Centro Educativo Jaltepec Successful Virtual Open House February 15th 2022 Submitted by Carole Baker Assistant Community Facilitator, Jaltepec We would like to take this opportunity to express our heartfelt thanks to our new Centro Educativo Jaltepec sponsors and to our current sponsors who continue to provide the financial and emotional support for our scholarship students that will benefit them and their families for three to four generations. Our annual open house was originally planned to be held at the campus of Centro Educativo Jaltepec complete with a lunch hosted by our students, to demonstrate their skills in hospitality through the preparation of a delicious meal. But once again the COVID situation meant a change of plan. Our team adapted quickly and prepared a 30-minute power-packed virtual open house which was a big success. Our team consists of Linda Buckthorp, Jaltepec Community Facilitator; Montse González, our Fundraising Coordinator; and Sandra González, Administrator and Coordinator with the BECA foundation in Guadalajara, as well as Carole Baker, Assistant Community Facilitator presently residing in Ottawa. In virtual attendance were supporters and sponsors from as far away as Mississippi, Texas, Ottawa, and Mexico. The focus of this year’s presentation was the entrepreneurial program, the virtual education program and the mentorship program. Director of Education Lupita Canepa introduced videos highlighting three successful alumnae who have gone on to earn secondary degrees and attain rewarding careers. However, the stars of the show were this year’s new scholarship students, all of whom have been blessed to receive full scholarships. Two are preparatoria students, five are first year students, and we had one asking for a second year scholarship as she had been able to pay for her first year at Jaltepec but was unable to continue without help. In addition, it was an opportunity to acknowledge the wonderful supporters who have committed to continue to sponsor their students for this year’s program. Four of these students graduated from preparatoria and are now in their first year, and six students have progressed to their second year and will graduate in August 2022. All of this group of 18 students sent video messages to their sponsors on their cell phones from wherever they were, at school or at home. The sound was not always perfect, but the messages came from their hearts. Sandra and Montse prepared PowerPoint slides of the videos of the students speaking directly to their sponsors, thanking them for their support and helping them to achieve their dreams. RECONSTRUCTION UPDATE Presently the institute is continuing to undergo extensive renovations. The conference centers have been completely rebuilt and are back to functioning under strict COVID rules. The rest of the campus has been totally demolished to ground level. Jaltepec is presently focused on completing the reconstruction of all the students’ quarters, and at this point it is projected that it will still take two more years to finish everything.
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El Ojo del Lago / May 2022
