Ruben is a thoughtful, dedicated young man who is determined to serve his community and become an "agent of change". Despite coming from a "humble family", he dreams of finishing his studies and becoming an English teacher and "working in his own community so as to help those people who need support. His favorite subjects are mathematics and, appropriately enough, English. "I like studying mathematics," said Ruben in his application to the Few for Change Scholarship, "because it will help me analyze community problems and look for alternatives and solutions."

A very difficult experience for me was: I didn't have school supplies nor a uniform when I went to school to enroll for the first time. I felt bad, but then I thought that school supplies weren't that important but that my interest in studying motivated me to continue progressing and not be defeated by the challenge. I study because I want to help my little brother and my mother when I am older. The challenges [in my life] help me to be more positive and to love studying because education is the best inheritance that our Father gave us, and it is the best opportunity that we have in life that everyone should take advantage of. When I graduate, my desire is to work as a nurse...and maintain family unity where peace and love reign. [My dream] for my community is to support them through knowledge and to offer them medical help, and for everyone else, is to teach them humility and the desire to overcome.

Omar struck us in his application with stories of struggle and perseverance. His motivation to continue studying, despite an incredibly long walk to school without breakfast, shines like a beacon of promise for the future. Omar has been able to maintain a high grade point average and perform as a star student despite his difficulties; a teacher noted that financial constraints and distance to school are the only things that stand in his way. Omar plans to eventually become a doctor and return to help his community, by giving lectures and bringing the best medical attention to those he loves. In the meantime, Omar loves to study natural sciences, which he says will help him to understand how humans and nature work and become a good doctor. Omar also dreams of supporting his family, and shared with us a wise bit of advice that we all could use to help us achieve our goals: "Without struggle there is no victory."

Sthephany is a hard-working, upbeat young woman who just graduated first in her class from primary school. There, her teachers noted her timeliness with assignments and her willingness to help her fellow students when they were struggling with a lesson. Sthephany dreams of studying math education in university and then returning to her community to teach upper school mathematics. She credits her mother and father for doing everything in their power to help her continue her studies, and looks forward to one day supporting them.

Kevin elected to write his application essay about his uncle, a person he greatly admires. Kevin impressed us with the level of reflection and detail in his writing, as he took care to describe his uncle's specific achievements (which ranged from completing college to singing) and what they meant to Kevin. After he finishes high school, Kevin plans to go to college to get a degree in Agricultural Engineering. He feels this career path will allow him to provide his village with much needed technical advice.

The most difficult experience of my life was when my dad separated from my mom. My dad didn't help me because of the problems that he had with my mom and to this day he doesn't help me with anything, only my mom has sacrificed to buy me school supplies. This has affected me greatly in life, both psychologically and emotionally; I felt sad without having my dad, I felt like I had no protection, I only knew that God loved me and would help me. The challenge that I lived helped me to think more positively and to study with more enthusiasm because life teaches us to face reality. This experience helped me to become a leader and to support other young people that face the same situation and to not give up in the face of difficulties. I like to study because I want to be different and an example for everyone else. After graduating, I want to work with my community with the young people motivating them toward a good path. I want to form work groups with the abandoned children. They need my help and understanding since this is the best way for me to support them because it is difficult for the authorities and others to understand their necessity because they haven't had this experience. The knowledge that I will apply is that which I have learned through my life experience and from my mom who is a fighter.

The most difficult experience in my life was when I had to leave school to go and work to help my dad to support our home. But the agreement that the employers gave the workers was a very low salary. This prepared me to be a good student to study in order to not be a day laborer, this is what made me return to school. I want to support others in their difficult moments, to motivate them to keep moving forward, this helps me to be a good leader. I am very disciplined and always turn my work in on time. I am responsible and help my classmates by explaining topics to them that they don't understand clearly. I want to continue to study computer science and engineering. I have always dreamed to meet this goal and with the support and help of Few for Change I can reach this goal. My other dream is for my family, to change the condition of the life we have lived for our entire lives. I can make this dream a reality by preparing me to continue studying and then find a good job so that I can help my family, my friends, and my community.

A first-year Few for Change scholar, Emilia stood out among this year's applicants with her passionate and well-written essay. She told us of a French female scientist that had come to her village while studying for her geology degree, and had impressed upon her the importance of environmental conservation. From this experience, Emilia developed a profound understanding of conservation and how it could benefit her community, as well as a clear direction for her career and life's work. At just 14 years old, Emilia shows maturity, personal responsibility, and drive. Her dream is to create an organization in the Comarca to educate people about the natural environment, and to utilize and protect the services it provides for future generations.

Olivia is bright young woman who is very proud of her Ngobe heritage. This pride was the theme of her application essay. "I want to fight and say that in our comarca (reservation) we can do many things if we try to reach our goals," she wrote. Olivia plans to help her community by becoming a health official and she understands that she must work very hard and focus on her studies to achieve her dream. Her teacher described her as positive, responsible, and observant, a quality which was apparent throughout her essay, but especially in her response regarding one of her favorite subjects in school. "One of my favorite subjects is informatica (technology) because it helps me to connect to the globalizing world in which we live and it will help me achieve my goal of being a health official."