Letter from A Guatemalan Scholarship student
Dear Finding Freedom Board Members,
Take a cordial greeting from the serene land of Huehuetenango, Guatemala. I hope you and your love ones find yourselves well, especially your dear families. I wish you all abundant success and blessings in your daily activities. With complete humility and simplicity I thank you for the scholarship you have provided for my education so that I may be a successful person in the future.
In what follows, I would like to tell you about my childhood and family.
When I was just six years old, my mother put my in charge of the house chores and left home to work to secure our daily necessities. You see, my father abandoned us long ago. When I was young, I made tortillas that turned out burned all the time, but no one helped me or could since I was the first-born daughter, and we couldn’t count on close family to take care of us. For that reason my mother had no other option but to leave me in charge of everything at home, and thank God that with time I finally learned to cook, do things well, and take care of my younger siblings.
When I turned 7, my mother enlisted me in first grade in the New Progress of the 20th Century school. Mom told me that I had to go to school to learn to read and write, so that I may be a professional one day.
New Progress 20th Century es a beautiful community, well-organized, surrounded by mountains and valleys that hold beautiful animals like: birds, deer, tigers, snakes, turkeys, rabbits, armadillos, monkeys, and butterflies. Also beautiful rivers run through the center of the community creating a beautiful sight all around
I hope you have an idea about my childhood and my community now.
Before saying goodbye, I want to thank you again for the infinite graciousness you’ve shown me to continue in my studies. I admire your solidarity, because without your help it wouldn’t be possible to achieve my dream.
Juana, Age 15.
Juana is one of our many Guatemalan scholarship students. While the value of the education these students receive can not be understated, the added benefit of removing our students from a life of labor and heavy household responsibility is priceless.