When our nonprofit partner Rosie’s House: A Music Academy for Children needed catering for a recent Teen Night, we were delighted to step up! Area Coach Rick Ontiveros, who oversees Desert de Oro Foods’ (DDO) Taco Bell Cantinas in Phoenix and Tempe, AZ, made it happen.
“I think it’s important to work with the community when we can.”
-Rick Ontiveros, Taco Bell Area Coach
The purpose of this latest Teen Night was to provide a welcoming space where teens could meet new friends and find connection, all while supporting their overall mental health and well-being with positive social interaction and activities.
Rick and Restaurant General Manager (RGM) Trevon Wright happily delivered beef tacos and cheesy bean burritos to the Taco Bell lovin’ crowd, and stuck around to take pictures and engage with the attendees. Rick has been instrumental in forming relationships with the music teachers since a group from DDO toured Rosie’s last fall.
DDO & Rosie’s: In Perfect Harmony
According to Rosie’s House Program Manager Melissa Sainz, everything Rosie’s House provides — including music lessons, instruments, supplies, meals, mental health referrals, homework support, and college application and scholarship guidance — comes at no cost to its 800+ students and their families. That means it relies 100% on the generosity of individuals and organizations like DDO.
“This critical support allows us to pursue our mission of eliminating barriers to a high-quality music education,” she says.
DDO has been a longtime supporter of Rosie’s House through our company founders and annual efforts to help the organization secure Taco Bell Foundation community grant support. Last year, we were proud to deliver a sizable donation in support of the organization’s facility expansion (they’d outgrown their space) and programming. We’re happy to report that construction is complete!
This is the feel-good stuff we love. We look forward to more opportunities to cater and fundraise for Rosie’s House in the coming year. Anytime we can help out kids, count us in!
