MONTE VISTA — On Tuesday, March 26, the LOR Foundation donated $1,500 to the Future Business Leaders of America club at Monte Vista High School. The money was given to assist the business students with their attendance at the state competition for FBLA to help with expenses associated with the trip. The sponsorship will help with the cost of travel, meals, and lodging.

The students were excited about the scholarship and publicly thanked the LOR Foundation for their help.

The LOR Officer for Monte Vista, Ivette Atencio, was excited to help the students.

“I feel very honored to help our local schools and our students with their educational endeavors. No student should be limited to their educational opportunities due to financial barriers. This funding will also help alleviate any financial worry that the students’ families may have about the trip. I am very happy to have the opportunity to help with this,” she said.

The idea for the sponsorship began when Monte Vista High School business teacher John Naranjo reached out to the LOR Foundation to request help. Naranjo reached out as there are 21 students who are set to compete at the state FBLA competition this week.

According to Atencio, while the school was able to cover most of the trip, donations and sponsorships are always helpful as many schools require more funding to completely cover trips. This ensures that there is less financial strain on students and their families.

The $1,500 that was awarded by the LOR Foundation will help cover anything that the school cannot cover.

Future Business Leaders of America, better known as FBLA, is one of the largest business student organizations in the world. According to FBLA.org, students in FBLA gain like-minded business socialization skills, and networking connections. The organization helps prepare students for career development in business beyond their high school and college years.

FBLA helps students build and obtain confidence in themselves, through recognition awards and there are even ways students can use FBLA to obtain scholarships for continuing education.

The FBLA state competition allows students to compete in different areas to obtain leadership and awards. There are different competitive events and subjects at the competition including Public Speaking, Business Law, Entrepreneurship, and Accounting.

According to the LOR Foundation website, the LOR Foundation is a private nonprofit organization that works with individuals and business organizations to help with projects that benefit rural areas. The LOR Foundation helps with funding, support, and resources.

The LOR foundation seeks community, social, and individual input on how to kick start projects that benefit many rural areas in the Mountain West area. The LOR Foundation helps improve the quality of life for many individuals and organizations by assisting with money and resources. LOR stands for Livability, Opportunity, and Responsibility.

For more information on FBLA or the LOR Foundation you may visit their online websites and Facebook Pages.