On Friday, a ten-year old dream came true. A large backhoe extended its boom and began preparing the empty lot on the corner of Sixth and Rio Streets in Barrón.
La Viña leader Fred Collum (far left with flag), officers of the three Mazatlán Rotary Clubs, the president of Barrón, FOBs Richard McGuire, La Viña’s Miguel “the Architect”, and the president of the ejido celebrate the start of construction.
The planned three story building will provide youth activities, instructional classrooms, and care for the homeless. But the most important aspect of the structure is that it will permanently house FOBs fully staffed medical and dental clinic.
Computer generated images of the completed clinic.
Upon completion, FOB will donate all the medical and dental equipment to the community of Barrón. With FOB’s help and continued financial support, La Viña will take over the management of the clinic.
Friends of Barrón would like to thank the many donors who have contributed to this worthy cause over the years.
FOB is proud to announce the acceptance of eight new highly qualified university students into its scholarship program. To continue in this program, each student needs a sponsor. Sponsorships are USD 700 per school year. Below you will find the profiles of each student. Hopefully, you will find some common interest in one or more of these fine people and agree to support them financially. Past and present sponsors will attest to the many personal and cross cultural benefits they enjoy from their relationships with their students and student families in Barrón.
BREAKING NEWS! Tania has been sponsored by John and Sandra Davis.
Tania – 21 years old
A first-generation Barrón High School graduate, Tania likes to read in her free time. She works as a waitress in a Stone Island restaurant to help pay for her education. She is in her first semester at the Teacher’s University of Sinaloa in Villa Union where she maintains an A average. Her after-school project in Barrón is to tutor kids who have dropped out of school or are failing. Her long-term goal is to create a recreation/daycare center in Barrón as a safe place to leave kids when parents go to work. Currently, Barrón has no such facility.
Merichel has been sponsored by an anonymous person
Merischel – 18 years old
Mery likes to play soccer and is an amateur photographer. She works as a waitress at Panamás in Mazatlán to supplement her expenses. Mery is in her second year at the Technical University of Durango in Mazatlán, studying to become a customs agent. Mery lives with her parents, who are helping with the cost of her education. Her dream is to help industrialize for export agricultural and fishery products produced in Barrón. She sees packing plants and processing facilities as essential to the future development of the farming industry in Barrón.
BREAKING NEWS!! Lance & Jeremy are going to support Juan Manuel
Juan Manuel – 18 years old
Juan Manuel loves to swim and play volleyball. He works on the weekends as a Stone Island waiter to contribute to his education. He is majoring in physical therapy and has completed two semesters at the Superior Technological Institute of Mazatlán, where he maintains a 9.72 GPA. His interest is in medical services, and he wants to provide low-cost in-home physical therapy care to Barron’s poorest residents.
BREAKING NEWS!! Jessica has been sponsored by Margaret Perez.
Jessica – 18 years old
Jessica is in her first year at the Teachers University of Sinaloa in Mazatlán, maintaining a 9.8 GPA. She has previously worked in a daycare center and plans on continuing to do so during her vacations from school. She has asked to use the space at our dental/medical clinic in Barrón on weekends when we are not open to help tutor poor-performing students.
Erika has been sponsored by Dave and Bonni Canary
Erika – 17 years old
Erika is in her first year at the Teaching College University in Concordia, Sinaloa, where she maintains a 9.0 GPA. Erika has to work at least eight hours a week to contribute to her education because her only source of funds is from her parents, who are day laborers in the agricultural industry in Barrón. Her mother became sick this year and can no longer contribute financially. Like the others, Erika plans to give back to her community by working with other student teachers in Barrón to tutor kids who are not doing well. She wants to form a homework club to work with disadvantaged kids.
BREAKING NEWS!! Both Marias have been sponsored by Sandy Vernon and Mike Winey
María del Sol – 18 years old
María is in her second year at the University of Sinaloa in Mazatlán, studying to become a psychologist in a five-year program. She graduated from Barrón High School and finished her first year at the university with a 9.75 average. Her only financial support comes from her father, who also supports her twin sister, María del Mar (also in the scholarship program).
María del Mar – 18 years old
Identical twin to María del Sol, María del Mar’s favorite pastimes are reading and listening to music. She is a recent graduate of Barrón High School and is in her second year at the University of Sinaloa at Mazatlán, studying to become a lawyer. She completed her last semester with a 9.75 GPA. Her great ambition is to provide pro bono legal services to poor people in her community, and eventually would like to enter politics as the mayor of Barrón (Comisaria de Barrón). In that position, she hopes to do some real good for her community.
BREAKING NEWS! NAYLETH HAS BEEN SPONSORED BY LEE SMITH
Nayleth – 20 years old
Nayleth is in her third year of university and has yet to find a sponsor. Nayleth attends Mazatlan’s school of fine arts studying to become a preschool teacher. She has a one-year-old child, and with her mother’s help babysitting, she can maintain a solid B average. Her ultimate goal after graduation is to open a new daycare center in Barrón to provide this vital service for the many working mothers.
If you would like to sponsor one of these fine students, please contact Richard McGuire (richardmcg@aol.com), Dale Lyster (dale.lyster@gmail.com), or just reply to this blog. Your student will be in frequent email contact with you to report their progress and to introduce you to their families if you wish to develop a closer relationship.
