Two St. Paul organizations are receiving monetary prizes from the Bush Foundation.

The Hmong American Farmers Association received $247,425 and the Latino Economic Development Center received $500,000 as part of the annual Bush Prize for Community Innovation.

The prize recognizes organizations that partner with the community to solve problems.

Duchesne Drew, community network vice president for the Bush Foundation, said the final winners for Minnesota were chosen in late September by a committee comprising community members.

“I think it’s really important that even our own processes are meant to be inclusive and collaborative,” Drew said.

The Hmong American Farmers Association, which started in 2011, works with about 100 Hmong farmers in the Twin Cities area through business management education, training on smart farming practices, financial advice, agricultural research and land access, said Pakou Hang, co-founder and executive director of the organization.

Drew said HAFA was chosen for the prize because “they’ve been really smart and effective in working with Hmong farmers.”

Hang said she was part of the Bush Foundation’s fellowship program, which pushed her to develop HAFA.

“I was real interested in some of the challenges … that were facing Hmong farmers,” Hang said, adding that she noticed a resurgence during that time in locally grown foods.

After being invited to form a panel of Hmong farmers for a conference six years ago, she said, the participants realized their ability to use farming to sustain their families and build wealth.

“It really was an act of self-determination,” she said. “It came from farmers wanting to better themselves and better their families.”

The organization also owns and manages 155 acres south of St. Paul called the HAFA Farm and employs 12 full-time staff members, she said.

“Immigrant farmers and field workers are often invisible, overlooked or under-appreciated for their enormous contributions to the national and local food economies,” Hang said.

She added that HAFA plans to develop research projects with the prize and invest money back into the farmers and the organization itself. Related Articles As memories of George Floyd fade, activists make sure his legacy does not

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“This is the engine of growth for many of the Hmong community,” Hang said of farming. “We are humbled and honored by the Bush Prize because it recognizes Hmong farmers and their entrepreneurial spirit.”

Ramon Leon, founder, president and chief executive of the Latino Economic Development Center, said the center is a grass-roots organization that offers economic support and opportunities for people from a Latino culture.

“We have to be very innovative, very creative,” Leon said of LEDC. “We are very pleased that the foundation recognized our efforts. That money will be used for the betterment for our own community.”

Drew added that the center is inclusive in how it deals with the community and “has a great track record.”

“They’ve got a pattern that they can show,” he said. “They’re also looking to establish healthy partnerships.”

Organizations from North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and the 23 American Indian nations in those states’ geography are able to apply for the annual prize.

This year, seven organizations were awarded money, and four of them are in Minnesota.