Making an Impact
In December of 1985, HUSCO International Inc. was born as a result of a buy out led by Agustin A. Ramirez (Gus), HUSCO’s Chairman. Shortly thereafter, Gus developed a set of values that would be taught to every employee and new hire around the world. One of these key values is the obligation “to use HUSCO’s success to make a better world.” This value has been a guiding principle for HUSCO’s philanthropic efforts as well those of the Ramirez family, who own 90% of HUSCO shares.
HUSCO’s philosophy has been to identify and fund non-profit organizations that are committed to excellence, particularly those with a focus on primary (K-12) education. Local organizations that have received substantial funding include the United Community Center (UCC) and its Bruce Guadalupe School, St. Marcus elementary school, Schools That Can Milwaukee, Carmen School of Science and Technology, and many others. The focus of these investments is to generate opportunities for organizations that are making an exceptional impact to expand their reach and serve more kids in Milwaukee.These investments are almost always accompanied by a HUSCO executive that sits on the board to ensure that the donations are used wisely and leveraged appropriately.
In addition to the local schools in the greater Milwaukee area, a primary focus of the Ramirez family has been to create and expand Christian schools in Central America. This activity has been going on for approximately ten years. The ultimate goal of the family is to create schools for a million children in Central America that will go on to become highly functional adults that impact their countries in a highly positive way. Gus Ramirez said “Our hope and goal is that these schools in Central America become oases of highly functional communities that exhibit Christian values and help create family and governmental stability. These goals will likely require more than one generation of the Ramirez’s to achieve, but without dreaming big goals, big things do not happen.”
In addition to funding schools directly, the Ramirez Family Foundation funds over one hundred college scholarships each year. The Foundation focus is on minority students, children of HUSCO employees, and children of Christian missionaries. The scholarships typically cover all four years of school with annual per student awards ranging from two thousand dollars to ten thousand dollars depending on the student and the school attended.
Austin Ramirez, HUSCO’s CEO said, “The sum of the philanthropic efforts of the Ramirez family and HUSCO exceeds seven figures annually and demonstrates the impact that private companies make in their local communities. Being an outstanding corporate citizen is just as important to us as being a high performing business enterprise.” There are no tags associeted with this post.
