PENN YAN — Several groups who advocate for migrant workers held a memorial service this month for a dairy farm worker who died a year ago in a farming accident.
Marco Ortiz Perez, a Guatemalan native, had been cleaning an augur in a silo on his own when he was fatally injured when handling the equipment, according to information from the Worker Justice Center. His was one of 55 deaths on dairy farms since 2006, according to the center. Ortiz Perez leaves behind a wife and children.
The Nov. 8 service at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church was preceded by a workshop on worker safety. Mourners also laid flowers at the site of Ortiz Perez’s death.
For more information, visit wjcny.org.