Yefiny Mena, our International Programs Specialist, tells us about her visit to the Juan Apostol School in Guatemala with Children Incorporated Director of Programs Luis Boudret. The Juan Apostol School allows impoverished children to get an education and participate in skills training programs.
“The Juan Apostol School, founded in 1990, is located in Villa Nueva. This area is about 25 miles from Guatemala City, but due to the recent expansion of the city, it has been incorporated into the metropolitan area. About 800 students receive a good education in a low — or middle-income private school, and 112 are enrolled in the Children Incorporated program. Very low-income families are selected to participate in the Children Incorporated program,” said Yefiny.
“All the children participating in our program would not be able to attend this school without the generosity of our sponsors. These sponsors help the children pay their monthly school fees and provide them with food, school supplies, shoes, and clothes.”
“Juan Apostol School is a private school, so it does require families to pay tuition for their children to attend. The school has two buildings; one is entirely dedicated to children from kindergarten to 9th grade. The other building is utilized for grades 10th, 11th, and 12th grades, equivalent to high school and a technical training program.”
“Our coordinator is Mrs. Ruth Morales de Morales, known by her nickname “Tita,” who has been our coordinator for 40 years. Mrs. Morales, her husband, and her son (the actual director) run the entire school,” said Yefiny.
“During our visit to the school, we learned how the students’ daily routine goes by. The school at all levels follows a rigorous educational program that benefits the children. Along with a well-disciplined program, the school is famous nationally for having a modest but well-placed computer program. Parents can access computerized controls to monitor children’s education, transportation, grading, participation, homework support, etc., a unique approach in the country. The school is also known for having one of the best marching bands and music programs of this level in the country, which they use to motivate students for better educational performance.”
“The buildings are solid and adequate for their purpose, but some need minor improvements. The educational program was enhanced a few years ago when Children Incorporated offered support to implement skill training programs to aid the children further. Since then, these programs in Food Preparation, Computers and Robotics, and Cosmetics and Beauty have been incorporated into the academic curriculum,” said Yefiny.
“The children in this school can choose from various technical courses, so by the time they graduate, they can make an income and provide for themselves and their families. The school offers technical sewing, computing, culinary, and beauty courses. Children can choose the one they are most interested in, so while they finish high school, they also learn new abilities.”
“Children Incorporated has donated some industrial kitchen sinks this year to help these children continue their education. During our visit, we watched these kids work in their different areas. They gave us valuable information about their learning techniques and classes and demonstrated their abilities in each region,” said Yefiny.
“It’s important to highlight that all the children participating in our program would not be able to attend this school without the generosity of our sponsors. These sponsors help the children pay their monthly school fees and provide them with food, school supplies, shoes, and clothes.”
“Our sponsors have blessed all these families that depend on their generosity to help their children have a better future. Our coordinator expressed gratitude to the sponsors on behalf of the children’s parents,” said Yefiny.
You can sponsor a child in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child that is available for sponsorship.
As their trip comes to its conclusion, our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, and our International Programs Specialist, Yefiny Mena, visit our last affiliated site in Guatemala before traveling to El Salvador, where students enjoy a more structured environment than other schools in Guatemala offer. Today, we hear from Yefiny about the Bethel School and her impression of how it is helping our sponsored children and their families.
“According to our coordinator, it is certain that these children would not have the opportunity to attend a private school like Bethel without our sponsors’ contribution.”
Visiting the Bethel School
“This small private school is located in Quetzaltenango, about 140 miles from Guatemala City, but a good four hours driving due to road conditions and traffic. The Bethel School opened its doors to children in 1956, and fourteen years later, in 1960, Children Incorporated started sponsoring children at this affiliation. The school serves about 300 students, from kindergarten to 12th grade, in two shifts during the day,” said Yefiny.
“Kindergarten comes in the morning, and the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades come in the afternoon. They provide high school classes and technical training in Computer Technology and Accounting. Children Incorporated support is offered to the children of low-income families and covers school fees, other school support, and sometimes clothes and food.”
