Volunteer of the Year : Gary Palacios - A realtor and Cathedral of Faith pastor , Gary has been the man behind the scenes feeding , clothing and gifting holiday toys to thousands of people in need in Morgan Hill . “ If you can ’ t open your heart , you can ’ t see the need ,” Gary said . After designing a monthly food donation program through the church in 2012 , which began by feeding 15 people in need , the program quickly grew to serving 75 . With help from Martha ’ s Kitchen and Cathedral of Faith , the initial food service program was relocated to the Community and Cultural Center where it quickly expanded to serving 500 plus people every quarter . Gary ’ s outreach efforts continued through the creation of , “ It ’ s a new day at the village ,” a program at Village Avanti Apartments which provides hot meals , groceries , and games , to apartment residents . Gary loves Morgan Hill and encourages the entire community to not only , “ see the need ,” but be a part of meeting it .

Non-profit of the Year : Poppy Jasper International Film Festival - The Poppy Jasper International Film Festival ( PJIFF ) is not only giving back to the community but also promoting the art of filmmaking as a viable career choice for every generation . The all-volunteer , mission-driven non-profit organization offers seven educational programs year-round to the community for free . This April marks the 16th anniversary of the festival and Festival Director , Mattie Scariot ’ s , fourth year at the helm . Since taking over the annual event Mattie has grown it into an eight-day film festival taking place in the downtown communities of Morgan Hill , San Martin , Gilroy , Hollister , and San Juan Bautista . In 2019 PJIFF featured filmmakers from eight different countries , five states , and Northern and Southern California . PJIFF will be pivoting this year , to a 14-day hybrid ( live / online ) festival running April 7th - 20th , featuring over 200 films from 38 countries .

Small Business of the Year : My Pizza - Hamdey Altayyeb has been giving back to his community since he first opened My Pizza 26 years ago . “ Without this community My Pizza doesn ’ t exist ,” Hamdey said . “ Everything we give comes from this community .” The dollars residents spend at My Pizza are invested back into the community through pizza donations . Since the pandemic hit , Hamdey has reached out to local business owners offering assistance with online marketing campaigns and targeted Facebook posts , all of which he generously pays for . In addition , Hamdey has donated pizzas to fire fighters and First Responders , the homeless , families of Cecelia ’ s Closet , and those most in need in the community . His generosity extends to his employees as well , offering them competitive wages , vacation , and financial assistance .

Large Business of the Year : Paramit Manufacturing - Founded in 1990 Paramit Corporation is one of the few design and manufacturing firms in the area focused on medical devices and life science instruments . They moved operations to Morgan Hill in 2002 , and is one of the largest employers in Morgan Hill with over 450 employees . They offer a unique combination of design engineering , precision mechanical assembly , and electronics manufacturing to support handheld and point-of-care devices , benchtop instruments , and cart based systems . Paramit is an FDA-registered manufacturer of medical devices and life science instruments and offers a breadth of services including technology development , product development , and full scale manufacturing for devices used in diagnostics , therapeutics , and surgery . “ This is our home base and we love it here ,” Paramit ’ s CEO , Biloo Rataul , said . “ And we are looking to expand .”

GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN SPRING 2021 gmhtoday . com

33