An Urgent Request for Help

Those of you who have faithfully followed our blogs understand our frustration with the public education system, and especially with the local school here in Santo Tomas. The majority of the students who finish high school in our town (if they get that far) aren´t really able to seriously consider going to a university. The best option for them to escape the mundane life of our remote little town is to join the military. Those who don´t join the military become motorcar drivers, field workers, or fish vendors--gender depending. There are no student loans or government aide. Those who go to college are either rich or lucky. It´s a sad reality.

In the past year, Casey, Lisa, Aaron and I have become good friends with a few local boys. They are friends with our girls and they play soccer with us, attend our Bible studies and go to church with us in town. One boy in particular, Felix, finish high school at the Santo Tomas colegio this past December. One January night, after a Bible study, we stayed up talking with Felix. He didn´t know what to do with his life now that he was done with school. We asked him if he had ever considered going to a university, even though we already knew that we might as well have asked him if he wanted to go to the moon. A seed was planted that night. We wanted him to truly think: if he did have a chance to go to the Adventist university in Lima, what would he want to study?

From that night on, we all began investigating such a possibility. The way the Adventist universities operate down here is that you have to pay for the first year to get in. From there, you can live in the dorm and work off the rest of your bill. If you need to work for a year doing grounds on campus until you have enough money for another cycle, then that´s what you do. For those who can´t afford to pay and study, they work off their bill, sometimes even taking 8 years to complete a 4 year degree. The catch is, you have to be able to get in in the first place. Felix knows this.

Right now, we are putting Felix through an educational boot camp trying to prepare him for the test he has to pass in order to attend the school. The test is a week from Sunday. He has been working very hard and we believe he will pass this test. He has learned a lot of Adventist beliefs through our Bible studies these past few months, but he still needs to know more for the test. We have been giving him math problems, essay to write, historical events to read about and analyze. We had to teach him to use the internet (there is a cafe in Santo Tomas now, but it is tiny and a little slow...he´s learning) to look up information. He is so excited and so terrified right now. We have been pushing him, knowing how little scholastic prep he has had by attending high school in Santo Tomas, while also trying to calm him and encourage him. He is doing very well so far.

So here is where we sit. We have a few hundred dollars raised to cover his flight to Lima, but the rest is in Gods hands. We need to raise $2,000 in order to cover his first year, which includes living in the dorm, cafeteria, books, and other random expenses. After year one, he will be able to work off the rest of his school bill, and is eagerly willing to do so. He just needs a good jump start. He is currently waiting to take his entrance test, and when he passes the test, he has about a week to get to Lima and have his year paid for. We are trying to work out more time to pay the bill so he can start studying, but we have no guarantees yet. Right now we urgently need prayer. We feel as though God will provide for this cause, but it will take a lot of prayer.

Next week we will be posting his picture, some information about him and his life, and an essay that he wrote explaining why he wants to go to an Adventist University, and how it will positively effect his life. If you would like to help this cause, please contact us at linfoot.aaron@gmail.com, and we can work out the details (we are waiting for him to pass in order to take money, but are looking for pledges at this point). Anything will help. God bless.