Migrant Workers Scholarship nominator profile: Crispin Martinez Perez

Toronto – August 14, 2017 – Crispin Martinez Perez is one of twenty successful nominators for the 2016 UFCW Canada Migrant Workers Scholarship. He first arrived in Canada under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) in 2000, the same year that his first son, Ignacio Martinez-Nieto, was born in Mexico. Crispin has worked ten seasons in Canada since then, the last nine of which have been devoted to working the grape harvest in Southwestern Ontario.

His family of four live and work on a farm in rural Mexico. With the seasonal work in Canada, he’s refined his agricultural skills and is now able to harvest fruits and vegetables on his own land, which his wife maintains while he works in Canada.

As a proud father to 14-year-old Ignacio and 9-year-old Emanuel, Crispin has dedicated his life to ensuring that his family can meet their needs. After all, ensuring that his sons can get a good education and enjoy a better life are the reasons why Mr. Martinez has sacrificed many seasons away from his family.

Mr. Martinez and his family stand strong in their belief in God. They accept that life is complicated and that their family has great challenges ahead of them. Despite this, Mr. Martinez says he will continue to provide for his family. 

Since 2010, Canada's union for migrant workers has received tens of thousands of applications for our Migrant Worker Scholarship program, and we have awarded scholarships to dozens of children to benefit their educational pursuits here and in their home countries.

The deadline to apply for the 2017 Migrant Workers Scholarship is December 31, 2017. To find out more about the UFCW Canada Migrant Workers Scholarship program, or to apply for the scholarship online, visit ufcw.ca/migrantscholarship.