by Janet Chichester, Director of Susanna Wesley School

All of the children at the Susanna Wesley School are special, but some of them have a much more difficult life than others. I would like to tell you the story of Elmer Yovani and his family. Elmer’s mom’s name is Tomasa. She has five sons ranging in age from four years to 10 years old. Elmer’s older brother Tomas attended our first grade classroom last year and was an exemplary student.

Elmer is now in our kindergarten room. Elmer, his mom, and his four siblings live in a one-room adobe house with a dirt floor. They have no running water and no latrine (or any kind of toilet). The makeshift kitchen is walled with spindly bamboo sticks. Most of the year, Elmer’s family can get water for cooking and drinking from a neighbor’s well, but at the end of dry season before the rain starts, the well dries up. When this happens, they have to haul water from much farther away. In order to wash clothes, Tomasa has to carry them for an hour down to the river.

In spite of the extreme poverty in which Elmer and his family live, education is very important to them. Tomasa’s dream is that all her children will receive an education and live a better life. The oldest three boys attend the local public school, and Elmer attends Susanna Wesley School. Whenever I visit their home, the older boys are busy doing their homework on the ground in front of the house. Public school charges tuition every month, money Tomasa does not have.

After Elmer’s older brother graduated last year, I tried to convince Tomasa that Elmer should enroll at Susanna Wesley. But Tomasa told me she could not afford to enroll Elmer. Even though we would provide Elmer a scholarship for tuition, there were other costs for him to attend the school, such as transportation. Tomasa needed to use her small income to send her older boys to school. I promised to find someone to pay the other children’s tuition, so she enrolled Elmer in our school. He is a bright, shining light among our students. Tomasa’s two oldest boys now work in the morning and go to school in the afternoon, earning less than 10 quetzales ($1.25) a day. Tomasa weaves tipico fabric to sell.

I am inspired everyday by this family and this mom’s commitment to making a better life for her children. It is an honor to have a part in helping that dream come true.