This was originally posted on the Local Guest Medium Profile.
Orocovis, center and heart of Puerto Rico, is a town filled with unknown wonders for visitors eyes. In Local Guest, we have gone further on showing how big is the heart of Puerto Rico, and also, the heart of its people. Our hosts in Orocovis are committed to promote and portray the spirit of their town.
In order to see beyond their natural beauty, we decided to give you a glimpse of the faces of Orocovis that work harder each day to show visitors how big is the heart of their town. These are the people that will enhance your local experience in Orocovis.
Orocoveños por Orocovis
Orocoveños por Orocovis (also known as OPO) is a non profit organization that reunites artisans, artists, business owners, professors and many other professionals who are originally from the town of Orocovis. Their mission is to encourage the education and culture in order to promote entrepreneurial self-managing and the social and economic development in Orocovis. They believe in the cultural essence of their hometown and they work hard to preserve it.
In order to keep on promoting the essence of Orocovis, OPO will start providing experiences that help visitors connect with the history and the heart of the people of Orocovis. Stay tuned for opportunities to help this non profit rebuild their municipality.
Amigos del Bosque de Toro Negro
Amigos del Bosque de Toro Negro (or Friends of the Toro Negro Forest) is a non profit organization that has the mission of preserving and developing a sustainable social-economic community using responsibly the natural and cultural resources that can be found on the Toro Negro Forest. The organization helps to maintain clean the recreational areas in the forest, including the paths, camping and gazebos.
For Local Guest, Amigos del Bosque are crucial to the forest ecosystem and one of the ecotourism experiences we are offering in Orocovis. Along with them, we are introducing trekking and volunteering experiences in Toro Negro Forest. After meetings with the National Resources Department, Amigos del Bosque will be able to reopen the recreational areas soon. On June 9, 2018, everyone is invited to there Open House where you can learn more about their mission and get to explore the forest. Show that you are a friend of the forest as well and join Amigos del Bosque!
Harinsson Burgos
Harinsson Burgos is a local artisan who has been working on making wood-carved saints figures for more than 20 years. He started to carve wood figures when he was 8 years old, being a disciple of Celestino Avilés, a well known master artisan in the town. ‘La talla’ has been a healing process for Burgos in many aspects of his life.
It is common to find him working on his figures in the center of the city, close to where El Navideño is located. One of his trademarks is the fact that he throws the figures up to the air while working to change the side of the wood he is carving. It takes him about 20 to 30 minutes to make a figure with all its details.
He also loves and knows by heart the history of his town, which makes him one of the most interesting persons you’ll meet in Orocovis. Catch him at the square making his figures or around different artisan festivals all around the island.
Reinett Ramirez — DisfrutaOrocovis.com
Reinett Ramírez is a community leader who is completely in love with his hometown and all that it has to offer. His passion for the history of Orocovis and his studies on Web Design lead him to start the website DisfrutaOrocovis.com to promote all the attractions that his hometown has to offer visitors.
From the moment he realized that his town had so much to offer, Ramírez has been working on projects such as revamping the city center and rebuild of the Museo Celestino Avilés and promoting local arts and culture. He will be a fundamental part of the experiences we promote in Orocovis. With all this passion and knowledge for his hometown, Ramírez will be soon showing you all the aspects that you should discover of Orocovis.
At Local Guest, we know that the human touch is a fundamental part of the local experience. Come and join us to meet all this amazing people while exploring Orocovis.
Do you know anyone that should be considered a star in Orocovis? Mention them in the comments!