We love celebrating the Habitat graduates — those young people who have been raised in a home built by their parents and their neighbors. What a feat! Here are a few of the young people who are making a change in our world.
Daniel graduated from Battle Mountain High School. He was an integral part of the State Championship boys’ soccer team that toppled Northfield! He won student of the year in the Foreign Language category at Battle Mountain and is headed to Ottawa University in Kansas.
Dominic has always had a passion for hands-on projects and knew for a long time he wanted to be a mechanic. He is making his dream a reality through two internships — and upon graduation will have a full time job. He plans on specializing in upgrading, supercharging customizing vehicles based on customers’ needs.
Logan spent summer 2022 as a plumbing apprentice for Fred’s Plumbing and Heating. During the summer of 2023 he continued his plumbing apprenticeship with Highline Plumbing and Heating, with whom he will be working full time with after graduation. He still finds time for all of his favorite hobbies such as hunting, fishing, and shed hunting.
Natalie graduated from Battle Mountain High School, with plans to begin her career as an aesthetician. She will open her business and provide skincare services and beauty treatments to everyone in Eagle County. “I am very thankful to Habitat for Humanity because thanks to them my family and I are able to own a home in such a beautiful valley and I can bring my aesthetician knowledge to this community,” she shares.
Sophia will be graduated with honors from Eagle Valley High School. Being selected for a Habitat home gives her the opportunity to remain in the Eagle County community to work, to remain engaged with her friends, and allow her to attend Colorado Mountain College in the Fall. She is an amazing artist, enjoys skateboarding and snowboarding.
Joshua
graduated from Battle Mountain High School and will be entering the work force.
Alvaro is the valedictorian of EVHS class of 2024. Come fall 2024, he will be headed to Williams College as a QuestBridge Scholar. He will receive a full, four-year scholarship to attend Williams — estimated around $330,000 —this fall where he currently plans to study politics and history.
“My parents didn’t go to college or even high school, so the jobs that they were limited to included a lot of labor, long hours, little benefits and low wages,” Marin Garcia said. “They worked through these jobs and, a lot of the time, they didn’t like these jobs, so they always told us you have to go to college; that’s the number one thing.”
As his three older siblings graduated college and became teachers, Marin Garcia saw first-hand the power of a college diploma and education.
Life after graduation brings many rewards. Recently a student at Ashley High School shared how the patience and kindness of science teacher Ms. Nicole Meija-Mendoza was to her educational journey. Nicole lived in a Habitat home in Eagle.