As a student at Hostos Community College, William Rafael Lugo ‘09 contributed enormously to the Hostos Repertory Theater as an actor, stage manager, sound designer, director, singer, and guitarist. 
 
He earned his Associate of Arts from Hostos and his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theater, from The City College of New York in 2011, where he graduated with honors.
 
Nydia R. Edgecombe, the Director of the Hostos Alumni Relations Office, clearly remembers Lugo’s artistic side.
 
“I have great memories of watching William performing at the college with the Hostos Rep. I particularly remember when he played Sykes, the main character in Sweat, the short story by Zora Neale Hurston, which was adapted to theater by Yesenia Ortíz, also a Hostos alumna,” said Edgecombe.
 
Edgecombe added that Lugo also was the recipient of the first Wallace I. Edgecombe Scholarship for the Humanities, which was named after her husband and longtime director of the Hostos Center for the Arts & Culture.
Since those days, Hugo has branched out and grown and is now contributing to the city in other ways.
 
Since 2013, he has been the Assistant Manager Mobile Market Logistics for City Harvest.
 
"The moment you come into St. Mary's Park mobile market, you are captivate by William's open smile and incredible energy. He led all of us through the entire operation of food distribution, while keeping us on target filled with enthusiasm. He was very proud and thankful to all Hostos volunteers. Our experience with the fighting hunger in the Bronx was so positive that, under the PSC leadership, all volunteers are going back for the City Harvest Distribution campaigns of February, March and April 2015. We are hoping for a group of alumni to join the Hostos faculty, staff and students in this endeavor."
 
Born and raised in the South Bronx, the job gives Lugo the opportunity to help feed hungry New Yorkers, especially people of his immediate community, as he is responsible for the distribution of food in the South Bronx. 
 
Recently he collaborated with a group of Hostos students, faculty and staff in coordinating a “Harvest Mobile Market” on October 28 at St. Mary’s Park to help feed the hungry.
 
“It is wonderful to know that William is still part of the Hostos family. He always played his part in the larger sense, and his professional actions demonstrate what a committed individual he is. We are lucky to call him alumnus,” indicated Nydia Edgecombe of William’s most recent effort to stay connected with the Hostos faculty and staff.
 
About City Harvest
Founded in 1982 as the world’s first food rescue organization, City Harvest is dedicated to helping feed the nearly 1.5 million New Yorkers facing hunger.

City Harvest will collect 50 million pounds of excess food from restaurants, grocers, bakeries, manufacturers, and farms, and deliver it free of charge to more than 500 community food programs across the city this year.  In addition to helping meet the immediate need for food, City Harvest takes a long-term approach to fighting hunger by partnering with residents, local organizations and businesses through Healthy Neighborhoods programs which increase the availability of affordable fruits and vegetables in low-income communities and provide the nutrition education and resources to maintain a wholesome, food-secure diet.

About Hostos Community College
Eugenio María de Hostos Community College is an educational agent for change that has been transforming and improving the quality of life in the South Bronx and neighboring communities since 1968. It serves as a gateway to intellectual growth and socioeconomic mobility, as well as a point of departure for lifelong learning, success in professional careers, and transfer to advanced higher education programs. The College’s unique "Student Success Coaching Unit" provides students with individualized guidance and exemplifies its emphasis on student support services.  

Recently named one of the top 10 finalists for the 2015 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, Hostos offers 27 associate degree programs and two certificate programs that facilitate easy transfer to The City University of New York’s (CUNY) four-year colleges or baccalaureate studies at other institutions. The College has an award-winning Division of Continuing Education & Workforce Development that offers professional development courses and certificate-bearing workforce training programs. Hostos is part of CUNY, the nation’s leading urban public university, which serves more than 480,000 students at 24 colleges.