Dear Brookline-Quezalguaque Supporter,
2020 has been an extremely difficult and challenging year for all of us in the US and throughout the world with the COVID-19 pandemic. We sincerely hope that you and your loved ones are healthy and safe. This has also been a challenging yet eventful year for the Brookline-Quezalguaque Sister City Project in Nicaragua.
- We have provided money for PPE supplies to help with the COVID-19 outbreak as well as money to help reduce the risk of dengue fever.
- We have provided funding for substantial renovations to the library.
- Our multi-year rural water initiative has continued. Our work in 2020 follows earlier work completed in 2018 and 2019 that significantly improved 7 rural water systems, making clean water more accessible and available to people in Quezalguaque.
We are excited to announce a new initiative we have started with an old friend, Michael Cipoletti and FNE International (FNEI), to provide scholarships to students in Quezalguaque. FNEI’s scholarship program has been in place for 12 years. In 2020 the program is supporting 143 students in their pursuit of a university education, including 8 students from Quezalguaque. We want to expand this number.
Through this scholarship program, families in this poor, semi-rural municipality can send a child to college. The scholarship students pursue training in all fields, ranging from education and journalism to business, engineering, and medicine.
Applicants are evaluated based on their academic success throughout high school and the family’s financial needs. When they receive the scholarships, they agree to maintain a high GPA, attend monthly meetings, and participate in community service projects.
This program costs $500/student per year which includes tuition, books, transportation, and other expenses. We hope you will join us in this effort to send young people from Quezalguaque to university for an academic year. This will increase the number of students who are supported during their entire degree program and create a cohort of young professionals who will give back to the community.
Please make an important end-of-year donation to the Brookline–Quezalguaque Sister City Project. In 2021, we plan to continue our support for the library, art classes for youth, the health center, and the water initiative. You can use the donate button above or give from your Fidelity, Schwab or BNY Mellon DAF. The town of Brookline has had a formal sister city partnership with Quezalguaque for the last 33 years, and your support has made this possible.
We extend our sincere thanks to you and hope you stay safe and healthy!