Givology - give to learn, learn to give

My name is Ayesa Esquivel. I am in the 1st year of high school at the Institute Reinaldo Macchi. I live with my mother and my 5 younger brothers, I am the oldest. I am a very responsible girl, very punctual, happy, sensitive, trustworthy and dedicated to my studies. A majority of my time is spent studying in and outside of my Institution. Being accepted as a student of the Institute was one of the best things that could have ever happened to me. As of now I have more opportunities than before and I am looking forward to building a better life for me and my family. In my free time I like to read, play handball, volleyball and listen to music. I enjoy being with my friends and family too. When I finish my studies in high school I would like to go to a great university to study medicine and eventually become a doctor to help those who are in need, to serve my country and community and to save lives.

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About Tobatí:Tobatí is both a town and a provincial district within the department (state) of Cordillera, Paraguay. The population of the district of Tobatí is 21,315 of which 16,538 (75.5%) are under the age of 19. Over 33% of this population lives beneath the international poverty line while as high as 70% live in relative poverty. A large percentage of the houses in the region lack running water and electricity.

This poverty is especially prevalent in the region's rural villages, known as compañías. Most men and boys in the region work in small brick or tile factories that pay at most one or two dollars a day. A large number of girls work as domestic servants. Schools run in three or four hour shifts in order to allow for children to work and also due to overpopulation and a lack of resources in the local schools. Many children in Tobatí are employed.

About Macchi School: The education of a single person can have a positive effect on the lives of thousands of people. This principle is the foundation of the Macchi School. Located in a part of the world plagued by poverty and short horizons, the Macchi School is a tool that is being used to transform the South American district of Tobati into a better place for future generations to live.

The school provides a means for the community's brightest minds from the poorest neighborhoods and villages to be nurtured with the hope that they will not only complete a university program, but will return to to Tobati afterward to take up the difficult task of solving some of the town's most serious problems. To reach this goal the Macchi School offers a rigorous academic curriculum while at the same time, imparts a strong sense of public service on all of its students.