"When I was 12 years old I received Christ as my Lord and Savior. That decision completely changed the course of my life. Before that I used to live in poverty — not only physical poverty, but economic, social and spiritual poverty.
I was without purpose in my life and didn't have a vision for my future. My father was consumed by alcohol, and my mother was the one who worked. My brothers and sisters were hungry and malnourished, but their hearts were full of hope.
The only things that kept us busy were walking up and down the street, playing in trash containers, playing football, and learning how to survive. I cannot express my gratitude to Compassion.
The times that God worked in my life through people and Compassion are countless. The greatest influence and highest value the Leadership Development Program (LDP) gave me were vision and purpose for my life.
They taught me how to be a good steward and servant leader who could influence my community and country through my actions. Particularly, I learned about the actual needs in my country. That was the most powerful teaching the LDP gave me.
After graduating from high school I got two university titles — business administration graduate and commercial engineer — and a master's degree.
Now I teach in three local universities in Bolivia and am an international lecturer in the Mercosur region where I lecture on strategic market research in huge universities, that before one could see only in dreams or on TV.
I currently work for an NGO called Food for the Hungry International as a partnership and resources specialist, evaluating and implementing projects and developing initiatives similar to those in Compassion.
Our target groups are the most depressed and impoverished by food scarcity numbers. We reach families, communities and municipalities considering project pertinence and sustainability."
