Waiting for the horn to sound with new running shoes on their feet and numbers on their shirts, a group of about 25 kids were ready to run what was for most their first 5k road race. Some were laughing and smiling, while others had a look of serious determination as they set off to complete the 3.1 miles.

Foundation Communities held its 5^th Annual Fitness Camino Saturday morning at its Sierra Vista Apartments. The Running Buddies Fitness Camino 5K was started in 2013 as a way to encourage participation in fitness activities and promote overall well-being. Through the Running Buddies program children in third through fifth grades trained for six-weeks with coaches and mentors who supported their fitness goals.

For the last two years, David Chandler, a running coach with 17 years of experience mostly at the college level, has coached Running Buddies.

“This is the grassroots,” he said. “The real beginning – a key point in their lives and some of these kids really need a chance to be part of something.”

Lucero Gomez has participated in the Running Buddies program for two years. A 10-year-old who is in the 4^th grade at St. Elmo Elementary School, Lucero said she has enjoyed training for the race.

“What I like about training is it can help me run faster than I used to,” she said. “The race is important because I get to see my progress over the weeks.”

Through a grant from The Amerigroup Foundation, healthy food and snacks are incorporated into the Running Buddies program, which helps the children learn to make more nutritious choices.

The program has helped Lucero feel healthier and when she’s participating in running buddies, she eats healthier, goes to bed earlier and drinks more water, he mother Marta Gomez said. Her mother has seen a positive change in her since she started Running Buddies this year and she even appears to be leaner.

“At Foundation Communities, we are aware of the lifelong health impacts resulting from childhood obesity, and are working tirelessly to implement rigorous programming aimed at combating obesity as well as chronic disease throughout our communities,” said Aaron DeLaO, Foundation Communities Director of Health Initiatives. Since its inception, the Running Buddies/Fitness Camino 5K has been an impactful addition to Foundation Communities’ fitness and nutrition programming. With continued support we look forward to bringing Running Buddies and 5k races to even more properties and continuing to expand fitness opportunities for all of our residents and their families.”

Children who participate receive free training shoes, water bottles, and a T-shirt. The road race replicates an adult 5k and the children wear numbered bibs and they receive a medal at the finish line. Robert Graves, 12, was the first to cross the finish in a time of 27:27. And, it was also his birthday.

Lucero’s parents were surprised when she said she wanted to participate in Running Buddies, her mother said. She is extremely proud of her daughter and said she excels at everything she does, even encouraging the family to try new activities.

“It’s like she found a calling for herself,” she said. “I thought it would just be a race, but it became therapeutic for Lucero. She has a love of running now, it’s not just a hobby.”

The whole family is physically active, but Lucero is the only runner. She is inspiring her three younger siblings, Estrella, 8, Abrahan, 6 and Eden, 4.

“Her sister Estrella is upset she can’t do running buddies yet, because she knows she can do it,” Marta Gomez said. Next year her little sister will be old enough to participate.

Lucero received the Running Buddies Leadership Role Model Award this year because she is so inspiring to others, said Cynthia Gonzalez, the Learning Center Coordinator at Sierra Vista.

Christina spent years working multiple jobs to provide for her children. She struggled to make ends meet and they fought to keep a roof over their heads, staying with friends and family whenever possible. At times, they lived out of their car, and she prayed daily for answers and clear direction with hope that was fading quickly.

Then she was connected to Foundation Communities.

“It was a godsend!” Christina said. “When I was told about all of the services, it sounded too good to be true!”

She was informed about assistance at the Community Tax Centers and decided to try it. She is now extremely grateful for the volunteers who helped complete her taxes, which were muddled due to years of homelessness.

“If I had not come here and utilized the tax services, I wouldn’t have known it was possible to file an itemized return after gathering everything over the years,” she explained. “The cost for preparing my taxes elsewhere continually paralyzed me and prevented me from taking action to get them done.”

Growing up in an unstable environment compelled Christina to strive for stability. She was one of 17 children, many living with her parents in a house without running water, electricity or a phone. Competing for food at dinner was traumatic, so she decided to quietly skip meals and do without. Home life was filled with turmoil, and the lack of parental supervision only allowed this problem to go unnoticed. She fell in love and married young to escape the traumatic environment and began building a family, having 4 children in eight years.

“My children brought meaning to my life and opened my eyes,” Christina said.

Christina only wanted safety and security for her family. Her husband would become violent when he couldn’t sort out his feelings, which landed him in jail. Christina was left to provide for her children, with very little support. The stability she had been craving seemed to have slipped away.

