Renowned boxers visit Pajaro trailer park to lift spirits after flood

PAJARO — Residents at Village Trailer Park in Pajaro experienced a bit of joy in the wake of all that has happened in the past month as they got to witness a meeting between two world-class boxers.

In one corner: Jose Ramirez, a former unified light welterweight champion who represented the U.S. in the 2012 Olympics. In the other corner: Ruben Villa, a two-time U.S. National Golden Gloves champion who has experienced only one loss out of 20 matches in his seven-year career.

However, Ramirez and Villa were not at the park to square off. They were there to uplift the spirits of residents and raise funds in the aftermath of the March 11 Pajaro River levee breech that flooded the community and led to the displacement of many residents. The two boxers mingled with residents, auctioned off household items and gift cards and even provided tickets to Villa’s May 13 undercard match against an opponent to be determined at the Stockton Arena. Villa’s match will be on the same bill as the headlining Janibek Alimkhanuly vs. Steven Butler fight, which will be streamed on ESPN+.

The Pajaro event was organized by Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo, who said one of the promoters reached out about supporting Pajaro.

“These boxers wanted to come meet the residents of Pajaro to show them support but also to utilize their upcoming national televised fight to promote continued support for the residents of Pajaro and also to have the boxing fans donate to the local nonprofit organization Community Bridges,” he said.

Alejo said boxing is one of the most popular sports in the Latino community, so the event was a thrill for the residents. The event also served to highlight that many residents have still been waiting for their Federal Emergency Management Agency applications to be accepted since President Joe Biden approved a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for Monterey County that would allow for federal funding.

“Even though FEMA’s here and many hundreds of applications have been submitted, the FEMA systems have not yet reached the hands of these families,” said Alejo. “They’re waiting for the help to actually get here, and that’s part of the message that these boxers want to help share is we need FEMA to get the help to the people who need it.”

Villa, who grew up in Salinas, told the Sentinel that he was inspired to come to Pajaro after seeing all the devastation in the news.

“It was pretty sad to see,” he said. “We’ve come to help give support any way we can to help people going through these hard times.”

Villa came out in between training in Las Vegas for his upcoming fight. A lot of progress has been made in cleaning up the debris from the flooding, which he was pleased to see.

“I know a few weeks back, the water was up to the windows, they said, and there was a bunch of trash,” he said. “It’s good to see that they’re doing much better, and the water’s gone.”

Villa’s May 13 fight will be his first since signing with Top Rank Boxing. Many of Villa’s training crew, including his coach Max Garcia and Garcia’s wife Kathy, joined Villa in Pajaro to meet with residents, take photos with them and give away tickets to the fight.

Max Garcia said they were there to lift people’s spirits.

“They’ve been suffering a lot with the flood,” he said.

A raffle was also held where trailer park residents could be entered to win vacuum cleaners, microwaves, blenders, tower fans, coffeemakers with filters, and gift cards to Home Depot and Target. Local politicians were present to help with the raffle, including Santa Cruz County Supervisor Felipe Hernandez, Watsonville Mayor Pro Tempore Veronica Quiroz-Carter, Monterey County Supervisor Chris Lopez, Kings County Supervisor Richard Valle and representatives of state Sen. Anna Caballero and Assemblyman Robert Rivas’ offices.

Anna Vaage, an administrative analyst with the event’s beneficiary Community Bridges, told the crowd the nonprofit was distributing grants of $500, will later have grants of up to $2,000 to replace household items and eventually will assist with building permits and construction materials. So far, she said the organization has distributed approximately $650,000.

“That helps 1,300 people with their immediate needs,” she said. “That’s exactly the number of people who have donated support to the people of Pajaro.”

Villa told the crowd that he, his team and Ramirez were there to show moral support.

“We know the water’s all gone now, but we know that you’re still going through a lot,” he said. “We’re here to show you guys that you’re not alone, and we stand right here with you guys.”

Ramirez, who was born in Avenal, delivered a speech in Spanish where he called on the government to do more to provide assistance, which he echoed in a later interview with the Sentinel.

The goal, he said, was “to bring a message to FEMA and to the state to come and help these people and make the process short for them, not make the process more difficult for them.”

Ramirez said it was very eye-opening to go to Pajaro and meet the residents.

“As soon as I see the conditions and see their frustration, I wish I would have met them before the tragedy,” he said. “Right now, they seem a little anxious to get answers. They just need help.”

Ramirez hoped to be able to generate funds to help with bills, living expenses, home repairs and more.

“At this point, it seems like when you’re going through certain adversities, any small thing brings joy and hope to keep on moving forward,” he said.

Villa hoped for things to return to normal for Pajaro.

“Hopefully, they come back to their homes and back to work and hope that their daily routines start up for them again,” he said.

Ramirez and Villa later visited the FEMA recovery center at Pajaro Park to meet with emergency service workers.