Peruvian Hearts - Girls' Education & Empowerment

Thanks to the generosity of our loyal supporters, our PH scholars continue to advance with their degrees and dreams of becoming professionals who will transform their futures and change the world.

We are excited to celebrate the university graduation of our Peruvian Hearts scholar, Thilicia, who received her title as a licensed lawyer from Andina University in October. This noteworthy accomplishment makes Thilcia our fifth Peruvian Hearts scholar to graduate from university as a qualified professional and she joins our other graduates as proud PH alumni. Since her acceptance into Peruvian Hearts seven years ago, Thilcia has demonstrated her ability to overcome whatever obstacle presented itself along her path. Her work ethic, determination, kind heart and dedication to helping others will without a doubt continue to help her accomplish her dreams and pursuits. 

If you have visited Cusco and had the honor of meeting Thilcia, you know that her compassion towards others and her desire to pay if forward is palpable and inspirational. Her unmistakable appreciation for her own education and academic success throughout university will allow her to use her degree to help those less fortunate, especially women and children. Her dream is to ensure people with low economic resources, or who are unprotected or vulnerable, can access fair legal advice and that they are duly represented. Thilcia will be the first to acknowledge that she is still in the process of becoming the lawyer who can fulfill this dream, but she maintains her strong desire to learn and connect with people on a daily basis.

Thilcia has always valued the support and friendship of her older sister and PH alumni, Jhuvilka, who graduated from Andina University in 2018 with a degree in Medicine. Together these two young women and hard-working professionals will transform their futures, motivate and inspire the next generation of Peruvian Hearts scholars, and create lasting change within their society. The following is a letter from Thilcia addressed to our Peruvian Hearts family and generous supporters: 

Dear Peruvian Hearts Family, supporters, and valued donors:

In this opportunity I would like to share with you a little story of love, compassion and persistence.

Seven years ago, the Peruvian Hearts family welcomed me not only as a scholar, but also as a daughter; since then, they have been a light on my path to fulfill my dreams. It is worth mentioning that they have also been present in my moments of weakness, offering me love, compassion and support; without your help, I might not be telling you this story of overcoming today. They also taught me to mature as a woman, and to have a clear purpose in society: to serve others with the same love that I received from Peruvian Hearts.

Today more than ever I can see how God's work is reflected in each one of you, for helping me achieve my goals and make my dreams come true. A few days ago many friends asked me if Peruvian Hearts changed lives, without hesitation I answered: Yes, much more than that...

I hope that with these simple words I can express all my gratitude to God, life and to you, for making the dreams of girls like me come true every day.

With love and gratitude,

Thilcia

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We are grateful to our supporters for their loyal generosity and commitment to our PH scholars and their successes in education and as young women. We are proud of our PH scholars for their scholarship and perseverance, especially in the face of many obstacles both personal, societal and now in the form of a pandemic. Typically we highlight our girls’ individual academic and professional successes and accomplishments, but this update is unique. 

We want to share with you something about our Peruvian Hearts scholars’ hearts as they recently have pulled together as a family to support another fellow scholar. One of our PH scholars, Yanet, has a mother, Sra. Flora, who is suffering from a critical illness in her blood. Yanet studies systems engineering at the National University in Cusco and is an excellent student. She always has a huge smile to share with anyone and everyone, and if she is in the room her smile is contagious and the joy she shares is palpable.

Yanet is currently going through a difficult time because her beloved mother is very sick. As Flora’s only daughter, the responsibility to care for Flora falls entirely on Yanet, in addition to cleaning, cooking, and her ongoing university studies. Thankfully, Yanet is not alone, and has a lot of support from her “sisters” in Peruvian Hearts.

The young women in the Peruvian Hearts family, with the guidance and support of our team in Peru, have come together to help Yanet. They have searched and advertised on social media for blood donors for transfusions of blood and platelets that are necessary for Flora. They meet the blood donors at the hospital to provide them with a small financial tip to thank them and encourage them to donate again.

In addition the sisters of Peruvian Hearts recently came together to organize a Pollada (a fundraising event selling cooked chicken). They created the event and invited people and friends from around town. They created online tickets and collected donations from families and local businesses. Many of the PH parents and their daughters worked to cook and serve the chicken and handle registration and distribution on the day of the event. The PH scholars raised more than S/. 2,000 (approximately $500) to help with the costs of Flora’s medical treatments. In a small ceremony at her home, the PH team in Peru recently honored Flora with an award to recognize her as a woman of great courage and a mother who has fought for her children’s education. Flora is truly an example for other women and mothers.

We are proud of our scholars, their families, and our team in Peru for coming together to help their fellow scholar, Yanet, during such a challenging time. The camaraderie and network of support that has developed within the PH scholars and PH team has been exemplified yet again through the love, care, and commitment to shown to Flora and Yanet. The lessons our scholars learn through these acts of love and kindness are significant and certainly more valuable than any university course. Our PH scholars have shown that they are not just intelligent scholars academically, but that they care deeply about their character, living a life of kindness, and changing the world through acts of generosity and love.

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