Meet the Santa Gisela Family, Chalco, Mexico

Santa Gisela Family Chalco Mexico 2022 (3)

Meet the Santa Gisela Family

The Santa Gisela Family is a group of 36 girls in Grade 7. The Santa Gisela girls started secondary school at Chalco  Girlstown in 2021. The girls are cared for by their Mother-Sister, Sister Esmeralda. She says “the greatest support I provide is to provide them with trust and security, since they bring a lot of suffering that makes them insecure. Trust is very necessary both for their coexistence at home and at school to express their needs and know that they will receive help.”

Sister Esmerelda says “Normally for girls in first grade everything is new, so they enjoy everything they do, especially they like games and their workshops a lot, when they don’t have classes, we go out to sports and dance competitions with other families I care for or the families of another Sister.” This family is very united, cheerful, helpful and hardworking.

Naomi Lineth Santa Gisela Family Chalco Mexico 2022 (4)

What your sponsorship will do for the girls in the Santa Gisela family

When the children start school in Grade 7, they receive their school uniform, a bag with three pairs of shoes, sets of colouring pens and pencils, some house clothes and sports uniform. They also receive books, board games, and indoor games for use in their dormitories during their leisure time. They have a general medical check-up to assess their fitness and medical and dental health needs – this includes eye and hearing testing. Your sponsorship of a family will contribute to these basic costs, making sure that each child has the clothing, food, and books they need to thrive at school.

Every day, the Santa Gisela girls eat breakfast, do their chores, attend classes and extra curricular activities, spend some time gardening with Sister Esmeralda, eat dinner, and study together before going to sleep in their shared dormitory space. Having sports materials and books, both academic and leisure reading, has helped the girls develop and grow. They love their time at school and the shared family life. They do everything together, giving each other support and friendship as they progress through their schooling and into adult life.

 

Meet some of the Girls of the Santa Gisela Family

Arely Santa Gisela Family Chalco Mexico 2022 (4)

Meet Arely

Arely came to Chalco Girlstown from Guerrero. She has two brothers and lives with her grandparents. Arely’s mother left her children with their grandparents and went away, leaving the grandparents to care for the children. Arely and her brothers would work in the field with their grandparents to help pay for their basic needs. When she was told she couldn’t continue schooling because they could not afford it, she contacted the Sisters to seek their help.

Arely speaks of her experience in the school with joy and contrasts how different it is to her life at home: “When I entered Villa de las Niñas, Chalco, my life changed completely since I met girls from different states. My family in Villa is St. Gisela, in this family I found the support and understanding that I had never had, with my family. I share the bedroom, dining room, living room and basic services, my Sister Esmeralda is my Mother Sister, who always fills me with joy and tranquillity with her smile and her way of being.”

Arely loves basketball, being able to type on the computer and sew on the machines and loves to dance and sing.

“I am very grateful to the donors who have given me the opportunity to continue studying. In the future I want to be a police officer to protect others, people who need it”

Naomi Lineth Santa Gisela Family Chalco Mexico 2022 (1)

Meet Lineth

Lineth is from Mexico City. She has five brothers. Her father is in jail and her mother left Lineth, her brothers and sisters with their grandparents. Life at home is not easy as Lineth’s grandparents are alcoholic and their family life is difficult, with Lineth sometimes suffering physical violence.

Life changed dramatically for Lineth when she arrived at Chalco Girlstown. She describes how different life is now, after arriving at the school: “I arrive at Villa de las Niñas, Chalco, all my past change I feel very happy because there were no blows and insults. Here I found a true family a decent place where I know girls from different states and I share with them the dining room, bedroom and all basic services, although the most important thing is the support we give ourselves as a family.”

Lineth enjoys learning new things and loves to play sports with her family, especially football. Lineth wants to become an accountant when she graduates and is thankful for the support the school receive from all our donors.

“Thanks to our beloved donors and benefactors who make possible for our dear school to continue growing and with your support, we continue to fulfil our dreams.”

