San Lucas Toliman Scholars Program

Renner, Rosalinda, and her walking companion.

San Lucas Toliman Scholars is an organization set up to help children in San Lucas further their education.  In Guatemala children are given an education until the 6^th grade.  After that, they must come up with tuition in order to advance any further.  Very few indigenous families have enough money to do this so the boys and girls continue the cycle of poverty with little education.  The lucky ones find “patrons” from the United States who will help by paying their tuition.  It is common for girls who do not go further than the 6^th grade to marry at 13 or 14 and become mothers by the age of 15.  Advancing children in school postpones parenting and makes the likelihood of getting better paying jobs more possible.  We believe that the best hope for ending the process of poverty in Guatemala is through education.

Jack and I really like Dennis, the director of the San Lucas Toliman Scholars program.  He is a very simple man who was a teacher and guidance counselor from Great Britain. He pays his own living expenses so we know our donations go directly to our students.  The organization is overseen by a board in the United States.

We are sponsoring our third student in this program making a three-year commitment to them.  Our first student, Renner, finished 9^th grade last year and we are now sponsoring him for high school.  In high school, Guatemalan children learn a profession.  Renner has chosen to become an office clerk.  Rosalinda also finished the 9^th grade but chose not to go onto high school.  We now have a new student who has just begun the 7^th grade.