Updates

On May 12th, a new school year began at Santa Maria del Fiat, our beloved Mission School. Over 1,250 students in pre-k through senior year of high school are now engaged in our English program, receiving computer classes, and filling their minds with fundamental lessons to serve them for years to come. This time of year is always bitter-sweet for us. On the one hand, we get to see joyful, monumental moments like watching Casey enter 10th grade.

Casey came to the Mission Home in December after suffering terrible abuse. She entered our homeschooling program in order to recover lost academic time and excelled under our tutor, Evelyn. Capitalizing on the extra recuperation time over the summer vacation, Casey continued to study with Evelyn every morning in hopes that she could pass the entrance exam to join her peers at the Mission School. At the end of April, she passed the exam and learned that she would be entering 10th grade in May. Everyday since starting, she has come home from high school with a huge smile.

But the beginning of the school year can also be a reminder of the dire situations so many of our families face. As we go through the process of buying school supplies, uniforms, and paying school fees for the over 250 students in our scholarship program, we hear and learn of the many personal hardships families face in their efforts to help their children receive a high quality education. We recently had the privilege of visiting a few families with our scholarship program coordinator. Kelly’s family was one of them.

About 6 months ago Kelly was working on improving her simple home made from bamboo. In an instant, the house caught fire. Everyone escaped uninjured, but she was left without a home. Without stable income, she felt the crushing devastation of losing her only material possession. Her mother-in-law kindly allowed her and her four children to move in with her, and now ten people live under her mother-in-law’s humble roof. Three of Kelly’s children were already in our scholarship program. Kelly shared that during the time of the fire, her family’s displacement, and having to share one bedroom at her mother-in-law’s home, the scholarship assistance she received, ‘saved her’. She shares, ‘knowing that my children could continue to receive their education, despite everything else going on in our lives, was truly a gift’.

Kelly, right, with her four children and mother-in-law, in her mother-in-laws home.

Whether it be for lack of a safe home like Casey, or extreme poverty like Kelly’s children, many of our students walk into school having experienced some form of trauma or hardship. But education can be a powerful equalizer—a place where every child, no matter their background, is given a fresh opportunity to succeed, to be seen, and to imagine a different future. Through your support, we can continue to equip our students not just with learning, but also with hope. Thank you for being part of this mission.