“The school adheres to the national curriculum to teach the students and provide a good education for participating children. The buildings are in great need of improvements, and the recent pandemic has the school struggling to draw paid students to increase opportunities for children. Overall, the school is a better option than attending local public schools, which are greatly overcrowded and disorganized. The children here have great pride in attending a private school while not spending a great deal to pay for better education, which benefits our Children Incorporated participants,” explained Yefiny.
“Bethel School’s coordinator is Mrs. Maria Josefina Calderon de Singueza, who is the owner and director of the school. Mrs. Calderon has been our coordinator for 56 years. She is also assisted by Katy Singueza, her daughter, who helps her run the program,” she said.
“During our visit to the school, we met the children in their classrooms and interacted with them and their teachers. We also had the opportunity to talk with Mrs. Calderon about the program. Mrs. Calderon explained that most of the children in our program live in areas that were not very safe for us to visit, but we could meet them in the classrooms.”
“According to our coordinator, it is certain that these children would not have the opportunity to attend a private school like Bethel without our sponsors’ contribution. Our monthly subsidies help them pay, in some cases, 75% of the school fees, depending on the child’s school grade. The higher the child’s grade, the more expensive it becomes, but it is still an affordable fee for the children’s parents,” said Yefiny.
“Besides the monthly fee, some children might receive help with school supplies, shoes, or uniforms. This is occasionally done if, for example, one or both parents lose their jobs and face financial difficulties to provide for the child’s needs at school.”
You can sponsor a child in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child in that is available for sponsorship.
After four wonderful visits to our affiliated sites in New Orleans, I couldn’t believe our trip was coming to an end as we arrived at our fifth and final school, Samuel J. Green Charter School. As we had done with all of our other visits, Maria met Shayne, Renée, Kristen, and me in front of Samuel Green before we entered.
As we made our way down the walkway, Renée noticed that the name Samuel J. Green Junior High School was carved into the building above the entrance, and commented to Shayne that it was so cool that the name of the original school was the same, even after the charter school system had been put in place so many years ago.
Our final school visit
Shayne agreed, telling us that it was unusual in New Orleans for schools to maintain their original names. It was also common for many charter schools to change their names multiple times, so this was indeed a special circumstance of Samuel Green remaining its namesake. Unlike some of the other schools we had visited as well, Samuel J. Green was not a newer school, and had some of the classic charm of an older, more established school building.
We all entered the school and checked in at the front desk, and then were greeted by our volunteer coordinator, Theressa, who escorted us to her office and resource center, where we chatted for a bit about the school and our sponsorship program.
Samuel Green is located in the Freret Corridor of New Orleans and serves students from all over the city from pre-kindergarten through 8th grade. Theressa told us she loves the Children Incorporated program and the sponsors, and it is a delight to help the kids at her school. As with our other schools, she said that affording uniforms is the biggest issue for families with kids at Samuel Green. The uniforms cost roughly $60 each for pants or a skirt and a top, and some kids only have one uniform for all 180 school days in a calendar year. With sponsorship funds, Theressa is able to help ensure students have multiple uniforms, other clothing items such as jackets and long pants for colder months, and hygiene items and school supplies.
Theressa mentioned that the school also has a weekend feeding program for students so they don’t go hungry. Renée encouraged her to apply for our Hope In Action grant program to receive additional support for the feeding program or other needs that sponsored children might have, such as bedding or mattresses for their homes.
With sponsorship funds, Theressa is able to help ensure students have multiple uniforms, other clothing items such as jackets and long pants for colder months, and hygiene items and school supplies.
An edible garden to remember
Once we finished our meeting, Theressa brought in two of our sponsored children for us to meet, and then we took a tour of the school. We visited a few classrooms, the gym and cafeteria, and the cooking classroom where a group of students had just finished making guacamole with ingredients they had grown at the school.
Then Theressa led us outside, where I was stunned to see a vast garden filled with produce that the children helped maintain, and then used the vegetables and herbs to make food in their cooking class! This edible garden project, as Theressa described, was a huge success at the school, and something they were very proud to have as it not only taught children valuable skills like gardening and cooking, but allowed them to be outside and use their hands while learning, which can offer a good break from classroom learning.