Meet the San Francisco Family, Guadalajara, Mexico

Boys having a meal with a Sister

Meet the San Francisco Family

The San Francisco Family is a group of 45 boys in Grade 7. The San Francisco boys started secondary school at Guadalajara Boystown in 2021. The boys are cared for by their Mother-Sister, Sister Judith.

Sister Judith cares for the boys physical and emotional needs. She says, “some of our children when they first begin school do not have emotional stability because of their family history”. So they receive support and counselling when they arrive to help them overcome the trauma they might have experienced at home or in their communities.

Boys and Sister reading in library
Boys studying at school, Guadalajara

What your sponsorship will do for the boys in the San Francisco Family

When the children start school in Grade 7, they receive their school uniform, a bag, a pair of sports shoes and school shoes, set of colouring materials, some house clothes and sports uniform. They also receive books, board games, and other indoor game materials in their dormitories for leisure time. They have a general medical check-up to assess their medical and dental health needs. Your sponsorship of a Family will contribute to these basic costs, making sure that each one has clothing, food, and books for their school.

Every day, the San Francisco boys eat breakfast, do their chores, attend classes and extra curricular activities, spend some time gardening with Sister Judith, eat dinner, and study together before going to sleep in their shared dormitory space. Their lives are communal and they do everything together, giving each other support and friendship as they progress through their schooling.

Having sports materials, workshops, and books, both academic and leisure reading, has helped the boys to develop and grow.

Meet some of the boys of the San Francisco Family

Boy playing guitar outside in uniform
Irving playing his guitar at school

Meet Irving

Irving is from Oaxaca in Mexico. He has three brothers and he lived with his parents and his aunt.

His parents worked hard to ensure Irvin had enough to eat but without education little work was available to them; the children were often hungry.  Irvin often worked alongside his family labouring in fields to raise money. On returning home late one day he says “I noticed my parents and my aunt were exhausted that it was difficult for them to return home, there I realized the great effort they made every day for us, to see us happy”.

Irvin tried to attend school but the quality of the teaching was poor and there were few teachers available to provide anything other than a basic primary education. His future looked bleak.

Everything changed when he was offered a place at the Sisters of Mary school in Guadalajara and with the support of his parents he joined the school and is part of the San Francisco family.

Read more about Irving’s life since joining our school here.

Boys with open backpacks showing their contents of notepads and stationery
Luis, centre, at school in Guadalajara

Meet Luis

Luis is from Tabasco in Mexico. He was born in 2002. The youngest of two boys in the family he had a difficult childhood and he was only two when his parents separated and abandoned them. The boys were brought up by their grandparents but he says “we did not feel the love and affection of a father or mother”.

Luis managed to attend primary school but could not continue beyond the age of 11. He had to work to help with household expenses and to pay for his grandparents’ medical care. He says “My older brother was the only one who studied, and I was the one who worked so that he would not lose his studies.

He was aged 14 when he met the Sisters and learned about the school “Boystown in Guadalajara” a school that helps poor children and he felt so very lucky to be offered a place at the school.

When he first joined the San Francisco family at the school, he had to deal with many changes to his life, learning what the teachers could share with him and having the food that he needed. He missed his grandparents and his brother but he gradually got used to the love and care of his new environment.

Learn more about Luis’s life at school here.

What your donation will provide

£9 – Helps provide all the clothing, care, health and hygiene essentials for a child for a month

£21 –  Helps provide all the reference books, textbooks, notepads and pens for a child’s education for one month

£26 – Helps provide all the food needed by one child for a month

£84 – Helps provide everything needed to care for one child for a month

Needs

The children of the Santa Gisela and San Francisco Families need educational materials as well as food for their every day meals. By Sponsoring a Family like these, you will be providing these most basic needs and setting the children up for success in their schooling, giving them clothing, shoes, books, and food to help support them through their academic studies.

Education

Pens, Notebooks, Textbooks, Bags

Clothing and care

Shoes, school uniforms, sports kit, personal hygiene supplies and medical and dental care

Food

Three balanced meals a day, nutritional supplements

Donation Impact Calculator

Your donations help us to provide education for the world’s poorest children. They help us to fund school places and the everyday care needed for boys and girls who are without hope. See the difference your monthly or single gift can make to the lives of the children in our care:

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