Axel Efraín Juárez Ramírez

Axel Efraín Juárez Ramírez

Axel Efraín Juárez Ramírez is a 9 year old boy who really likes sports and cartoons. He attends third grade. He is known for his abilities in readig and math and is very persistent in his studies and work in CODENI. He doesn´t give up when the going gets tough. Axel works and play well with his peers and is well liked. These and many more skills have earned him the participant of the month award,

JOSÉ DE JESÚS MONTALVO

JOSÉ DE JESÚS MONTALVO

José is 14 years old, likes people and smiles a lot. He likes to tell jokes, is patient and likes "beat box". High school was difficult for him, but he managed to finish and doesn´t want to give up his dream. He wants to be an industrial engineer to help his family and is now enrolled in a program that allow him to work while continuing his studies. His current grade point average is 8.5.
Montalvo is our participant of the month.

OUR OUTSTANDING PARTICIPANT

KEVIN EMMANUEL SIMON FELIPE

Kevin is a boy who attends first grade of primary school. His family is from Michoacán and he helps them sell various products in downtown Guadalajara.

He participates in all the activities at CODENI house. He is a smart boy and likes play soccer. he has been named our outstanding participant of the month. Even though he has been at CODENI only a few months, he has shown us that he wants to progress. He helps his classmates and share his happiness with everybody, and also he gets excellent grades.

Congratulations Kevin

Hugo, our outstanding participant

 Hugo is the third of four children.  Otomí origin, emigrated from Queretaro to Guadalajara, looking for better opportunities to get a dignified life.  At the present, Hugo, his brother and his sister come to CODENI and they participate in different activities.

Hugo is 8 years old, study four grade at primary school. He is responsible and also in his free time, he goes with his mom at dad at work to help them.

Hugo was elected like our outstanding participant for his constancy, positive attitude and for overcoming obstacles on his way. 

Rocio, an outstanding participant

Rocio is a 14 years old teenager, her family occupation is to make and sell chalkboards. She is the eldest of 4 brothers, loves school and has good grades. At the moment Rocio is in her senior year of middle school and is making the process to get in to high school.At CODENI, Rocio participates in the art and hip-hop workshops, she recognizes art as a way to orientate teenagers to leave the streets and the drugs, and that’s why she wants to become an Arts teacher.She’s always early at CODENI, despite the fact that she lives so far, keeps a smile on her face and has a lot of friendliness.For all of those reasons and because she is so persevering in her Life Project, Rocio is our Participant of the Month.

Isac, a boy who enjoys to work hard to be one of the best at CODENI.

Isac  is  7 years old, he's on the 2nd. grade of elementary school and works as a supermarket packer in the Guadalajara Downtown. Isac is a mischievous boy  and  he loves to have fun. He always has a good sence of humor, and he shares with everyone his jokes.  Sometimes this behavior gets him into troubles, but at CODENI he has learned to respect the others and he constantly strives to stay out of trouble and to be outstanding.

Isac, along with his brother, is the first to arrive to CODENI. When Isac started to attend to CODENI he didn't like to do his homework, neither to pay attention. Today he is a boy who improves everyday, and who tries to participate in all the activities he can.

 Isac recognizes that his favorite place at CODENI is the recreation  area. He has good grades at school and delivers all his homework on time. He has not thought about his profession when he grows up, but due to all his efforts at CODENI and in his personal life improvements, we have  named him as our participant of the month.

Thanks to her determination, Leslie is getting close to her dream.

She is currently attending her spring semester; she is 17 and has attended CODENI since the beginning of her studies at elementary school. Her family was merchant for a long time in the centre of Guadalajara. However, they stopped selling in the street to get into the formal labour market.

She recognizes that it is hard to study but she is motivated to fulfill her dream, which is to become a forensic doctor.

It is thanks to her consistency and her determination that Leslie is our participant of the month.

By working, Jesús Faustino go to realize his dream of becoming a auto mechanic.

“Chuy”, as his family and friends call him, is a 14-year-old teenager who studies in 3th year of high school. He is the youngest of 3 brothers and sisters.

His dream is becoming auto mechanic and he already took the next step to do a vocational baccalaureate in Conalep.

He has coming to CODENI since he was little boy with his sisters and he has always making progresses despite unfavorable familial and educational situations. He always knew to push himself and to keep moving forward to accomplish his Life Project.

It is for his regularity and determination, that Jesús is our participant of the month.

To become a professional footballer, the dream of Alan.

