BUILDING EL PASO BY PARTNERING WITH YOU
Thank you for making our 20th Anniversary Dinner & Fundraiser at the El Paso Convention Center a great success! The evening provided an opportunity for Project ARRIBA to share program accomplishments, engage El Paso stakeholders and further promote workforce development through raising additional investments and forming new partnerships. Program graduate, Margie Estrada, ADN 2014, RN @ Tender Care Home Health & Hospice, gave a heartfelt testimony sharing her barriers to education and employment, and the role Project ARRIBA played in moving her from poverty to a living wage career. Rev. Dr. Ed Roden-Lucero detailed the important and ongoing work of EPISO and Border Interfaith and Justin Chapman, Chairman, appealed to the business community for continued private investments. Woody Hunt, Chairman of Hunt Companies provided a fitting introduction to our keynote speaker, Dr. Diana Natalicio, Fortune Magazine’s top 50 World Leaders. Dr. Natalicio’s powerful words on the importance of access to public higher education helped us to further engage El Paso stakeholders. Eduardo Rodriguez, Past Chairman, shared the regional impact the Project ARRIBA program has accomplished during its tenure.
In partnership with exclusive event sponsor, WestStar Bank and Powered-By sponsor, JP Morgan Chase Bank, Project ARRIBA celebrated this important milestone on October 1, 2019. Approximately 200 people were in attendance and over $42,500 was raised.
All investments raised the night of the event will be applied to the Jim R. Phillips Endowment Fund, a perpetual income fund launched in Summer 2016 in memory of Project ARRIBA’s founding chairman. The fund will provide future scholarships to participants pursuing their four-year degree in nursing at the University of Texas at El Paso. Generous gifts and commitments were received from Ms. Nita Phillips, the wife of the late Jim R. Phillips, and other area individuals and businesses.
In partnership with exclusive event sponsor, WestStar Bank and Powered-By sponsor, JP Morgan Chase Bank, Project ARRIBA celebrated this important milestone on October 1, 2019. Approximately 200 people were in attendance and over $42,500 was raised.
All investments raised the night of the event will be applied to the Jim R. Phillips Endowment Fund, a perpetual income fund launched in Summer 2016 in memory of Project ARRIBA’s founding chairman. The fund will provide future scholarships to participants pursuing their four-year degree in nursing at the University of Texas at El Paso. Generous gifts and commitments were received from Ms. Nita Phillips, the wife of the late Jim R. Phillips, and other area individuals and businesses.
Dr. Diana NatalicioDiana Natalicio was named president of The University of Texas at El Paso in 1988. During her long and distinguished career with the University, she has served as vice president for academic affairs, dean of liberal arts, and chair of the modern languages department. During her tenure as president, UTEP’s enrollment has grown from 15,000 to over 25,000 students, its annual budget has increased from $65 million to more than $500 million. UTEP is designated as a Carnegie R1 university, recognized nationally for both the excellence and breadth of its academic and research programs. UTEP’s annual research expenditures have grown from $6 to nearly $95 million, and doctoral programs from one to twenty-two.
Read more about our keynote speaker. |
Margie Estrada, RN BSNMargarita began her educational journey by pursuing a business management degree, however, as a single parent she was forced to leave school to work and support her family. She worked full-time as a receptionist at a clinic and shortly moved up within the organization despite having not a degree. Margarita found herself learning quickly about customer service, insurance, medications and patient diagnosis. Observing her skills, her employer urged Margarita to return to school and pursue a nursing degree.
Daunted by fear but propelled by a promise to her employer, Margarita slowly started taking the courses needed to rank into the nursing program at El Paso Community College. During one of her last courses, a classmate mentioned the Project ARRIBA program. She called and applied to Project ARRIBA. Once accepted into the program, she found the support, both academically and financially, she needed to get through school. Equally important, she now had the assistance needed to ensure her kids were taken care of while she attended school. Working and going to school proved to be very stressful and at times, Margarita felt she could not continue. However, her case manager would not let her quit and offered continuous support and options to fuel those low points. In addition, Project ARRIBA’s Vision, Initiative & Perseverance (VIP) group sessions also provided important and useful information that ranged from financial literacy to resume building to meeting prospective employers. Margarita attended a hiring event at University Medical Center (UMC) at El Paso where she had the opportunity to meet with department managers and learn about individual nursing units at the hospital. This also provided her the opportunity to network with other healthcare professionals and she even gained a nursing mentor. Margarita applied and interviewed to two units she was interested in and she quickly received job offers! As a Project ARRIBA graduate, Margarita gained valuable experience in the surgical unit at UMC. She transferred this experience and knowledge to home health care where she always envisioned a nursing career. Three years later she went to work for the San Elizario Independent School District as the Lead Nurse and used this time to pursue graduate school. Today, Margarita holds a master’s degree of Nursing in Clinical Systems Leadership and now works as a Clinical Supervisor at the place where she started as a receptionist, Tender Care Home Health and Hospice. Once she made minimum wage as the clinic’s receptionist and now, she makes over $65,000 a year. As the mother of four children, Margarita has great aspirations for her children by the example she has led. She envisions careers for children as veterinarians, a physical therapist and maybe even a doctor. Margarita credits Project ARRIBA and its many funders for her career accomplishments. |