From Food Aid to Helping Businesses, Eagle Valley Community Foundation Keeps Expanding Its Work
There’s plenty of need in Eagle County, and the Eagle Valley Community Foundation keeps growing to meet that need. The local nonprofit is known primarily for The Community Market and the MIRA bus, which provides mobile health services and referrals to the valley’s underserved communities.
Foundation representatives recently met with the Eagle County Board of Commissioners to talk about the group’s work. That work doesn’t happen in a vacuum. According to foundation data, MIRA bus visits increased 89% between 2022 and 2023. A nutrition and wellness seminar in March had more than 200 attendees. Asked about the jump in activity, Foundation Executive Director Melina Valsecia said MIRA is an opportunity to bring people together.
“We’re in need of connections here,” said Melina.
Those connections are being built through the Elevar program. That program is working with minority-owned small businesses, meeting twice a month with a group of seven business owners. In addition to working with those owners, the Elevar program is working to expand minority business ownership. Sofia Fecchino noted that 8% of business owners in Eagle County are people of color, far less than the 30% of the adult population. The current student population in the Eagle County School District is 51% Hispanic.