Alan José Miguel Rodríguez is 10 years old and has been participating in CODENI just 3 years. He stands out for being an extremely active child, with a clear enjoyment of football and all activities that imply speed and physical force. In fact, his life goal is to be a professional footballer and he is working to try to enter a professional football club.

Alan is currently studying his 5th year of primary school and although he has had highs and lows in his educational and personal progression, he has always been characterised for his conviction and endeavour to achieve his goals.

This is why we recognise in Alan Jose as our participant of the month of January, his effort to improve his behaviour, school grades and work to achieve his life goal make him worthy of this recognition.

For her desire to continue studying, Leonor was chosen as the participant of the month.

Leonor Gónzalez Téllez is a teenager that has been participating in CODENI for more than 6 years, throughout this time she’s had to confront different situations that have helped her to forge her character, define and defend what she really wants for her present and future life.

In school her favourite subject is mathematics and the moments she enjoys most in CODENI are those related to art because she distresses herself. In her free time she helps her mum, while she works to care for her younger sister Adriana who is 9 and her little brother Juan who is 2.

At 15 years of age, Leonor is currently studying her first semester of preparatory school (college), thanks to her impetus and determination, she spoke with the director because her mum didn’t have money to pay for the semester and she was going to stay out of school. She managed get them to allow her to study in exchange for doing social service in her school.

This is why Leonor has earned being the participant of the month, cause thanks to her conviction, effort and dedication, after many difficulties today she finds herself studying at college.

For his effort in improving himself, Juan Carlos is the Participant of the Month of September

Juan Carlos is the oldest son in his family. He is 9 years old, going into 4th grade in primary school and helps out with his younger brother Isac at Codeni. His parents work in the informal commerce sector in the downtown area of Guadalajara and he accompanies them. In the evenings he works downtown packing bags in the commercial center.

He likes math class a lot, but not so much Spanish class, nevertheless he has put in a lot of effort to obtain higher grades by actively participating in Codeni’s homework club. Juan also enjoys the reflection workshops where he has learned about how self-control and anti-violence are important in order to co-exist with his peers and the other people who surround him.

Because of all the effort that Juan has put into improving himself on a day to day basis, he has been nominated the Participant of the Month for September.

Participant for the month of June: Janeth Avalos Nicolás

Janeth is 13 years old and is the youngest of his 3 siblings. His family sells candies in a stand outside of the subway station for the Tren Ligero at the Periférico Sur stop, they are of Otomí origin. Her and her sister Jackeline have been coming to Codeni for almost 2 years and found out about the institution because they have some cousins that had attended Codeni before they did. When Janeth first came to Codeni, she was very shy and quiet, but little by little she has been growing and becoming more sociable. This month she has earned the participant of the month because she had had low grades in school and minimal participation in Codeni, however, she was determined to better her grades and she promised to be in the tutor program at Codeni. She had passed her most recent grade in school with better grades and for this reason she deserved to be the participant of the month. She likes to read a lot and has made new friends at Codeni that help make her feel good with her activities.

The last year she participated in the book of photographic research, “Everywhere, Hundreds of Thousands”, by the photographer Natalia Fregoso, where she wrote one of her stories talking about working children in diverse environments and places in the country.

Inthan: a proud and moving participant of the month of May.

Inthan Manuel Galaviz Rivas, at 10 years old has demonstrated with effort and dedication that one can always achieve the impossible.

Since he started his elementary education, he showed difficulties in reading and writing. Some of his teachers would comment that “as long as he learns how to read and write it would be enough” and today as years went by not only does he have those abilities, but he has also reached a high level of good grades each bimester. He is a great example of achievement, effort, and commitment that re assures us that anything is possible. He hardly ever misses a day at CODEN, he tries his best with the daily activities and demonstrates responsibility that have shown in his school grades. Which has made him participant of the month and it is well deserved.

Congratulations Inthan! 

Check out our annual report for 2013

November´s Participant of the Month: Silvia Ramírez

Silvia is the oldest of four daughters in her family. She currently lives with her grandparents, who are helping support her during her pregnancy. She is excited but nervous to become a mom in January.

A few months ago his father died, which was a great loss in the family. However, Silvia’s determination has not faltered, and she continues to strive to meet her goals as a professional and as a mom.

Silvia has participated in CODENI for 8 years now, and has set out to accomplish her dreams. At 19, Silvia is currently studying a degree in Elementary Education with great motivation. Silvia wants to be a teacher and to convey to children the education and support she has received from teachers, and the CODENI educators. 

In her own words: 

"It is time to give back to children what I received as a child!"

