Rebuilding our lives

Hello, our names are Ana Lucia and Javier; we are fundraising for study.

A few years ago, we had to leave our country Nicaragua looking for a better future and security for our baby Luciana; she was 10 months old at that time. Our country collapsed socially, falling into absolute violence in a few weeks. We had our dental office and house and were teachers at the national university; we worked for more than 15 years.

We took every opportunity to help others; the most important thing was collaborating with the Rotary Club, organizing dental missions in areas without access to care, far from civilization in Rios San Juan, a beautiful area of Rain Forest in the south of the country; we went many times for a 1 week giving free dental treatment to 300 to 400 people, every time we visit the zone. Honestly, from one moment to another, we had to decide to let go of everything we built, friends, home and career, knowing that we could not return.

Now we are in the United States; we are rebuilding our lives, grateful for the support of friends like Richard and Betsy Randolph, after going through the complex immigration process, being sure that we do not want to fall into the "brains waste" statistic, passionate about our career and with unstoppable energy based on Faith, we have always been close to Dentistry, working as Dental Assistants and Dental Hygienist, passing rigorous National and State Board exams; now we are applying to 2-year study programs required for foreign dentists to have their dental licenses in the US. Dentistry, for us, has always been the way to help others and we want to be example and proud of our daughter.

It is a very difficult process; there are thousands of applicants each year, and only a few are called for interviews. Thank God, and with a lot of effort, my wife Ana Lucia and I, on August 31, received a letter of invitation to interviews and bench tests by the St. Vincent Charity Medical Center / Advanced Education in General Dentistry program. For this, we need your support to keep rebuilding. First, we must take a preparation course for the bench test that has a cost of $5,900 per applicant ($11,800); this has limited space and will be from October 13 to 16, 2022; we must pay that as soon as possible to guarantee spaces in the course; plus interview fee of $200 and the bench test itself, $500 per applicant ($1400), these will be on November 5th, 2022; with accommodation and travel tickets, all make a total of $14000. Right now, we can give back our absolute gratitude for your support; I guarantee that later you will receive the healthiest feeling of pride seeing you helped rebuild the life of a family and you can be sure that Ana and I will multiply your support many times helping to others.