As Theressa took us back to the front of the school, it was bittersweet to say goodbye to her and then to Shayne and Maria, who had been such wonderful hosts during our few days in New Orleans. Although our trip was coming to a conclusion, I couldn’t wait to get back to the Children Incorporated office to share stories, photos, and videos with our staff and our sponsors about all the fantastic work we are doing in the Big Easy, all thanks to the generosity of amazing donors.
You can sponsor a child in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child that is available for sponsorship.
I last visited New Orleans, Louisiana, in the summer of 2007. As I do now with my work with Children Incorporated, I worked with a nonprofit that supported children’s education. I visited local schools to provide free books to students living in low-income neighborhoods all over the city, and it was a rewarding and eye-opening experience.
As Renée, Kristen, and I prepared for our trip to New Orleans, I took some time to read letters from our volunteer coordinators in New Orleans from this past year that I wanted to share and reflect on before meeting them in person.
At the time, New Orleans was still recovering from the devastation of the 2005 hurricane and subsequent flooding caused by the breaking of the levees that occurred. As my co-worker and I made our way around town, we saw more closed schools than open ones and realized how much the devastation was really affecting children’s ability to get an education. When I started working with Children Incorporated 7 years later, I understood firsthand how our sponsorship program was greatly impacting students in New Orleans post-Hurricane Katrina thanks to my previous work there, and then had the opportunity to learn even more from our Director of U.S. Programs, Renée Kube. According to Renée, our volunteer coordinators are incredibly supportive of our program, and find it invaluable to the success of their students daily. When I found out I would be returning to New Orleans in December 2024 to visit our affiliated sites with Renée and our Assistant Director of U.S. Programs, Kristen Walthall, I was delighted to know I would be able to hear more about how our sponsors are changing the lives of children in need directly from our volunteer coordinators.
As Renée, Kristen, and I prepared for our trip to New Orleans, I took some time to read letters from our volunteer coordinators in New Orleans from this past year that I wanted to share and reflect on before meeting them in person, as they express their deepest gratitude for all our program can do for children at their schools.
Langston Hughes ACADEMY
Over the past year, the Children Incorporated program has continued to support students and families in the Langston Hughes Academy. Funds from the program have been instrumental in meeting various needs, including food, clothing, school supplies, and technology, ensuring students have the necessary resources to succeed at school and in their communities!
One of the most memorable and impactful supports we received from Children Incorporated this year was providing bi-monthly fresh food deliveries to an LHA family. This initiative was supported by a Hope In Action grant. The family had recently migrated to the USA and struggled to find support for their basic needs. The students were experiencing health issues and not attending school regularly. Partnering with Children Incorporated to provide food deliveries significantly improved the students’ attendance, engagement, and health. The school translator noted the substantial positive difference this support has made, and the family was very appreciative of the delicious food they received. Funds were used to supply uniforms, outside-school clothing, and raincoats. We also purchased rain gear and umbrellas for students and families that walk to and from school, ensuring they are prepared for all weather conditions.
The Children Incorporated program at LHA has been highly appreciated by families, students, and school staff. The support provided has addressed needs that might otherwise have gone unmet, fostering a stronger connection between families and the school. The feedback from the community has been overwhelmingly positive, highlighting the program’s effectiveness in improving students’ well-being, self-confidence, and academic performance. The Children Incorporated program remains a crucial support system for our school community.
We look forward to continuing our partnership to meet the needs of our students and their families, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to thrive both academically and personally. Thank you, Children Incorporated!
Sincerely, Nicole
Samuel J. Green Charter School
Samuel J. Green Charter School has been privileged to partner with Children Incorporated. With generous support from Children Incorporated, I was able to purchase new computers and tablets for the Green graduating 8th graders. These devices are essential for their future academic journey, ensuring they are well-prepared for high school and beyond. Before graduation, several Children Incorporated students expressed concern over attending high school unprepared and without the needed supplies. I saw this as an opportunity to use Children Incorporated funds to help alleviate their worries. The students were so excited and proud when they received their last Children Incorporated bag from Theressa, who reported that it was an excellent way to end their time enrolled in the Children Incorporated program.
