Celebrating Moms Who Go to School

In a recent entry here on the blog, Vittana Fellow Nayna Gupta told the story of Mercy Marilu, a young woman from Lima, Peru.  Mercy, who works as a primary school teacher, received a Vittana loan to help her finish a degree in early childhood education.  Mercy’s story was inspiring—after finishing high school and spending years contributing to the family income by working as a chicken vendor in the province of Huaycan, Mercy eventually earned a position at a primary school teaching low-income children.  Recently, she decided to go back to school to follow her long-held dream of finishing college.  Even better? Mercy, now 27, is a mother, and her new found opportunity to finish school has inspired an even bigger dream: sending her daughter to a four-year private college.  To get started, last week she opened a savings account in her daughter’s name.

Mercy isn’t alone.  Thanks to loans from Vittana, moms like Betsy (who recently graduated from university), Nardith, Edelmira, Gulnara, and others have gone back to school to achieve their educational goals, improve their professional qualifications, and provide a better future for their children.  With Mother’s Day just around the corner here in the United States, we wanted to take a moment to recognize their hard work and sacrifice.  Already juggling the hectic, often competing obligations of work and family, a deeply held belief in the power of education drives these women to choose an even more challenging path—to take time that might otherwise be spent catching up on sleep or stealing a few minutes of relaxation with their children or spouse, and instead spend it in a classroom, studying and completing assignments, or going to and from school.

Betsy Olivares, mother of two, with her family on graduation day.

Zayda Flores Bravo and Celsa Martinez, whose loans are currently fundraising on Vittana, are two more of these special women.  Celsa lives in Encarnación, Paraguay, where she’s worked as a primary school teacher for 15 years.  Celsa and her husband, who runs his own store, have three grown sons, all of whom have finished school and joined the workforce.

With her loan, Celsa will be able to enroll in the continuing education programs made available to teachers through the Paraguayan Ministry of Education and Culture.  As she says in her student profile, Celsa is passionate about being the best teacher she can be for her students, and these continuing education courses will help her stay up to date in her field.  She also hopes that by earning additional qualifications, she’ll be able to help her family by earning a higher salary.

Celsa Martinez in Encarnación, Paraguay

As a teacher and a mom, this time of year is doubly special for Celsa.  April 30^th was Teacher’s Day in Paraguay, and when Vittana spoke with Celsa last week, she said preparations were in full swing for a big party with her students.  As for Mother’s Day, which takes place on Saturday, May 15 in Paraguay, Celsa says that her boys always take good care of her by preparing a special meal.

Vittana is proud to support mothers like Celsa as they work to improve their lives through education.  This Sunday, when we call our own mothers (or if we’re lucky, give them a hug in person) to tell them we love them, we’ll also be thinking about the millions of mothers around the world whose shared commitment to education is what makes Vittana’s mission possible.  Mothers who help their kids with homework, scrape together money to pay for school uniforms, and, most importantly, encourage their sons and daughters to dream big.  To all of them, we say thank you!

Click here to make a loan to Celsa, Zayda, or one of the many other hardworking students on Vittana.  And when you do, be sure to tell your mom!

Related posts:

1. Second Chances for Peruvian Women
2. Get Student Loan. Go to School. Become a Programmer!

Tagged as: mother's day, nicaragua, paraguay, peru