Officials from the Kent County Gateways for Growth announced a new welcome plan coordinator this week as the new leader says, she’s aiming to make West Michigan more accessible to local immigrants and refugees.
“I am just super excited to work with refugee, immigrant, new American populations which I have been doing for the last 4 years,” said new Coordinator for the Kent County Welcome Plan Steering Committee, Hollin De La Cruz.
Following the release of a 2020 Welcome Plan, De La Cruz says her focus out of the gates will be creating an inclusive environment for immigrants in the community—including finding work in their desired profession—integral she says, to restoring Kent County’s economy after two years of the pandemic.
“I think one thing that we’re going to focus on is not how many people are working, but are they working where they are trained, where they want to work, where they see value and thrive, and [can] be happy in their work.”
De La Cruz starts her new position this week, following 4 years of service in the Kent Intermediate School District.