I also used Children Incorporated funding to purchase winter coats for all Children Incorporated students. These coats were immensely beneficial, as they kept the children warm and allowed them to attend school regularly without being hindered by New Orleans’s ever-changing weather. Parents reported being incredibly grateful for the coats, noting the significant relief this support has brought their families this year and in years past!
One family in the Green community faced a challenging situation with their power bill before the winter holidays in 2023. They were in danger of having their power shut off right before Thanksgiving. Thanks to the funds from Children Incorporated, we could cover their power bill and ensure that their home remained warm and safe. This assistance provided much-needed stability for the family, allowing the children to focus on enjoying their time off from school with their family in a warm home.
This support was crucial in providing the family with a safe and healthy living environment. The new beds and bedding have contributed to better sleep and overall well-being for the children and given them comfort and security during a time of immense change and uncertainty.
The funding from Children Incorporated has been instrumental in transforming the lives of our students and their families! Children Incorporated has allowed us to create a more supportive and conducive learning environment by addressing critical needs such as education and technology items, summer and winter clothing, utility bills, and other critical basic needs support. Our students perform better academically and are more enthusiastic about attending school when they have support from Children Incorporated!
Best wishes, Theresa
Phillis Wheatley COMMUNITY SCHOOL
Phillis Wheatley Community School has greatly benefited from the support provided by Children Incorporated over the past school year! This report outlines the impact of the generous partnership, which helps support our students’ needs and remove barriers to their success at school and in their community.
“Our students perform better academically and are more enthusiastic about attending school when they have support from Children Incorporated!”
Children Incorporated funding allowed us to purchase school and summer shoes, winter clothing, rain gear, uniform pants, and polos for Children Incorporated students. Proper footwear and clothing helped ensure that all Children Incorporated students could attend school comfortably and confidently daily. Site Coordinators have also supplied high-quality hygiene products to many students and families. This initiative has dramatically improved our students’ personal hygiene and self-esteem, which positively impacts their overall well-being and classroom participation. Site coordinators can ensure Children Incorporated students have the hygiene supplies they need at home and school, thanks to Children Incorporated!
We also utilized the funding throughout the year to provide necessary school supplies. This consistent availability of supplies has been crucial in ensuring that students are always prepared for their classes as the school year progresses. Many students have supplies early in the year but need help replenishing items as they need replacing. Children Incorporated ensures students have access to what they need from the first to the last day of school!
One family was significantly impacted by the generosity of their son’s sponsor this year. Sponsor-donated funds allowed us to purchase furniture items for the family after they recently moved into a new home and the siblings got their own rooms for the first time. Thanks to the generosity of their sponsor, their rooms are now equipped with new dressers, toy chests, bedding, and a few toys, too.
The support from Children Incorporated has been pivotal in addressing the diverse needs of our students, from essential supplies and hygiene products to improved living conditions and community engagement. We are deeply grateful for the continued support from Children Incorporated and our community partners, and we look forward to furthering our mission to provide a supportive and enriching educational environment for all our students.
Thank you, Odina
In the next few weeks, I will be sharing my stories from the schools we visited in New Orleans, which reflect the important work we are doing together to help some of the most vulnerable children in the Crescent City receive an education.
You can sponsor a child in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child in that is available for sponsorship.
I turned 66 years old on December 2, 2024, and quite frankly, while I do not feel all that old, I have to admit I have many years behind me. My hope and prayer is that I have accomplished good things in my lifetime and that I have somehow positively impacted the lives of those who have walked life’s journey alongside me.
Help us honor our founder, Jeanne Clarke Wood, and her legacy. We, in exchange, will work diligently to improve as many children’s lives as we possibly can.,
Children Incorporated also has a lot of years behind it; sixty, in fact. The organization was founded in 1964, when I was just six years old, by an incredible woman, Jeanne Clarke Wood, whom I was blessed to meet and know many years later. Following Mrs. Wood’s vision for the past sixty years, Children Incorporated has been changing and improving the lives of children and families all around the world.
