A DREAMER in need- Please Help

A fellow DREAMER and friend from California asked me to help her forward this information to different outlets.

A dreamer's family member from California has fallen sick with a tumor. Due to his status, hospital bills and more have become a big concern and they are asking for the help of those out there.

Read her message, if you would like more information, I'd be happy tos end you more contact info. An account for donations has been set up:

The bank account is with Bank of America.
Name: Leonardo Sanchez (My brother-in-law who needs the surgery)
Number: 1138570298

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Yesi a student a CSU San Marcos in North County San Diego and a very good friend of mine really needs our help. "Her brother-in-law was recently detected with a high-risk tumor behind his nose - - close to his brain, which doesn't allow for him to breath through his nose anymore. He requires an immediate high-risk surgery, which will be costing $80,000. In order to schedule he's surgery we need to have 50%. " (from her email below)

When we first established our student org Espiritu during the spring of 2007 Yesi showed her outmost support to our cause since the very beginning. She was our group's historian and was there for every meeting and event we had. She is also a very active student with M.E.Ch.A. at our campus. Currently, she is president of our campus Oaxacan Student Org for the second year and is also Treasurer of M.E.Ch.A. She really needs our help.

Today, she sent us an email with the following message please see below.
Her brother in law-truly needs our help. So, I ask you to please support her and family
with any money donation that you can make. I understand that many of us are students and ab540, but I am sure her family will appreciate any small donation you can make or even if you forward this email among your friends and/or family or ask your local church to make an announcement at the end of mass or talk to your local pastor, priest, or minister.

Thank you


message:

Hello all,


Hope you all are doing great and enjoying the beginning of Spring Break.

As many of you may already know, my brother-in-law Leonardo Sanchez (was recently detected with a high-risk tumor behind his nose - - close to his brain, which doesn't allow for him to breath through his nose anymore. He bleeds from time to time, and gets terrible stomach ache since he's swallowing all the liquid the tumor releases. He requires an immediate high-risk surgery, which will be costing $80,000. In order to schedule he's surgery we need to have 50%. We are asking for your support either by attending Sunday's event (Kermes -- Flyer attached) or with any monetary donations. Anything will be greatly appreciated, since we have no programs or insurance supporting his situation because of the lack of the 9-digits (SS#). Please let me know if you have any questions, suggestions, or donations for his cause contact me at: yesi723trulyours@yahoo.com

Give up my Rolex for a DREAMER!? Part II

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The idea of giving small gifts, or no gifts has been on my mind for a few days. I had to walk into Bed, Bath, and Beyond* last week and could feel the desperation as the other shoppers pushed their carts around in this store that seems to have everything. The store was prepared for that desperation, the aisles were so narrow (not normal for them) - maybe they were trying to stuff as much as they could in front of the shoppers in order to sell more.

While the U.S. media is always talking about poor, uneducated, or undocumented Latinos, they mostly ignore those who are not in these categories. Yet, there are so many around that have finished college and/or made lots of money, drive a BMW or a Lexus and (of course) have a Rolex.

It happened at my house. My Dad was really poor as a kid, started working full time when he was 9. As he became a financially successful adult it was very important for him to have lots of luxury items. It's true he worked very hard for all that he had - but the need to have a material display of this wealth was the most important part of this equation.

I learned well from him. I had a Concord watch (that I can't find anymore) and for many years I drove a fancy car with big monthly payments and lived in what my cousins would call a very fancy neighborhood.

This is all said in the past tense, but it's not about some big religious conversion. It's that reality began to dawn on me, especially since I've been working on the DREAMER project.

Most Latinos who make it to the middle (or higher) class want these fancy things (well, probably most people do). A watch or a ring will cost an inordinate amount. Instead of a new Honda Civic, it's a Lexus, or a BMW, a Navigator or (God forbid) even a Mercedes.

Well I have a proposal for all of us that can buy ourselves those fancy things.

How about next Christmas, instead of buying your wife that diamond ring, get her a more modest gift and donate a few thousand dollars so that a DREAMER can go to college? A number of DREAMERS I know never got their financial aide this year. They were told the applications were incomplete, but weren't informed of this even when they had turned them in many months before the deadline - some people are guessing the applications were stalled on purpose. In many states, there is no financial aide for DREAMERS. In 42 states of the union there is no in-state tuition.

Better yet, if you really need a new car, avoid the flash, look for better gas mileage (you will appreciate this later). If you save $10,000-20,000 - think of how many DREAMERS could go to college on that money?

I know you are going to say, you don't have that kind of cash, you pay the car in payments. Well then start a savings account "in payments" - once you get a few thousand together, find the kid that wants to go to school, is a DREAMER, has good grades, and lots of potential. If you think you can't find one, ask a few high school counselors - eventually you should find one (like David Johnston at Lee High School in Houston) that know exactly where the money could go (Lee High School has had a number of valedictorians who were DREAMERS)

If you want to give it to a charity - the NYT recommends you check charitywatch.org to see if most of the donations go to actual services or scholarships.


Merry Christmas




*Disclosure: I admit, I went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to buy a Christmas present that was over $20.00



Rolex image: http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.limitedwatches.net/IMAGES/Romanandbezles/diamonddaytona1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.limitedwatches.net/rolexdaytonapage.html&h=682&w=475&sz=56&hl=en&start=1&sig2=DEB6sxrVANIZeK2lJ5Hjmg&um=1&tbnid=z4Y-EEJln_EtAM:&tbnh=139&tbnw=97&ei=hEtxR8G7Kp7mhQPegLmCBw&prev=/images%3Fq%3DAUTHENTIC%2BROLEX%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den-us%26sa%3DN

DREAM Act rally: http://peoplesproductionhouse.org/sites/peoplesproductionhouse.org/files/images/dream_act_rally.JPG