Finding Foundation Communities allowed her to feel hopeful in a way she hadn’t in years.

When she learned she would be receiving a tax refund, she was ecstatic. Christina tells people daily about the Community Tax Centers. With six locations, people earning up to $55,000 can have their taxes completed for free.

“The volunteers are amazing. They’re patient, thorough, and professional” she said. “Because of their help my family is able to believe stability is within reach. It’s empowering and invigorating. I thank God that I found this program.”

You can learn more about our Community Tax Centers by calling 2-1-1 or visiting CommunityTaxCenters.org.

More time together has been the greatest benefit the Lugo family has gained since Foundation Communities nominated them to be Austin American Statesman Season for Caring recipients. Those selected are provided with funds from the community to improve their lives.

Among the items the Lugos requested were clothing, assistance with rent and utilities, and help providing piano lessons for Andrea and drawing lessons for Giselle.

Prior to being chosen, Mirtha Lugo was working two jobs and was away from home at least 50 hours a week. Receiving rental and utility assistance has allowed her and her daughters the opportunities to pursue their goals.

Mirtha Lugo left her homeland of Paraguay after a failed marriage led her to become estranged from family. Because they didn’t approve of her divorce, she was left without resources. She moved to the United States and worked cleaning houses for years. She eventually met her daughters’ father, but the relationship didn’t work out.

Lugo struggled to make ends meet, and her desire to become a citizen seemed unachievable until she was able to save the $800 required, and last fall she passed the exam.
Now, with two daughters in high school, she wants her children to be able to achieve their dreams.

Season for Caring wrapped up on Jan. 31 and in the short time since receiving community support, Lugo and her two daughters, Giselle and Andrea, have gained resources to successfully pursue their ambitions.

Andrea, a sophomore, is already thinking of college. Her mother has started contributing to a college savings account on her behalf. Andrea has started taking advantage of Foundation Communities College Hub program, which will prepare her for completing applications and applying for scholarships and financial aid.

Giselle, a freshman and gifted artist, is being encouraged to take advanced art classes. Her art teacher says she is her best student. Photography is also a passion for Giselle and she will soon receive a digital camera.

Meanwhile, Mirtha Lugo started taking ESL and computer classes, in addition to learning to sew. She is completing a financial coaching program and has opened an Individual Development Account with Foundation Communities. This will allow her to save money over the next six-months and her savings will be matched!

Today, Mirtha is radiating positivity. She is filled with excitement and gratitude about her family’s future and the possibilities that await.

Meet Jacky – A Story of Hope

Jacky has lived with Foundation Communities most of her childhood. She never considered college a real option until she started attending our free, on-site learning center. She is now a graduate and is helping to break her family’s cycle of poverty.

Lanna always dreamed of a life filled with adventure and learning. She was one of twelve children in a working-class family and grew up in a small town in Illinois. Getting a job as soon as she could, Lanna was proud of making her own money and being in charge of her own life. She intended to go to college but became a young mother not long after high school and her plans changed. After years of bouncing from one job to another to support herself and her daughter, Lanna is finally pursuing her college career by accessing the services offered through our College Hub program.

Lanna is one of 23 students currently enrolled in Free Minds, a free, two-semester college humanities course we run in partnership with the University of Texas and Austin Community College (ACC). Students earn six college credits from ACC in order to help them get started or return to the path of earning a college degree. Many of the students in Free Minds have faced barriers to higher education, just like Lanna, who struggled to afford college and pay for childcare.

Free Minds is part of our College Hub – a one-stop shop for nontraditional students who want to start or finish a college degree or certificate. In addition to Free Minds, College Hub includes a wide range of support services to help students consider their education options, navigate the admissions process and get the most out of financial aid assistance.

Being part of Free Minds is already changing Lanna’s life.

“I feel I was meant for college,” Lanna said. “People light up when you tell them you’re in the class. It makes you more confident for when you go back to school.”

She particularly enjoyed Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure. It seemed like another language but Lanna pushed forward and loved when she and her classmates got to act out the play.

She is also looking forward to the poetry unit that will begin soon.

“Poetry gives me the freedom to be me and to express myself,” Lanna said.

Lanna said she learned about Free Minds at just the right time. She and her daughter live at one of our affordable housing communities and, when she saw the Free Minds flyer on her door, she knew it was the step she needed to take to get her life back on track. Not only is the class free, but there is a program offered at the same time and place through Camp Fire USA for students’ children. This helps promote intergenerational learning and removes the barrier of childcare for students.

