Nilda Aviles
Lori Connell
“Mi Esperanza changed my life. My economic situation is better. All my effort is for my children. I want my kids to have a good education, and my job makes this possible. My dream for them is to see them graduate from college. I will fulfill my dreams through them.”
Nilda working the Mi Esperanza jewelry studio
Nilda Aviles is 38 years old and the mother of two teenagers.
After she graduated from high school, she planned to try to go to college. She liked school and wanted to continue learning, but she quit her dream when she got pregnant. As in many cases worldwide, early and unintended pregnancy jeopardizes women's educational goals.
Nilda decided to stay home and take care of her baby boy. Nilda married and had her second child. Still determined to learn, she started looking for any chance to learn something new, but opportunities were scarce, having to be close to home to care for her children and home.
NILDA AT A GLANCE
Married
Children: 2
Community: Santa Ana
Mi Esperanza Course: Sewing & Jewelry programs
Years later, an opportunity came! Nilda's sister came to visit with promising and exciting news. Mi Esperanza was offering a new sewing course in their town, with the chance of a future job.
The Lord answered her prayers again! In her town, Mi Esperanza opened a train-to-work opportunity for the production of 85,000 bracelets. Nilda had the chance to learn and get paid for it! She did such an excellent job that she was offered a permanent position in the Mi Esperanza Jewelry studio in Tegucigalpa. Today Nilda is one of Mi Esperanza's most skilled artisans, and her job at Mi Esperanza has given her the ability to educate her children.
Nilda wants to tell the donors who make Mi Esperanza possible, "My children's life is better because of you. You invest in us, providing opportunities that will echo for many generations. Thank you!"