Page 47 - LIN February-2023_web-version

Valentine's Day is February 14 , ,
Valentine's Day is February 14
th
th
but every day offers opportunities
but every day offers opportunities
to express and experience the joy of a loving mindset.
to express and experience the joy of a loving mindset.

Summers for Immokalee students are anything but vacation

ummer vacation is Nallely is preparing for a future where her
romanticized on summers aren’t spent in the fields. She is in
STV and in movies – her final year of Guadalupe Center’s college-
family road trips to national preparatory Tutor Corps Program, which provides
parks, daylong escapes to magical theme parks students with college and career readiness, ACT and SAT test prep,
and flights to far-off places where you need a mentorships, financial literacy and scholarship assistance, as well as
passport to visit. wages for tutoring younger students.
by Dawn Montecalvo That isn’t the reality for Nallely Segura This summer, Nallely will be preparing to major in biology at
and many of her peers in Immokalee. Her The Ohio State University. She is pursuing a career in health care so
memories of summer vacation include sweat, sunburns and physical future generations in Immokalee will have quick access to doctors and
exhaustion. medical services instead of having to drive nearly an hour to Naples
“It was the sun beating down your back in a tomato field,” or Fort Myers for care.
recalled the 18-year-old senior at Immokalee High School. “It inspired me to make a difference in the disparity of health care
Nallely’s parents are farmworkers, and because Immokalee’s access,” she said of Immokalee’s shortage of health care providers. “I
agriculture season ends in the spring, the entire family travels north aspire to be the doctor my town needed when I was younger.”
during the summer to pick tomatoes in other states. From sunrise Nallely shared her story and dreams with guests at Guadalupe
to sunset, they are in the fields, day after day after day. Center’s signature gala, Elevate, which was held January 19 at The
“Every year for 76 days, I found myself trapped in those fields,” Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón. Proceeds from the event support
she said. “I constantly dreamt of a better life, a better state, a better three programs that serve more than 1,750 students annually – the
way to spend those 76 days. Knowing education was my only nationally accredited Early Childhood Education Program, After-
choice, I desperately devoted my entire being to it. It is the key to school Tutoring & Summer Enrichment Program and Tutor Corps.
freeing myself from the chains of poverty.” Guadalupe Center relies on philanthropic support to help
The correlation between education and income is well Immokalee families with young children; the average weekly cost
documented. According to federal data released in 2022, the for students in the early learning program is just $40. Private
median annual earnings for full-time young adults ages 25-34 rises donations also help high-achieving students like Nallely pursue their
significantly based on educational attainment: passions and attend college, with most Tutor Corps students having
$29,800 : Less than a high school diploma a significant portion of their tuition, housing and books covered by
$36,600 : High school diploma or equivalent scholarships and grants.
$44,100 : Associate degree For Nallely, Guadalupe Center is a life-changer – it truly will
$59,600 : Bachelor’s degree change her life, and most certainly change her summers going
$69,700 : Master’s degree or higher forward.
In Immokalee, just 51.9% of adults have completed high “Summer will not restrain me anymore,” she said. “It will not be
school. The median household income, which includes parents and what I dread or fear. It is now what motivates me to do better, to be
children who work, is $40,114. Nearly 28.4% of residents live in better. It has changed my outlook on this journey. It is no longer what
poverty. the world has done to me, but instead, what I will do to the world.”
Nallely doesn’t fault her parents for making her work in the About the Author
fields each summer. They were right there with her, just a row away. Dawn Montecalvo is president at Guadalupe Center, which provides
“Both came to this country with nothing but hopes and prayers educational services to more than 1,750 students annually in Immokalee.
for a better life,” Nallely said. “Truth is, those 76 days ARE their To learn more, please visit GuadalupeCenter.org or call 239-657-7711.
better life.”
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Life in Naples | February 2023 47