ORLANDO, Fla. – A 20th-anniversary celebration was held for the City of Orlando’s Hispanic Office for Local Assistance Thursday.
Known as HOLA, it’s served more than 200,000 residents, visitors and newcomers to the area.
For people who don’t understand the language or culture, assistance from this office can be life-changing, said Itsia Delgado and her son. They relocated to Central Florida from Puerto Rico, after their home was destroyed by Hurricane Maria back in 2017. Some of the services she accessed were English classes, help to find schools for her kids, and obtaining healthcare.
Since opening its doors in 2004, HOLA has been a one-stop resource center providing bilingual and culturally competent services. People who need specific assistance are connected with the appropriate government and community organizations to find jobs, houses, educational resources and other services.
The Hispanic population in Central Florida is 35%. Osceola County leads the way with the largest population at 57%, followed by Orange County with 34%, Seminole County with 24% and Lake County with 19%, according to statistics provided to us by the City of Orlando from the Institute For Economic Forecasting and the U.S. Census.
“It’s not so much what we have resources to do, it’s connecting to the other community resources around,” said Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer.
The office also helps people from other countries who speak languages other than Spanish and English.
It’s located in downtown Orlando at 595 N. Primrose Drive.
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