Blog Archives

CAA Provides Additional Funding to Árbol de Esperanza

5/19/2023

On Wednesday, May 3, CAA Board members Janice B. and Mary Lou H. met with Mariam Vargas, Development and Communications Coordinator at Árbol de Esperanza to continue to explore our collaboration activities. For the past two months, as a result of the generosity of CAA members and friends, CAA has been able to provide Árbol with food support funding in the amount of 55,000 colones per month to assist their program participants in need. Both Árbol and those who have received assistance are most grateful for the support. Below are a couple of stories that Mariam shared with us as to how our help is making a difference.

Lucrecia* is an elderly person who does not have the help of her relatives. She has health issues that prevent her from walking without the aid of a cane and she is not able to walk or stand for long periods of time. She does receive a State pension as an older adult, but it does not come close to covering all of her housing, services, health needs and food. Thanks to the food support donation, last month she was able to receive a variety of good food and take care of some of her other expenses. She said, “Thank you for your help. It was a surprise. I am very grateful that you considered my situation and gave me the opportunity to have food on my table this month.”

María* is responsible for caring for her grandchildren. In addition, she has a pressing health issue that does not allow her to carry out a lot of strenuous daily activities without compromising her health. Thanks to the food support donation, Maria was able to cover her food needs and, in turn, make empanadas to sell and generate income. She has shown a lot of initiative to improve her economic and health situations. She said, “The week that I was feeling that things were really difficult, the help I needed arrived. Due to my illness and health, it has been difficult for me to get ahead. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the help you have given me."
Also, as a result of another example of CAA generosity, we delivered two large suitcases and a backpack full of clothes as well as several tote bags containing assorted canned goods, household items, and art and office supplies. These were all donated by CAA folks who no longer needed them. Árbol may share some items with selected program participants but will also include them in their periodic garage sale fundraising activities. If you have clothes or other items that are useable and in good condition, why not consider donating them to Árbol?

For more information on Árbol de Esperanza, their program, and their needs, visit their website at https://www.arboldeesperanza.org

If you would like to make a donation for food support, you can give a cash donation to any Board member at any CAA-sponsored event or make a secure online donation at Feeding Hungry Families www.globalgiving.org/56450

~Mary Lou H.

*The names have been changed to protect the identities of the program participants.

On to University!

5/14/2023

This year, the Education Committee asked our scholarship students to fill out a questionnaire detailing their future goals, likes, and possible obstacles. This furthers our initiative to focus more on planning forward, earlier in the Colegio experience, to help students begin to identify goals and careers; and to help students begin to think of the academic achievements and vocational courses necessary to achieve those goals. This information also informs and drives the new tutoring initiative we are piloting for our students in 2023.

Below is an installment in a series that showcases the hopes, dreams, and interests of individual students in our CAA Scholarship (beca) program.

This year, three of the Colegio students in the CAA Education Program have been accepted by universities to continue their educations for professional training. These students have worked diligently throughout their primary and secondary classes and have overcome many difficulties. We at CAA are extremely proud of them for completing their studies and maintaining the high marks required for university admission. We will be acknowledging these students and their accomplishment on this news page.

Our first graduate is Cecilia,* an outgoing and enthusiastic young woman who has been accepted at the University of Costa Rica, or UCR. She was born and grew up in San Ramón with her mother and her brother. During Cecilia’s childhood, her mother worked to support the family while also completing her own high school studies.

Because she lived far from town, Cecilia left for school at 4 am and would return home at 6 pm. In spite of this difficult schedule, she did very well in school and maintained high grades throughout. Cecilia spent 11 years in the CAA scholarship program, from 2012 to 2023. She enjoyed school and learning, and excelled in many areas, including art and science, as well as math.

She particularly enjoyed learning languages, and has studied French and English, and is studying Portuguese. She is very fluent in English and hopes to study Italian and German also. She chose the Accounting Program as her major at UCR because she is good at math, and because she felt that there are many careers open to accounting majors.

Cecilia took advantage of the tutoring classes sponsored by CAA, and she feels that those classes helped her to reach her goal of attending UCR. Cecilia will be leaving San Ramón and moving to San José to attend classes this school year, but she remains close to her family in San Ramón.

When I asked what she looks forward to at UCR, Cecilia said she looks forward to meeting more people, exchanging ideas, and having new experiences. With such an open and enthusiastic outlook she will surely make the most of the opportunities life has to offer. We wish her success in her career and are glad that CAA helped her to achieve this goal.

~Janice Brown, CAA Education Committee

If you would like to contribute financially to our San Ramón students who need your help to be successful in school, go to www.globalgiving.org/18714

*The name has been changed to protect the identity of the student.

Good News from the Sustainability Committee

5/1/2023

With approximately one third of our 2023 fiscal year completed, we have generated over 92 percent of the income needed to fund our operating budget for the year. Our operating budget is used to fund various required administrative expenses such as our annual meeting, communication software licensing, web hosting and domain registrations, and financial and legal fees associated with being a Costa Rica association. The main source of funding for our operating budget is membership dues, though this year we have gained additional funds from various member-initiated activities such as tai chi classes and book sales as well as individual donations designated for administrative support.

Though not as visible or potentially as exciting as the recent fundraising successes for our philanthropic projects, achieving a solid and healthy operating budget is critical to CAA’s ability to continue to make a positive difference in the lives of our members and our neighbors in need in our adopted community. As a result, we offer a sincere “thank you” to everyone who has contributed to this effort.

If you are not a member and would like to join or you are a member and need to renew your membership, it is easy to do. The annual dues are 5,000 colones and you can find payment options at the link below link or give your payment to any board member at coffee or the mixers. https://www.actionalliancecr.com/join-caa.html.

We appreciate your continued support.
~Mary Lou H.

CAA Provides Additional Funding to Árbol de Esperanza

On to University!

Good News from the Sustainability Committee

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