I don't think my kids realize just how easy they've had it. My daughter Carolina is going away to college in a few weeks and as I sat in our kitchen listening to her worries: What outfits should I take? How should I decorate the dorm? Do you think I'll make any friends? Can we get a shower caddy?
I thought to myself that although this is all very overwhelming, her concerns seem so trivial relative to those of less fortunate teens that have had to overcome so many challenges and have dealt with so much adversity in their lives.
Not to say that Carolina didn't work hard at school. She did very well despite taking very challenging courses. But her life, compared to the lives of so many young Latinas has been, relatively, a breeze! For the past five years, I have been part of a select group of individuals who make up the Ronald McDonald House Charities HACER National Scholarship committee, responsible for reviewing the top applicants (thousands apply) and selecting four outstanding students who each receive a $ 100,000 college scholarship that forever changes their lives!
All of the students who are eligible are typically top ranked among their high school senior class and have made major contributions to their local communities despite the financial and other hardships they and their families have endured. Most live in underprivileged, at risk neighborhoods and schools. Their personal essays, highlighting academic, career, and personal achievements and goals, tell heart-wrenching, novela-worthy stories. They speak of feeling all alone, surrounded by peers, teachers and even family members who don't care and have extremely low expectations for them. Many grew up in homes that were too poor to provide adequate meals or even books. They speak of violence in their neighborhoods or even their own homes. They talk about having to care for their siblings while their parents worked multiple jobs to make ends meet.
Despite it all, 2013 RMHC/HACER scholarship recipients like Giovanna Robledo, whom I interviewed, is representative of the types of applicants I've reviewed over the years. Despite challenges faced at home, Giovanna had extremely high grades, took challenging courses, dedicated her "spare" time to community work and graduated as valedictorian of her class. She "wants to change the world and change the perception society may have of Mexicans" through inspiration and by continuing her work in the community.
Giovanna attended a school in San Diego, California where "Latinos are the majority in regular classes but unfortunately, the minority in advanced placement classes." She will start her freshman year of college in the Fall at Harvard University. I don't mean to downplay my daughter's high achievements in academics and otherwise, but relative to Giovanna and other Latinas like her, my daughter was fortunate to have the financial and emotional support from her family so that she could achieve her personal best.
Do you think your kids live in a bubble? Please share!
