We are entering the rainy season, which marks the middle of the school year. We continue to help Nicaraguan children break the cycle of poverty and access the education they deserve. In this newsletter, we wanted to focus on our rural community, Santa Ana. 12 years ago, EI was invited by the small isolated rural community to work with them. Other organizations chose not to support them due to the distance from the city of Granada, but our team felt they could take on this challenge which was powered by 3 years of funding from the Weyerhaeuser Family Foundation.
The changes and growth have been profound, and with some notable results. For example, 91% of the students continue on to high school, where before only a small percentage did. What’s more, this small community now has ten college-level students, and we are excited that our first Santa Ana college student is poised to graduate within a year and dreams of installing and running the first pharmacy in the community. What has been so rewarding in working with this community is the eagerness they still have to take advantage of each program and activity offered to them.