For sixty years, Children Incorporated has provided food, clothing, educational assistance, and a host of other resources to those who otherwise would have struggled or gone without. For sixty years, our loyal donors andsponsors have entrusted us with their generous contributions, allowing us to use those funds to provide backpacks filled with food to hungry children on weekends and during breaks from school, buy new shoes and school clothes for youngsters whose parents have been unable to afford them, and to construct housing projects, childcare centers, and dormitories in remote parts of the world.
For sixty years, we have strived to be open, honest, and transparent in how we do business. Our efforts have paid off with exceptional ratings from Charity Navigator, Charity Watch, The Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance, GuideStar, and other nonprofit monitoring groups. For sixty years, we have honored Mrs. Wood by continuing the good work she started and so valued, and we have, indeed, been offering education, hope, and opportunity to thousands upon thousands of children and their families.
As 2024 comes to a close and Children Incorporated begins its sixty-first year of accomplishing good things and making positive impacts on innumerable children and families, we ask that you consider making a year-end contribution to our 60th Anniversary Fund. Help us honor our founder, Jeanne Clarke Wood, and her legacy. In exchange, we will work diligently to improve as many children’s lives as we can.
After visiting the second of three of our affiliated sites in Mexico, it was time for Ron Carter, Yefiny Mena, and myself to travel from San Miguel de Allende to Guadalajara, where we would be meeting with our volunteer coordinator at the La Luz Home.
Remembering the visit before
When I was at La Luz two years ago with our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, a few of the children at the home stood out to me — most specifically, a small boy named Christian. Christian was only 3 years old at the time, which was younger than the other children there, who usually were 4 to 14 years old. He was allowed to stay at the home at such a young age because his older brother was there as well, and La Luz works to keep siblings together as much as possible since these children already have had challenging lives, with one or both parents in jail or otherwise unable to take care of their kids.
In the morning, after we arrived in Guadalajara, we were scheduled to visit the home. Isabella, who works at La Luz, and Liz, our volunteer coordinator, picked us up at our hotel. Along with them in the La Luz van were a few children — including an older Christian! Just as I remembered him, Christian was smiling ear to ear and excitedly chatted with us as we made our way through the city.
Seeing La Luz Again
When we arrived at La Luz, the children filed out of the van and hurried inside, eager to show us around. We started our tour of the home by visiting the boys’ dorm. No longer a small boy with a limited vocabulary, Christian talked in detail about the boys’ lockers, the art supply closet, and how the kitchen was organized, including showing us where they kept their pet rabbit’s food.
We then left Christian and the other boys behind to play in the courtyard, and continued our visit of the home with Liz, who showed us the central kitchen, the laundry room, the girls’ dorm, the study rooms, and the events hall.
Getting to see a glimpse of Christian and the other children growing up in a healthy environment was the most wonderful end to such a special trip to Mexico.
Liz explained that 25 children currently lived at the home, along with five sisters who were full-time staff members. A social worker was also at the home during the week to support the children and conduct home visits as needed. As Liz explained, some of the children have caretakers to go home to on the weekends, and some live at the home all week long. All the children attend local public schools, which are only a few minutes away by van.
Why sponsors are so important
Liz told us that the home is funded by a local hospital located next door, and although this ensures they can maintain the building and feed the children, there aren’t a lot of funds left over for other basic needs. Because of this, our sponsors, according to Liz, are incredibly helpful in ensuring the children have school uniforms, school supplies, and hygiene items while living at home. From everything I could see, this group of children was incredibly happy to have such a wonderful place to live where they had a caring staff and were surrounded by their peers.
Before the day ended, the children performed songs and dances for us, and I couldn’t help but notice just how delighted Christian was to be showing us the routine that he had practiced with the other kids. Getting to see a glimpse of Christian and the other children growing up in a healthy environment was the perfect end to such a special trip to Mexico.
You can sponsor a child in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child that is available for sponsorship.
devices are essential for their future academic journey, ensuring they are well-prepared for high school and beyond. Before graduation, several Children Incorporated students expressed concern over attending high school unprepared and without the needed supplies. I saw this as an opportunity to use Children Incorporated funds to help alleviate their worries. The students were so excited and proud when they received their last Children Incorporated bag from Theressa, who reported that it was an excellent way to end their time enrolled in the Children Incorporated program.
