Project Esperanza's 18th Birthday Fundraiser

In May 2006, Project Esperanza started working in the community of Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic when Virginia Tech students partnered with locals to conduct a street census, assessing the need of hundreds of youth working on the streets. This census led to the founding of two elementary schools for Haitian immigrant/refugee kids and a small group home.

Throughout these past 18 years we have continued with the work, learning and improving constantly. God has blessed us with an amazing team and generous support that allows us to pay their salaries and create spaces for our work to take place.

We have a few areas that are in need of a fundraising boost and we hope to be able to take care of as the organization bridges into adulthood.

First, we have a 1999 Hyundai van that we use to drive kids back and forth to school every day, haul volunteers, and haul all sorts of materials. At this point, the van is quite beat up and we hope to buy a newer version, rather than continue to repair this one. Our goal for this is $15,000.

Second, we have rented a small farm with a house for 6.5 years now. This serves as our volunteer house and educational farm. It can house around 30 volunteers. We bus students there for hands on field trips. We have housed beneficiaries in need of housing there throughout the down seasons and especially during the pandemic.

We have built more housing on the property and improved it substantially, but not yet entered into the purchase contract that we hope to. The price of properties is soaring all around us and the owner promises that if we don't enter into such a contract this summer when the lease runs out, he will have to sell to another. The deposit he asks for is $85,000.

Therefore, with these two goals combined, our overall goal is to raise $100,000. We thank you immensely for helping us to reach this goal, which will help us, as an organization, bridge from teenage life to adulthood.