooded, according to a Grower-Shipper Association of Central California blog post.

Federal disaster aid was not approved until weeks after the flooding. 

“This delayed help with rent assistance, clean-up and repairs to homes and businesses. To offset and augment delayed federal assistance, many businesses and individuals contributed to local charities to help with immediate needs for residents including short-term housing, food, furniture, clothing and other essentials,” according to the blog post.

The Grower-Shipper Association of Central California said in the post that it partnered with Clinica de Salud del Valle de Salinas to provide medical care, medication replacement and hygiene supplies in the aftermath.
 
That led to setting up a mobile clinic at the main shelter for displaced Pajaro residents to make services readily accessible, before the operation was moved to Pajaro when evacuation orders were lifted, according to the post.

A grant awarded to the grower-shipper association funded the medical care, which came at no cost to the community, the post said; as of April 14, 43% (1,500) of Pajaro residents had received medical services and essential supplies through the partnership.

"While we were pleased that federal assistance was approved on April 4 to help residents, businesses and farms recover, the flooding occurred on March 10 so it was imperative to provide immediate assistance to this severely impacted community and address gaps," association President Christopher Valadez said in the post. "As we did during the pandemic, GSA and Clinica worked quickly to provide crucial services for impacted residents to offset delays in government services."
 
Pajaro farms that employed hundreds are dealing with “severe losses,” and it could be weeks before local business reopen, the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California said.

“Temporary housing is the most crucial need and unemployment compounds the problem,” according to the post.
 
“GSA is committed to continue to help communities impacted by flooding. As we enter spring and we see the harvest begin, there is a seemingly reassuring component to a return to the business of providing food to consumers,” the association said in the post. “But, we must keep our attention on those in long-term need of critical support.”