South Bend, Indiana, January 29, 2024 — Proteus, Inc. was one of a dozen organizations in Northern Indiana that received a portion of a $435,000 community investment from the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi and its Four Winds Casinos on Thursday, January 25. The check presentation ceremony took place at Four Winds South Bend’s Ribbon Town Conference and Event Center.
Proteus, Inc., headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, is a 501c3 non-profit that has been providing educational assistance and job training to farmworkers in Indiana since 2013 and in Iowa since 1979. The funding will support programming and services for agricultural workers and their families.
Accepting the check on behalf of Proteus, Inc., were Daniel Zinnel, CEO of Proteus, Inc., Jesusa Rivera, Senior Career Coach for Northern Indiana, Lorena Garcilazo-Coria, Program Specialist, and Randall Collins, Regional Director. They posed for a picture with the members of the Pokagon Band’s Tribal Council, including Tribal Chairwoman, Rebecca Richards, and senior executives from Four Winds Casinos.
Regarding the grant, Zinnel says, “We are incredibly honored to receive this funding from the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi and its Four Winds Casinos in support of farmworkers. This gift inspires us to continue our mission of empowering farmworkers and their families and uplifting the well-being of the backbone of our food system.”
Rebecca Richards, Tribal Chairwoman of the Pokagon Band said, “We are very pleased to have selected Proteus as one of our community investment recipients for 2024. Food and farming are not only important elements of our history and culture as a tribe, but they are also critically important to sustain the communities in which we reside. We hope our $20,000 contribution will make a significant difference in the effort to give back to agricultural workers and their families that work so hard to provide for so many.”
About Proteus, Inc.: Proteus is a multi-state 501c3 non-profit organization that provides services to farmworkers in Iowa, Nebraska and Indiana. The mission of Proteus is to provide agricultural workers and their families with affordable healthcare, education assistance, and job training. To learn more about Proteus, to make a donation, or to learn about sponsorship opportunities, feel free to contact Emily Mendez at emilyme@proteusinc.net.
About The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians of Michigan and Indiana
The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi’s sovereignty was reaffirmed under legislation signed into law by President Clinton in September of 1994. The Pokagon Band is dedicated to providing community development initiatives such as housing, education, family services, medical care, and cultural preservation for its more than 6,000 citizens. The Pokagon Band’s ten-county service area includes four counties in Southwestern Michigan and six in Northern Indiana. Its main administrative offices are located in Dowagiac, Mich., with a satellite office in South Bend, Ind. In 2007, it opened Four Winds Casino Resort in New Buffalo, Mich., followed by Four Winds Hartford in 2011, Four Winds Dowagiac in 2013 and Four Winds South Bend in January 2018. The Pokagon Band operates a variety of non-gaming businesses through its investment enterprises, Mno-Bmadsen and the Pokagon Development Authority. More information is available at www.pokagonband-nsn.gov, www.fourwindscasino.com and www.mno-bmadsen.com.
Responses