Get Jose to UCLA

Good morning -

I wanted to take a moment to let you all know about one of our very special seniors, Jose Mendez. It has been an incredibly difficult road for Jose the last four years but now he has tremendous opportunities before him.

I don't think it's my place to share all of the details of his life, but I would like you to know that four years ago his mother was murdered by his father and Jose was there to witness the horrific event.

All Jose has done with this tragedy has turned it into an incredible 4.3 overall GPA and an acceptance to UCLA for this fall.

Unfortunately, while Jose will receive an incredible amount of financial aid to cover his expenses, it won't quite be enough. Myself and Katrina McPhail are asking anyone interested in helping to cover Jose's expenses at UCLA can do so by leaving money with Lisa Salazar and Katrina and I will make sure it gets to Jose.

He is an incredible student, and an amazing person and well deserving of our help. He would never ask for it himself, but do know that he is incredibly appreciative of all the efforts made to help him along on this journey.

Thank you,
Justin Marquis
AVID Coordinator
Heritage High School