Berenice was used to seeing the same narrative play out around her growing up: a life marked by poverty, wealth inequality, and barriers to education. Most families in her area in Oaxaca, Mexico have traditionally come from smaller villages in search of a better life and are facing severe unemployment and dire housing conditions. Instead of just focusing on daily survival, Berenice often pondered a different way. She was determined to not follow in the footsteps of many of her peers, and knew God had big plans for her.
The pivotal point in Berenice’s life came through Forward Edge’s Trigo y Miel program, which opened wide the doors of education to her. Although Berenice was once subject to extreme poverty, the Trigo program along with her sponsors gave her the gift of hope: to rewrite her future, dream bigger than before, and be equipped with resources to take action. On July 24th, 2021, she realized one of her personal dreams and graduated from college (the first in her family to do so) with a degree in Tourism Business Administration!
In our experience, seeing how God weaves miraculous stories of hope in the lives of the children in our programs is deeply encouraging. Berenice is the first to recognize and credit God’s loving hand, provision and grace by bringing her to Trigo y Miel, where she was fed spiritually and first connected with her sponsors. Berenice’s sponsors have been able to encourage and pray for her throughout her time in the program and her educational journey. Berenice’s sponsor, Amy, was even able to travel from New York to attend Berenice’s graduation (pictured together below), she shares, “It is a blessing to see how God used us to make a life impact on Berenice thousands of miles away.”
Throughout her education, Berenice faced adversity in the form of health issues and financial hardships, but it was in this process that she began to know how deeply loved and cared for she truly is, not only in the eyes of her sponsors, but by God Himself. After her graduation, Berenice shared, “I am full, for the great blessings of God and for having taken one more step in my life. I am happy to be able to share that moment with my loved ones. I will never forget what each person contributed to this stage of my life.”
Amy’s prayer for Berenice is, “That her faith continues to grow strong in the Lord. That she would be patient, wait on the Lord and walk through the doors He leads her through.”
We strive for a similar future for all impoverished children in Oaxaca and around the world: that they know their inherent worth, are given the resources to overcome poverty, and thrive in God’s plan for their lives. Congratulations on your huge achievement Berenice!
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9 yrs. old
Entered the program: October 2025
Santiago lives with his parents and his younger sister, Daniela (also in the program) in a small one-room house with a kitchen and a bathroom.
Santiago was born with Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE) and he is unable to walk, speak, or feed himself. His mother must devote most of her time and attention to his care. Santiago’s parents met when they were in middle school. His father was in the United States when Santiago was born in 2017 but then came back to their village. Santiago is not officially registered as his son. Santiago's father works in construction and struggles with alcoholism and violence. It is a very difficult situation.
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