Lanna wants to set an example for her daughter and is determined to finish college. She was previously enrolled at ACC and expects to return once she completes Free Minds. She hasn’t decided exactly what she wants to study, but she is considering something in the education field.

Right now, Lanna works at Lamar Middle School and said she feels at home in a classroom, helping students.

Looking to the future, Lanna hopes to find a career she loves and see her daughter achieve her own educational goals. She continues to envision herself as an adventurer and is eager to soak up all the world has to offer.

“I want to go everywhere,” Lanna said. “I want to meet different people, see different places and learn new things. And Free Minds is a wonderful start.”

You can learn more about our College Hub program by clicking here.

Mu’Stapha Feika describes himself as extremely introverted, but if you ask him about basketball his eyes light up and he talks about his dream of becoming a coach. The soft-spoken 20-year-old spent most of his childhood living in foster care and said he kept people at a distance. He disliked school and found solace in basketball, his favorite sport. Now, Mu’Stapha is entering a new phase in his life, having aged out of the foster care system. He lives at our Bluebonnet Studios community and is looking forward to his future.

“I want to grow out of this shell,” Mu’Stapha said. “I want to be more welcoming and involved with people.”

Mu’Stapha moved into Bluebonnet earlier this year. He is one of six residents who live with us through a partnership with fellow nonprofit Upbring. Upbring helps young adults aging out of the foster care system successfully transition to independent living and self-sufficiency through housing placements, case management, and college and career planning.

For Mu’Stapha, this support helped him secure a job and enroll in courses at Austin Community College, where he is majoring in kinesiology.

The journey to get to this point in his life has been hard and inconsistent. Although Mu’Stapha had positive experiences with some of his foster families, he never felt a real sense of belonging.

At the age of 8, he moved to the U.S. from Liberia with his aunt and two half-sisters in pursuit of a better life. He only vaguely remembers his parents and his home country. Once in the U.S., his aunt struggled to provide for him. Child Protective Services intervened and placed him in the foster care system, where he bounced around for years. In total, Mu’Stapha lived in three homeless shelters and four foster homes.

Growing up, he didn’t place much importance on school and struggled to fit in. His classmates teased him for his broken English and he intentionally kept his circle small by making few friends.

When he turned 18, Mu’Stapha moved out of his final foster home. Despite his difficult adolescence, he felt ready to be on his own. He saw opportunity when he moved into Bluebonnet.

“I feel really blessed,” Mu’Stapha said. “I plan to make something out of this.”

So far, Mu’Stapha has made quite the impression at Bluebonnet. He was awarded our first-ever “Good Neighbor” award for going out of his way to help his fellow residents. He has also started a Bible study in an effort to build community. He said his strong faith has helped give him purpose and direction in life.

Looking to the future, Mu’Stapha hopes to one day become a professional basketball coach and inspire and encourage people, like so many have done for him. He is already utilizing his newfound confidence to build lasting connections with the people around him.

“I see people and I try to relate to them,” Mu’Stapha said. “I would like to extend a helping hand.”

Eight years ago, Amelia and her husband left Mexico in pursuit of more opportunities for their family. The soon-to-be parents settled in Austin and struggled to find a home they could afford. They moved to our Southwest Trails community shortly after and had two daughters, Kathy and Vanessa. Both girls attend our free after-school and summer learning programs at the on-site Community Learning Center and are thriving at Oak Hill Elementary.

“I want my daughters to be educated and have a better future,” said Amelia, who was one-year shy of graduating from high school herself.

Amelia cleans houses and her husband works at a car wash. Living at Southwest Trails for the last several years has been critical for the family’s stability. Not many other apartments in Austin are within the family’s modest budget. In addition, Amelia has participated in our free English as a Second Language and nutrition classes and the family regularly attends community events.

“It’s peaceful here and we appreciate all of the services provided at the learning center,” Amelia said.

For Kathy, 7, and Vanessa, 8, our learning center is a welcoming space where they get daily assistance with homework and participate in enrichment activities with friends. Right now, the girls are enrolled in the summer learning program, which helps prevent “summer slide” by focusing on reading, math, and science.

“Summer slide” is the tendency for students, particularly those from low-income families, to lose some of the academic gains they made during the school year. Research indicates that summer learning loss widens the
achievement gap between low- and middle- to high-income students. Almost 600 students are enrolled in our free summer learning program.

This year, all of our learning centers are utilizing the “I-Ready” program to ensure students are reading on grade level. Amelia wants her daughters to practice reading and stay engaged during the summer months so they are ready when school begins again.

