Rebecca and Marco with Florentina, 2025.

While in Guatemala for the GLP Tour this February, Rise Youth Development Program sponsors Rebecca and Marco visited the very first Rise student they sponsored, Florentina, who’s now a program graduate! Rebecca and Marco shared with us their story of supporting Florentina and the impact that their Rise sponsorship has had—on both Florentina’s life and their own. Read on to hear about their experience as Rise sponsors!

Getting Connected to CoEd

R: Gerrit and Carolee Terpstra, friends from Rotary [Peoria North Club], were committed to the Guatemala Literacy Project (GLP). I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say that Carolee nagged me until I joined them on a tour [to Guatemala]. From then I was dedicated myself.  I think the process (of nagging and being converted) was similar between me and my husband Marco until he joined me a couple of years later.

M: CoEd’s global grant has been significant to Rebecca since it began. We liked the organization and stewardship of money from the start.

Rebecca and Marco on the 2023 Snapshot Tour.

Sponsoring Florentina

R: I met Flor when she was 12 years old and starting Básico. She and her three sisters were being raised by their dad, who had limited resources and couldn’t afford to send any of the girls to continue their education after Primaria [primary school]. In those days, the students were brought to Antigua, and their sponsors would take them out to lunch and try to communicate. The process is much easier now, with structured activities and [interpreters], but that first visit was a bit awkward. Even so, I was so impressed with this girl. She was determined to get an education. Looking back, I think she understood that she could transform the whole family with her hard work, and that’s just what she’s done.

With her job in banking, she has supported the whole family and sent her sisters to school.

Rebecca, Flor, and Ronald McDonald in Antigua, c.2008.

Flor, c.2007.

M: She was a cute, shy little girl with determination. We would try to get to Guatemala annually to not miss any of the amazing progress and growth she was experiencing.

R: Marco met her on the next trip, and we enjoyed watching her grow year by year. After she left the program, she would meet us in Antigua, and we’d catch up together. On this last visit, she invited us to meet her family in Santiago Sacatepéquez. She’s 29 years old. We had a delightful, if a little overwhelming, time meeting everyone, including Flor’s husband Carlos and their 18-month-old Daniela. Flor and Carlos’ house is lovely. The family even got a piñata for us.

Rebecca and Marco with the whole family at Flor and Carlos’ home in Santiago Sacatepéquez, 2025.

Meeting María, Madelyn, and Mirsa

Left: Rebecca and Marco with María and Madelyn—two Rise students they currently sponsor, 2025 GLP Tour. Right: Marco with Mirsa—a Rise student they currently sponsor, 2025 GLP Tour.

R: We met all three of these girls during the Rise activity on tour. It’s so nice to get to know them a bit in person when we first meet. We met María and Madelyn together in 2023.

Madelyn is a natural student, I think. This year she’s in Tercero Básico [3rd year of middle school] and continues to do well. We were thrilled to meet her mom and see how proud she is. I’m so impressed with the sacrifices made by Guatemalan parents. I can see that they get it.

María has struggled more with school and is so proud to have overcome her difficulties (most of which we’ll never know, I’m sure) to also qualify for Tercero this year. María loves to write to us and send pictures. Her notes are the longest we’ve ever gotten from a student, and we love that. I hope our encouragement has helped her get where she is today. Both girls are so much more mature and poised in the two years since we met.

We just met Mirsa this year, and she’s starting Básico. She’s a lovely, energetic girl who wants to be a teacher, and we can’t wait to see what she accomplishes.

M: We are facilitators. We provide some funding, but it is solely up to these children to make their education count. The message exchange has been a great boost. We can share their stories and successes regularly. They are working hard and are committed to getting an education and helping their families.

Receiving a scholarship shows them the importance of school. I feel they have been given responsibility. They are taking this seriously. CoEd is doing a great job of determining the best candidates.

Hopes for the Future

R: I’m inspired that these students can take the support of gringos like us and create a whole new future. I’d just like them to have the choices that come from education.

M: We need to make sure they have the tools necessary to work in the growing economy. CoEd is important in this issue as they train students how to acquire everything from good study habits to communication and computer skills. There are a lot of pieces required to ensure success. I can honestly say that we have seen the needle move in Guatemala. There are other stories besides Florentina. We see and hear the benefits of what CoEd is doing.

This encourages us to help and invite our friends to do the same.

Rebecca and Marco with Flor at the CoEd Office, 2017.

R: Sponsoring Rise students has been a gift for us in so many ways. We’ve created relationships with extraordinary young people and their families. Even if you can’t travel to Guatemala, CoEd will arrange for regular correspondence with your student including the exchange of photos. A small financial investment on our part gives the kids the boost they need to transform their family’s circumstances forever.

M: You have years of successful students to use as your guide for sponsorship.

R: The program is particularly well-run. It’s so much more than a scholarship, providing social support and teaching life skills.

Want to be a part of a Rise student’s journey like Rebecca and Marco?