By Jessica Lawson | Co-Founder
Let’s spend a day in the life of a Mariposa girl, Maria.
Maria sleeps on a mat on the floor with her sister. Their small home is unbearably hot. The thought of cool air and a comfortable bed with pillows is unfathomable to her. It’s hard to sleep, she eventually nods off from pure exhaustion and is awakened early in the morning by the sound of motorcycles and construction. She makes her way behind the house to the small outhouse that is shared between seven families. There’s no running water, so she uses a bit of collected rain water to wash up.
She proudly gets dressed in her Mariposa t-shirt and walks to the bus stop. On the way, she’s cat-called, workers and other men make gestures at her and she’s scared. Her head bowed down so as to not attract attention, she reaches the bus stop and the Mariposa bus picks her up. As soon as she sits down, an immediate wave of relief washes over her. She’s safe.
She arrives at the Mariposa campus, enjoys a healthy breakfast while connecting with her friends and mentors, does a morning yoga, swimming lessons, coding class, reading, gardening and enjoys a filling lunch and plenty of clean water. She also has time to take a warm shower in the locker room and do her hair before she boards the bus to private school.
Maria dreams of becoming a doctor when she grows up, and in her heart of hearts, she knows that she can, because at Mariposa, she’s met and talked with doctors that look just like her. In fact, she’s excited about meeting the doctor that’s coming next week, a Mariposa graduate!
The Mariposa Center for Girls is the largest safe space for girls in all of Latin America and the Caribbean. It's a beautiful sanctuary where girls can leave the outside world behind and be completely free to come learn, grow and play. You are a huge part of helping run this special place day to day, changing the lives of girls like Maria.
We thank you for your ongoing support.
Sincerely,
The Mariposas
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