W e e k l y RIALTO RECORD
Vol 20, NO. 31
April 14, 2022
Geni’s Florist & Gift strengthened its connection to the Rialto community throughout the pandemic By Manny B. Sandoval
S
ince 2017, Geni's Florist and Gift has held a strong presence in the Rialto community, but that connection drew even closer amid the Coronavirus Pandemic in 2020.
www.iecn.com
"During the pandemic, my flower shop became extremely busy. So in 2020, I was designing a lot of 'thinking of you' flower arrangements, with notes asking loved ones to stay indoors. Last year was tough; in 2021, we designed a lot of arrangements for funerals and this year we see a lot of requests for 'sympathy' flower arrangements," said Geni Quintanilla, owner of Geni's Florist & Gift.
Va l l e y C o l l e g e breaks ground on new A p p l i e d Te c h building Pg. 4
Center for Social Justice & Civil Liber ties reopens Pg. 8
H OW TO R E A CH U S Inland Empir e Community Newspaper s Of f ice: (909) 381 -9898 Editorial: ie cn1@ mac .com Adve r tising : sale s@iec n.c om Le gals : iec nle gals@ hotmail.com
Quintanilla said that after writing personal notes on the flower arrangement cards on behalf of the purchaser, she felt a stronger connection with the customers. PHOTO
GENI QUINTANILLA
Geni Quintanilla, a fashion designer turned florist, Puts the final touches on a mix flower arrangement.
"We felt the love when reading Geni’s, cont. on next pg.
Elks Lodge makes donation to food pantr y, recognizes Citizen of the Year
T
he Fontana-Rialto Elks Lodge used an Elks National Foundation grant to make a $2000 donation to the Keystone Cafe Food Pantry. The food pantry, which opened on 11/19/2021 at the Cesar Chavez/Dolores Huerta Center for Education, is a collaboration between Rialto Unified School District Nutrition Services, the Career Technical Education department, and students in the international cuisine and catering class. Students in the class help run the Keystone Cafe and are also involved in preparing and distributing food boxes alongside staff. The Fontana-Rialto Elks are looking forward to building upon our new partnership with the Keystone Cafe Food Pantry and the RUSD. Elks, cont. next pg.
PHOTO
RUSD
Pictured from left to right: Dr. Ed D'Souza, Lead Academic Agent; Maria Rangel, Assistant Agent: Nutrition Services; Ramiro Salazar, Fontana-Rialto Elks Lodge Exalted Ruler; Fausat Rahman-Davies, Lead Nutrition Services Agent; John Fulton, Fontana-Rialto Elks Lodge Grant Coordinator; Diane Romo, Lead Business Services Agent; and Juanita Chan, Agent: Science & Career Programs.