Our work in Mexico

Living day by day

A country that shares a large border with the United States, Mexico often has a cost of living similar to the U.S. but with much lower income opportunities. This makes life very challenging for families living in poverty.

As they say in Mexico, most live "al dia" (day by day). They go to work and earn just enough money to pay for that day’s immediate needs — food, transportation and more. CFCA projects focus on education, nutrition and income-generating initiatives to bring hope to families.

Hope for a Family sponsorship in Mexico enables children to accomplish dreams that would have been out of their reach. Sponsorship opens the door of education and prepares children and youth to build a path out of poverty with their families.

Sponsorship opens door for education

Luis, a sponsored youth in the CFCA Hope for a Family program, excels in school and dreams of using his gift for mathematics in an engineering career. Without sponsorship, Luis’ parents would not be able to afford quality education.

Luis has always been interested in mathematics. In ninth grade, after a lot of hard work, Luis watched a dream come true when he represented his home state at the National Mathematics Olympics. Five days later, Luis returned home with a first-place medal in his category.

Since winning the competition, Luis’ self-esteem has increased. He now plans to be an engineer.

"The support provided by his sponsor has given him enough self-confidence to overcome any obstacle in his life,” said Miguel Carpio, the Santa Catarina project coordinator.

Hammock-making business improves family home

Manuela is the mother of a sponsored child in Mexico. As part of a CFCA livelihood program, she has created a hammock-making business. Most families in this area sleep in hammocks, and there is a large market for this product.

The mothers produce the hammocks and then sell them to earn money for their families. Over time, Manuela has saved enough money through her hammock business to improve her family’s modest home.

CFCA’s Hope for a Family program works with families of sponsored children to help them help themselves. By providing livelihood programs – training mothers of sponsored children in skills such as hammock-making, farming, tailoring and more – Hope for a Family goes beyond providing material goods. The program truly helps families become more self-sufficient and build a better life for themselves.

Scholars give back to their community

The Mexico programs provide CFCA scholarships to many older youth to complete their education. As part of the scholarships' service component, the youth are actively involved in the Hope for a Family program and use their skills and education to help the younger sponsored children. These "service scholars" teach about personal health and hygiene, tutor younger sponsored children, offer sports activities and more.

"Their fresh ideas motivate the entire team and help us look for better ways to help our sponsored members and their families overcome obstacles," said Gaspar Hernandez, Merida project coordinator.

The scholars also serve as positive role models for the younger children in the Hope for a Family sponsorship program. As they pursue their dreams, they inspire younger children to work hard and dream for the future.

Community members guide program

CFCA’s Mexico programs encourage active community participation. The Hope for a Family sponsorship programs are implemented by committees made up of mothers from the community. The committees, called "comite de mamas," allow families to make decisions that directly affect their community, and select benefits that best meet their needs.

The community committees also foster a "be more" attitude among sponsored members. Through their responsibilities on the committee, they see sponsorship as much more than a charity program helping "the poor." Instead, they’re inspired to dream for their future and work toward achieving those dreams. Families are empowered to be responsible for their personal development, as well as the development of their communities.