School Sponsorships

One of the most difficult situations we face, is to keep children in school. The legal requirement is to complete the 9th grade. However, there is no system in place for compliance. Most children are no longer in school by the time they reach 13. They are either working to help put food on the table or helping take care of the other children.

For most, it's a matter of economics. The average cost to purchase a back pack, the list of school supplies, a full uniform, school shoes, tennis shoes and a gym uniform is about $160. If a family has 4 children in school and their monthly income is $300, they often are faced with making decisions of which children to keep in school.

For several years now, we have been helping to sponsor children starting in Kindergarten and going all the way through college.

When I first got here, it was unheard of someone going to college. However, over the years, because of sponsors, we have helped children not only complete the 9th grade, but to go on to complete High School and even to obtain a College degree.

This is Yessenia. Because of sponsorships, she was able to go to High School and then on to college. She is the first person in the Canyon that we know of that went to college and the first person in her family to do so. She lost her job because of Covid. So we hired her to help children who were not able to keep up with school work by internet or TV. She uses the House of Hope to tutor 15 children a day. Thanks to her efforts, all of these children are current with their schooling and will be able to continue when schools open up for public attendance.