Help send Prudence Eca to Oregon State
My name is Prudence Dieudonne Eca. I recently graduated from De La Salle North Catholic High School in Portland, OR. In the fall I will be attending Oregon State University (Go Beavers!) where I plan to study Mechanical Engineering.
I am from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I came to the United States with my family in 2004 when I was ten years old. Prior to being resettled in Portland, OR, I had lived in a refugee camp in Zambia with my family for seven years. Catholic Charities working with St. Philip Neri Catholic Church welcomed us and helped us to settle here.
I could barely speak English when I first arrived. It took me two years to before I felt confident in my ability to speak and understand English. By the time I graduated from high school, I had studied AP English, AP Calculus, honors Economics and advanced Spanish.
As the oldest of six children, I have always had a strong sense of responsibility. Both of my parents work in social justice, my father as a community organizer and my mother as a case manager working with refugee, immigrant and local communities. They have instilled in me a deep sense of caring for others. I have carried this forward as an altar server at St. Philip Neri Catholic Church, volunteering with the African Youth Conference and working for Food Works which is a non-profit youth organization that helps to grow business, community, farm and self.
My long-term goal is to use my Mechanical Engineering degree to create technologies that will help solve the problems of the world. I've received some scholarships, but I still need about $8000 to cover my tuition, room and board for the academic year. Your support means very much to me and my family.