Dear Friends,

I was just five when I first walked the halls of St. Andrew Nativity School with my sister Laura. Then and now, Nativity welcomes me with outstretched arms. It’s my foundation... my family. I’m now a freshman at St. Mary’s Academy, but Nativity is engraved in my heart.

I’m the type of girl who wants to do a lot with her life, like go to college and make my mom proud. Someday, I hope to build her a house of her own. That’s why I’d like to study architecture or engineering. I also want to help people.  Something I discovered at Nativity School is that compassion is my biggest strength. It helps me be more understanding when people say insensitive things or forget how much they have. It helps me reach out when I see someone feeling sad or isolated, like I feel sometimes… but never at Nativity. Nativity School treats everyone with love, respect and equality.

My sister Laura was in Nativity’s very first class. She’s in college now, along with my sister Janette, who graduated from Nativity in 2006. Our family has a lot of health and financial challenges, but when the burdens feel too great, I remember all that has been given to me. A few years ago, I felt like a fragile seed trying to find a safe place to take root. That place was Nativity School, and with this wonderful school as my foundation, I know someday I will become a mighty tree.

I hope you will take this opportunity to support Nativity School. My future became clearer when friends like you cleaned the window I wanted so badly to look through. By making a gift today, you can help other students like me see possibilities they thought were out of their reach.     

Love always,

Vanessa
Nativity Class of 2012