Several West Shore business owners have sent $5,000 to residents in the resort city of Cabo San Lucas, which was hit hard last week by tropical storm Lidia.
The group sent the aid to a pastor with whom Langford Mayor Stew Young has longstanding charitable relationship.
“If you’re on a holiday and going to those areas, it’s great to have fun,” Young said. “But you want to leave a little bit behind. When this kind of thing happens down there, obviously it’s devastating to the people and the economy.”
The money was raised through Young’s company, the Alpine Group, and other Langford businesses.
The connection to Cabo San Lucas has resulted in several fundraising initiatives over the years, including an annual fishing derby for children.
“It’s a loose organization, but we put the money where it’s needed,” Young said. “It’s not going through some organization in Mexico City. We know these people, and we know their plight. So we go directly to where it’s needed.”
Young said he hopes to raise another $5,000, noting the effects of the storm will be felt for some time. “It would take us a month to get supplies and send it down, so sending money is a bit more immediate.”
The city on the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula, where Young has vacationed since 1984, is about an hour from the area with the most severe damage.
Other donations include a decommissioned Langford Fire Rescue truck and an Alpine-branded boat used for fishing and whale-watching ventures.
Young said the boat was out of the water at the time and not damaged. “If it was in the water, it would be very different.”