The program isn’t just about academics, though, as there is plenty of time for fun, too. Students at Southwest Trails, for example, are slated to go to the Bullock Texas State History Museum, get a visit from an animal show, go swimming at the community pool, and take weekly nutrition and cooking classes.

Summer will be gone before we know it, and it’s important that our students continue to learn, grow, and play during these months. We want Kathy, Vanessa, and the rest of our students to succeed academically and set big goals for themselves. We believe all of our students are destined for great things.

Reflecting on his own life is hard for Keith Murphy. The 34-year-old father of three experienced a childhood full of painful memories. Years in the foster care system and subsequent abuse made Keith feel as though he would never find a real family. That is until he met Kelli, his wife, in high school.

“I still remember the exact moment we met,” Keith said. “She got off the bus and I walked her home. From that day forward, my life changed.”

Keith and Kelli fell in love fast but struggled financially. Keith didn’t finish high school and had a hard time finding steady work, bouncing around from job to job as a mover and day laborer, and landing various gigs through temp agencies.

As their family grew, the rising cost of living in Austin made it nearly impossible for them to find a home they could afford. Then, Keith was laid off from a health care job when business slowed down. Keith, Kelli, and their three children ended up moving into a 2-bedroom apartment with Kelli’s mother. The entire family stayed in one room and the lack of space and freedom took a toll on all of them.

It turns out our Trails at the Park community was close to where they were staying so Keith and Kelli enrolled their daughters, Ramiyah and Pfenix, in our after-school program. As Kelli learned more about our housing, she discovered that they qualified for our Children’s Home Initiative (CHI) program for extremely low-income families. The family was accepted and moved to our new Lakeline Station community in Northwest Austin last December, just in time for Christmas.

“My kids were the first to play on the beautiful playground,” Keith said.

Since living at Lakeline, Kelli has secured a better job at a health insurance company, the kids are thriving in school, and, as soon as they find affordable childcare for Keith Junior, their son, Keith plans to attend barber college.

“Living at Lakeline has opened so many doors for us,” Keith said. “Doors that I didn’t even know existed.”

The family meets weekly with an on-site case manager to help set goals and become more financially stable. In addition, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation Learning Center at Lakeline opened this month and Ramiyah and Pfenix will soon attend our summer learning and after- school programs.

For Keith, Kelli, and their children, Lakeline is much more than just a home. It’s a place where they can all live up to their potential and dream big.

“My kids are my world, and I’m determined that when they look back on their lives, their childhood memories will be full of joy instead of pain,” Keith said. “I want them to be happy and healthy and know that we’ll always be there for them.”

When Patrick Martinez was awarded primary custody of his young daughter last year, he realized he needed to make some changes in his life. He was sharing an apartment with a friend and working part-time, but he wanted an affordable place of his own with space for his daughter to play and grow. A few months ago, Patrick and three-year-old daughter Penelope moved into Sierra Vista as part of our Children’s Home Initiative (CHI), an intensive support program for extremely low-income families.

“Once my daughter started living with me I began thinking more long-term,” Patrick said. “I have to start making sacrifices now if I want the best for my daughter.”

Patrick applied to CHI because he would have access to an on-site case manager and support through our financial stability programs. He was recently hired to work part-time for Foundation Communities as an English as a Second Language and Digital Literacy teacher and he is going to ACC to earn his associate degree in Computer Science.

“I’m working part-time so I can finish school and the financial courses will help me make sure the money I earn lasts until the end of the year,” Patrick said.

Patrick first got involved with us as a volunteer. He was teaching GED classes in Spanish for a fellow nonprofit and one of our program directors asked if he would be willing to offer the class to our residents too. Soon after, Patrick was hired to teach our ESL and Digital Literacy courses. He also continues to teach the Spanish GED class once a week and attendance remains high.

Patrick’s teaching career began about two years ago. Education wasn’t emphasized when he was growing up and he said he didn’t do well in high school. In addition, his family’s limited resources and his mother’s health struggles made pursuing higher education unrealistic. His perspective on education changed, though, when his daughter was born. He committed to working hard so that he could go to college and become an advocate for his daughter and fellow community members who face barriers to education.

Living at Sierra Vista has been a positive change for both Patrick and Penelope. They each have their own room and Patrick has gotten to know his neighbors and can rely on them for child care in a pinch. He is involved at his daughter’s school and looks forward to picking her up each day and hearing what she learned.

One of Patrick and Penelope’s fondest memories in their new home so far is throwing a Christmas party for friends and family not too long after they moved in.

“Having the party made it feel a lot more like home,” Patrick said. He added, “I enjoy working here and living here. It’s a close-knit group of people and a better environment for me and my daughter.”