October´s Participant of the Month: Javier González

Javier just turned 15 years old. He is the oldest of three brothers in a migrant family from the state of Querétaro. He sells earrings, potato chips and candy outside of a metro station to help with household expenses.

Last year Javier had some problems and decided to drop out of school.  He’d spend all day in the park with older kids who didn’t go to school and stopped coming to CODENI.

However this year is different.  Each morning Javier wakes up early to go to middle school with the determination of becoming an architect.  When it comes to sports, soccer is his favorite.  He is also a talented and creative composer in the Hip Hop workshop at CODENI.  Javier says that he enjoys the class because he has learned to use music to express his feelings without violence.

In his free time he likes to draw, filling notebooks, napkins and scrap paper with his artwork.  “I really like to design spaces, that’s why I want to become an architect,” he explains.

Javier comes to CODENI every day, even though he is only expected on Tuesdays and Thursdays. He says it’s because there’s a good vibe there and it makes him happy to do his homework. 

The educators of CODENI recognize and applaud the great change in Javier’s attitude and his newfound motivation this school year. 

May Javier’s effort to turn his life around be an example to all!

September's Participant of the Month: Ruth Reynaga Fletes

Ruth found out about CODENI nearly a year and a half ago, when Mairo Diego approached her, her younger sister and mother, selling newspapers in the street.  She suffers from a chronic illness known as "retinitis pigmentosa." Her vision has now diminished to the point that Ruth basically sees only shadows.  Nonetheless, the disease has not been able to stop Ruth's determination to make the most of the opportunities at CODENI. Over the summer, Ruth began to accomplish her dream of becoming a chef, taking advantage of a scholarship from the Camera of Restaurants in the State of Jalisco (CANIRAC) to participate in a culinary arts course.  Through this experience Ruth did not only develop cooking skills, but also the ability to set and accomplish goals for herself. Ruth just began high school at the age of 19 and is taking English classes at a private school, thanks to a scholarship from the US Consulate here in Guadalajara.

Congratulations, Ruth!  You are truly an inspiration for the rest of CODENI! 

Club CODENI

This past semester we began a new activity in CODENI, which our children and teens decided to call “Club CODENI.” At the end of each month, educators get together with the children and adolescents to whom they are assigned to reflect on a specific topic. The objective of this new activity is to strengthen relationships between educators and youth, and develop a sense of belonging and identity within the CODENI community.

The sessions have focused on topics such as the importance of self-confidence to reach one’s goals, the right to be treated well and the right to education. Different rights have been addressed with a series of stories published by the National Council to Prevent Discrimination (CONAPRED) called “Kipalta”. The stories’ main character is a little girl who sells candy and does not go to school. CODENI youth have been able to relate to the stories and have generated interesting reflections regarding the rights of children in street situations.

In June’s session of Club CODENI we evaluated this new space. The children and adolescents said they enjoy the club because it allows them to share feelings and ideas on a more personal level and that they have more confidence with their educators. They proposed more regular sessions for the club and the opportunity to spend time with educators outside of Casa CODENI.

A more humane world

My name is Mariana, and I have been a volunteer at CODENI for the past year, convinced that education is an art that paints itself on a canvas where a reality that favours the most vulnerable is invented. I wrote this poem about justice and freedom.

My day starts with a cup of coffee, preparing everything to leave for the bus stop and take the #629, passing by Avenue Chapultepec, touring Pedro Moreno until it stops on the corner of Cruz Verde Street, where you will find Casa CODENI. Inside which, you will find the mairos who always welcome you with a friendly hello, and the children and adolescents each with their story to tell, filled with contrasts, adverse realities against the hope of dreams waiting to be fulfilled, and barriers preventing them from living in a better situation.

When I am in front of one of these children, I only have one idea in my head, “you have in front of you a person with a right and sufficient decorum to be more.” What I want to say is they should learn to write their own lives; my feeling is not pity but hope.

The experience of being a volunteer at CODENI is accompanied with the dream that a more humane world is possible. 

An exhibition in the Metro Station

With the aim of encouraging creativity and healthy alternatives to street life among our children and teens, Mairo Diego seeks out exhibitions and coordinates artistic activities such as painting, drawing and crafts to spark and strengthen artistic interests and skills.

During the month of May, Diego took teens to the Metro Station Gallery where they received a guided tour of the expo on display, entitled "Urban Landscapes" by Erendira Diaz Barriga and "The Silence of Memories" by Sara JL Gallardo.

Someday we hope to have CODENI pieces on display in this prominent gallery.