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Meet Cindy! Cindy joined our university program in 2022. She is a graduate of the Mission School, and comes from a very rural town in our area. 

Cindy is currently studying medicine at a university in Cuenca. She agreed to share a little about her education experience and what motivates her to study medicine in the interview below. 

Q: Tell us a little about yourself, your family, and your education up to this point. 

A: My name is Cindy Alejandro, I am 20 years old and I am from Sitio Nuevo. I have 6 brothers and sisters, my father is a farmer and my mother stays at home to take care of my siblings. I graduated from the Mission School in 2021. I loved my experience studying at the Mission School because of the values it incorporated into our education. I was grateful to get to know so many wonderful people including my teachers and friends, and I will always remember the experience as one of the happiest and best of my life.  

Q: Why did you want to go to university? 

A: I wanted to go to university in order to be able to study a high-level profession and degree. A university degree opens many doors when you seek employment, which is important for economic stability in the future. 

Q: Why did you want to study medicine? 

A: I am studying medicine because I really enjoy it. I want to be able to serve and help others as my vocation and profession. 

Cindy learning to perform emergency respiratory care in one of her practical labs at medical school.

Q: Until now, how many people in your family have attended and graduated university? 

A: I do not have any family members that have graduated from university. 

Q: How do you feel about starting university this year?

A: I am so happy to have started university and to be studying the career which I wanted to study most. I am very grateful to the foundation for giving me this opportunity. Medicine is not an easy major, but with effort, I know I can succeed and graduate.  

Cindy learning to identify different types of bacteria under the microscope.

You’re invited to our Backyard Bash, a donor appreciation reception in Stirling, NJ! Join us for cocktails and appetizers in the comfort of the home of a good friend of Mission Santa Maria. Allow us to thank you for your support and share updates on the work you make possible in Ecuador.

Invite a friend and help us expand the mission family! RSVP here, contact us with questions at [email protected].

As we previously shared, we hired a local carpenter to make new desks for the Mission School. The new desks were desperately needed to replace broken plastic desks, as well as to correct a desk shortage that the school has been experiencing over the past several years. Due to distance learning as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the shortage did not need to be addressed until this school year, when all students returned to in-person learning. 

The new desks were moved into classrooms over the last month and are already being put to great use. Thank you for helping make this improvement possible for all the students at the Mission School! 

A few teachers meet in one of the classrooms with new desks.

Construction on the new classrooms at the Mission School continues! Over the last two weeks the team has begun building the classroom walls and roofing. You can continue to follow the progress here, or on our Classrooms for Change Campaign page.

Thanks to the exceptional generosity of our donors, we reached our $75,000 fundraising goal through the Classrooms for Change Campaign. With these funds, we will be able to build the classrooms we need at the Mission School. We will continue to provide updates on our construction progress but in the meantime please watch a short message of gratitude below.

There is only one week left in our Classrooms for Change Campaign and we need to raise $18,000 to reach our goal! Check out our construction progress below and donate today! DONATE HERE. 

As we attempt to build new infrastructure at the Mission School through our Classrooms for Change Campaign, we want to highlight a longtime donor to emphasize the importance of their partnership and support. We asked Ben to share his experience with giving to Mission Santa Maria.

Ben with his wife, Allison. Ben and Allison live in Charleston, South Carolina, with their dog, Annie.

DO YOU LIVE IN THE BAY AREA?

Please join us for cocktails and appetizers in your honor! Allow us to thank you for your support and update you on the work happening in Ecuador.

Thursday, May 19th, from 5:30-7:30PM in Lafayette, California

Learn more and RSVP here.

As our Classrooms for Change Campaign continues, we are taking time this week to honor all the moms and those that fill the role of mom. Donate on behalf of a mother figure in your life, and we will send them a personal message, including the video below, on Mother’s Day. What could be better than the gift of education? Donate here.

Some of the children in our programs share a message about their mothers and mother figures in the video below.

Our Classrooms for Change Campaign continues! This week we want to introduce you to Kiara, the newest scholarship recipient in our university program. Kiara graduated as the valedictorian from the Mission School in March. She shares her story and a short message with you in the video below.

Donate to our Classrooms for Change Campaign to help us build more avenues out of poverty for students like Kiara! Learn more about our campaign by clicking here. Donate here.