When it comes to changing the world, education is the most powerful tool we can count on; it is precisely one of the four pillars Olita works by. This past Thursday, March 6, was the launch of a student company called Olita, created and preceded by Gerardo Lebrón, a philosophy major here at UPRM.
On their on-campus launch, under a bamboo hut they provided anyone who was interested with information and gifted the student body live art and music. Roma and D’jao, two local bands, were the ones to set the happy and relaxed mood. Also they had Christopher Sanchez, art major, who was drawing about something very close to Olita’s mission, education.
Olita is an ecofriendly, comfortable clothing line, who will donate 10% of every sale to projects helping the poor. Their first project will be rehabilitating a house, making it a community center in La Vía, Aguadilla. This student company works by four pillars, which are: education, solidarity, health and environment.
Olita opted for a different way of funding; they are trying to recollect all of the money needed to fully launch the company in a local crowd-funding site.
When Her Campus- UPRM talked to Gerardo Lebrón he told us that the main idea of this project is simply to help. The four pillars, he and his team go by are a summary of what helping our community is all about. “Creating Olita is actually very selfish of my part, the line was devised so I and anyone who is interested can experience the joy of helping others and learning from those who are happy with what little they have.”
This student, full of passion and happiness shared with us why he chose clothing as a venue suitable for this project. As we all know, the way we dress is a form of expression, is our way to tell the world how we are feeling today. All of Olita’s art will send a positive message, in a way of raising awareness of what is really important while creating a product we can identify ourselves with. Quality will not be overlooked; the eco-friendly fabric that will be used is comfortable, light and durable.
It is a great project and a dream we, as the UPRM community, can help make possible. You be the judge, visit antrocket.com/olita and learn more about this holistic project.
The photos were taken by Aurelie Arnould and Roberto Lebrón.