Arlete is a scholarship recipient studying Fisheries Biology. She recently participated in a field trip to the northern Sea of Cortez to study Totoaba, shrimp, abalone and oyster propagation. Totoaba are endangered by unregulated Chinese factory fishers who value the fish’s swim bladder for use in herbal medical treatments to boost fertility. Their illegal harvest has also endangered the small endemic porpoise called Vaquita. The vaquita become entangled in the nets the Chinese factory ships cast to catch Totoaba and they drown.
Arlete will be on the front lines of the battle to save these two species when she graduates next year. Her sponsors, Dick and Kris McGuire are also biologists and are thrilled to see their $700 a year in scholarship donations put to such good use.
Friends of Barròn encourages those who have a vocation to find a suitable candidate among the upcoming Class of 2023 whose ambitions they could mentor, to step up to the plate and sponsor a university career. Watch this space for more information about our new scholars.
Over the past fourteen years, FOB CANAM Inc has awarded eighty university scholarships. Among those scholars, thirty-six have graduated from a university, twenty-four remain enrolled, and twenty have left the program without a university degree for various reasons, including relocation, marriage, and a need to work for pay.
Of the thirty-six graduates:
Fourteen are now Certified Teachers
Four are Engineers
Three are Social Workers
Three are Nurses
Three are in the Merchant Marine
Two hold Business degrees
One is a Medical Doctor
One is a Dentist
One is a Chef
One is a Psychologist
One is a Physical Therapist
One is a Lawyer
One is an Accountant
Of those continuing their studies, we have future Fisheries Biologists, more Teachers, and many more professionals in training. These young Barrón residents’ accomplishments are humbling, and we are indebted to those who have and continue to sponsor them. Thank you.
We are very blessed and excited to share the recent achievements of our sponsored student, Jorge Manuel Ortega. Jorge graduated from the four-year program at the Nautical Merchant Marine University in Mazatlan in 2020. After graduation the real work began. He worked as an apprentice at sea, while continuing to take post graduate courses. Through dedication and hard work, he now has completed 15 additional courses and received his Pilot’s License! Jorge is currently in Ciudad del Carmen, seeking employment. Jorge credits God for helping him to persevere, follow his dreams and overcome a number of life’s obstacles. These students are a testimony to the success of FOB. Under the leadership of Dick and Dale, we are very thankful for their dedication to this program and to the community of Barron. Gratefully, Rob and Jayne Rupe
Thanks to our sponsors, we saw eight of our Barrón scholarship students graduate from university in 2021. Some of these students have been in the program since freshmen in high school. Of the eight graduates, half have entered internship programs ranging from medical doctor to accountant. In all cases, our generous sponsors are supporting their students through their internships as well.
FOB now has 28 Barrón students on university scholarship; 23 of these students have sponsors. We have five new students in need of sponsors. If you are an EDM resident and wish to sponsor one of these students, contact Dick or Kris McGuire, Phase 1, condo 106. Meanwhile, talk to one of the many past and present EDM sponsors about their experience and the cross cultural opportunities the program has afforded it’s sponsors, our students and their families. This program provides a unique opportunity to connect with the local community! For details on how the program works click on the “Scholarships” tab on the fob news.org website.
Nayleth Isabel has been sponsored by Lee Smith
Nayleth is 19 and in her second year at Mazatlan’s school of fine arts studying to become a pre-school teacher. She has a one-year-old child and with her mother’s help babysitting, she is able to maintain a solid B average. Her ultimate goal after graduation is to open a new day care center in Barrón to eventually provide this important service for the many working mothers.
Ana Julieta has beensponsored by Margaret Perez
Ana is 18 years old and is in her second year studying accounting at Sinaloa state university in Mazatlan. Accounting is a five year program which includes one year of apprenticeship. Ana was raised by a single mim and is working almost full-time while in school trying to help pay her own way. She maintains a 9.0 grade average.
Katia Berenice has been sponsored by Reed and Bette Ratcliffe
Katia is 21 years old and a first year student in dentistry at Northern Pacific University in Mazatlan. She enjoys reading and spending time with her baby daughter. She works half-time while in school and contributes to her education and do her parents. Dental school costs range from $4000 -$6000 pesos per month and she is having difficulty making ends meet on her own. She has expressed a desire to volunteer as an intern at the FOB Medical/Dental Clinic in Barrón.
William Smith has been sponsored by Dale Lyster
William is nineteen years old and is enrolled in education at the University of Sinaloa, Mazatlan where he is pursuing a high school teaching degree. This is a five-year program. He is helping to put himself through school by working sixteen hours a week as a waiter in the restaurants in Isla de la Piedra and as a day laborer in the agricultural fields of Barrón. He volunteers as an internet technology tutor for kids in the secondary and high schools of Barrón. Ultimately, his goal is to be a teacher and set up workshops for kids to learn new technologies after school hours.
Katia Guadalupe has been sponsored by Reed and Bette Ratcliffe
Katia is nineteen years old and is a sophomore in the Nursing Program at the University of Sinaloa, Mazatlan. She is a graduate of the Barrón high school where she maintained an 8.5 GPA. During her summer vacations and on weekends, she works in a mango packing plant and as a waitress at Stone Island. One of her goals when she graduates is to return to Barrón and work as a nurse.
The year-end fundraiser to fund the Barrón Free Medical/Dental Clinic has topped $5000 triggering a 100% match from our anonymous donor. There are ten days left to send your 2021 Charitable Donation and qualify for the new 50% match by another anonymous donor. Please consider making your donation today. Send your check to FOB CANAM, c/o Richard McGuire, 18 Oxford Ranch Rd, Laramie, Wyoming. 82070 or use PayPal (FOB_CANAM@aol.com).
FOB CANAM INC {501(C)(3)} 