Institutions and business leaders gather to honor Sinaloa’s strong community spirit
Mazatlán celebrated Philanthropy Day 2025 on November 26, an event dedicated to recognizing and thanking the work carried out by Private Assistance Institutions (IAPs) across Sinaloa.
During his address, Roque Mascareño Chávez, President of the Private Assistance Board of Sinaloa, noted that the word that gives the celebration its name doesn’t fully capture the social essence of community work.
“The word philanthropy, which sounds very fancy and elegant, I’d like to change it—I’m going to talk to Larousse about replacing it with ‘sinaloísmo.’ Philanthropy is the character, the way Sinaloan people are,” he said.
Mascareño Chávez emphasized that Mazatlán perfectly reflects the sense of belonging that fuels private assistance.
“Celebrating philanthropy in Sinaloa, in Mazatlán—where even someone poor feels like a millionaire, as José Alfredo Jiménez said—here we are people who welcome, embrace, and help,” he added.
He also highlighted that the gathering took place despite logistical challenges in transporting representatives from various municipalities. “It means a lot to be here today, with all the challenges of bringing people from across the state, but we made it,” he stated.
The event brought together numerous institutions to share processes, experiences, and relationships built throughout the year.
“The most important thing is that everyone is greeting each other, sharing stories, successes, failures—we all learn from these stories. Now they call it networking: meeting people, sharing vendors, results. You take that back to your institution, to your social work, and say: I learned this. And you put it into practice—that’s the most powerful thing, beyond the fact that it’s also a day of celebration,” he said.
Daily work was a central theme in his remarks.
“This year has taught us our own ‘sinaloísmos,’ because the challenges of the year have translated into higher quality, working twice as hard, showing our grit. Not only planning, but being in the trenches, serving people in need 365 days a year,” he stated.
A total of 121 private assistance institutions participated in the event.