"One person can make a difference," said Acevedo Campbell with the San Jose Puerto Rican Civic Club, "...thinking about the future and what that future holds for our island."
Now that she's been in remission for two years, 8-year-old Zelaya is finally well enough to request her wish from Make-A-Wish, and that wish is to help the people in Puerto Rico, who are still struggling one year after Hurricane Maria ravaged the island.
An independent investigation ordered by Puerto Rico's government estimates that 2,975 people died within six months as a result of Hurricane Maria.
This year's parade has a particularly profound meaning as the island of Puerto Rico continues to recover from the devastation left behind by Hurricane Maria.
The display comes just days after a Harvard study suggested there could have been as many as 4,645 deaths related to the September 2017 hurricane.
More than eight months after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, a report is shedding new light on the mayhem it caused.