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| Fran and her father on a long hike to a neighboring village (5 miles away) in Cuicatlan |
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| Fran and her niece and nephew in front of her family home in Cuicatlan |
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| Fran will follow that trail 5 miles to a neighboring village, returning after dark. She has often walked long distances at night, alone or with her family, by the light of the moon. |
As many of you know I am providing housing and coordinating efforts to send Fran, an indigenous young woman from the region of Cuicatlan, to 4 years of rigorous college education to get her degree in Computer Engineering. Fran is so many things -- brilliant, focused, a symbol of what is possible for indigenous women from impoverished villages in Mexico, and soon to me a major factor in improving the lives of her family.
Today we sat down to review her budget as we do every 6 months. While I was visiting the States. she ran out of money for food, which alarmed me. It turns out she does need a bit more of a monthly stipend to stretch to the end of the month, and this is an appeal for that extra food money. She needs an extra $25 per month to cover that.
If you can commit to a monthly contribution for the duration of a year or more (4 years would be ideal!) that would be great. It can be $5, $10, $20 or $25 per month. You can make a donation by clicking the link below.
And that's not all. Fran needs one-time donations for the following during the next 6 months:
$1,000 pesos/$78.00 dollars for clothes
$700 pesos/$55.00 dollars as of June 1 for a linear calculus class over the summer
$1,800 pesos/$140.00 dollars tuition on August 1 for September semester
$500 pesos/$39.00 dollars for materials
Please, please give what you can, and perhaps approach a friend or member of your church to help a little too. We don't need much, but every penny is important. You can donate easily by going to this site set up for Fran -- THANK YOU!
http://franciscaeducationfund.weebly.com/donate.html
