You have the entrepreneurs that really started, the innovators. Then you have the second generation, the builders. And then what happens with the third generation? A lot of them become inactive…I said, ‘That’s not going to be this.’” On Feb. 1, 1992, Andy D’Arrigo, on his birthday, handed the company over to John with three words: “You earned it.” At 33 years old, John put the pressure on himself to figure out what kind of company he wanted to stand at the helm of, and with a sentiment that would go on to motivate everything after, he declared that his and the company’s motto would be family first . “This is just a means to an end,” John said. “[It’s a] great company, and a great place to work with a good culture. But it’s really built so that you can have a great life. Let’s use it for that. Let’s take care of the company, put out great product, be good to the ground, the water, the soil, and treat people right.” For John, it always comes back to people. His attention to how he values those around him in his community, whether they work for him or not, is in his actions more than his words. A key area of focus for him is the Seneca Family of Agencies. Being one of the six children Andy and Phyllis D’Arrigo adopted at birth, John has devoted time and resources to the Kinship Center. The Ag for Kids campaign started in 2013 and has raised over $285,000 for the Kinship Center’s Family Ties and Foster Care/ Adoption programs. In his support of the Kinship Center, John looked to provide care to children in an important and sometimes overlooked way: “We built them a mental health clinic because we
figured out that the physical aspects of adoption were happening but not the mental part,” John said. The project to create the D’Arrigo Children’s Clinic in conjunction with the Kinship Center started in 2004. Since then, the clinic provides psychological and psychiatric services from experienced therapists. Children and their families have access to individual, family and group counseling provided in both English and Spanish. Another example of John supporting the younger generation and their advancement is his involvement with Rancho Cielo, a non-profit organization that started in 2003 to support the learning and social services for underserved youth in Monterey County. Rancho Cielo provides education in skills like construction, ag technology and auto and diesel repair. The welding and fabrication wing sponsored by the D’Arrigo Family opened in fall 2022. John’s motivation to find ways to meet the needs of those in his community continued in 2010 when he created The Agricultural Leadership Council (TALC) for the Natividad Medical Foundation to improve health care for farm workers and their families. John brought farm families in the area together with two promises: help the farm workers and their families get the medical support they need and there wouldn’t be any required meetings. With that, TALC has donated over $4,500,000 that has gone toward medical equipment, diagnostic tools and health services to the Natividad Medical Center. And John’s dedication to the health care field extends beyond TALC. D’Arrigo California is committed to supporting and raising awareness for breast cancer research.
The $2.3 million dollars that D’Arrigo California has donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation has funded over 42,000 hours of breast cancer research. The level of care that John has for those around him, both near and far, has had wide-reaching effects experienced by those in many different organizations. Whether he has served on a board for a company like Western Growers where his influence has made its mark, worked with his colleagues within the industry around him who have his guidance as well as support, or supported those who work for him who have the opportunity to thrive in their careers while also being present with and for their families, John’s authenticity, integrity and generosity has reached many. John may not have set out to build a legacy that summer when he started saving for that bike, but he has been building a lasting and grand one ever since.
John and Sandy D’Arrigo
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SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2023
Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com
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