Friends of Barron is pleased to present to 2017-2018 Scholarship Candidates. We received a total of eight new applications for University Scholarships and each was outstanding. These kids have already been accepted into their Universities and are attending Fall classes. The cost to support one kid per year in University is $700 USD. We already have commitments from five sponsors to fund the continuing education of their high school students, but we need three more. You might notice that Friends of Barron is no longer offering new high school scholarships. This is because the new school that we helped build, with the support of the EDM Charity Golf Tournament, the Sinaloa Government and others, is now educating 40 Barron high school students.

Total scholarships:  30 (12 prep, 18 university)
New scholarships:   8 (0 prep, 8 university, these are included in the total)
Total cost per year:  $18,000 USD
Total cash collected or committed so far:  $14,650
New sponsors needed:  3 University scholarships

Here are the University Students who Need Scholarships:

• Jose Carlos –   Age 20   – You might have seen him working at La Tienda de Chula’s Store in Barron. He’s the one with the big smile and with pretty good English. He was a FOB scholarship student during Prep School, but decided to postpone his University entrance for a year so he could work.  He spent a year working in the fields around Barron and quickly decided that he needed a higher education if he was going to be able to get a good job. In 2017, he entered the University of Sinaloa as a student pursuing a degree in Public Accounting. He works 35 hours a week during school and 80 hours a week during vacation to help pay for his education. He is a sports enthusiast and for this community project (it is a requirement for Scholarship students to propose and implement a community project) he sees sporting events as a way to involve Barron’s youth and help keep them away from the usual problems of alcohol and drugs. He is an “A” student.

• Ana Iris –   Age 18  – Ana is enrolled in the Instituto Technologico de Mazatlan studying to become a Biochemical Engineer. With this degree, she hopes to work in Nutrition for big food producing companies like Pinsa or Bimbo. In her spare time, she likes to participate in traditional folkloric dances. For her community project, she wants to help obese people understand their nutritional issues and the need for exercise. She sees the need in Barron for a local gymnasium. Her ultimate goal is to study abroad and learn English. During school, she plans to work 24 hours a week and 48 hours per week during vacations with the goal of contributing $4000 pesos a month towards her own education.

• Jose Francisco –  Age 19  – Jose is enrolled in the Polytechnic University of Sinaloa studying to become an Engineer of Animation and Visual Effects. During the week, he works 24 hours a week in a hotel and in a cyber cafe and contributes half of his monthly earnings to his college education. In Barron, he volunteers helping younger kids participate in the arts and in sports. He hopes to set up sports tournaments and works at finding uniforms and equipment for kids to use while participating in these tournaments.

If you would like to sponsor one of these worthy students, please contact Dick McGuire (richardmcg@aol.com) or Dale Lyster (dlyster@shaw.ca).

Thank you!