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This is a proud time of year for us at Pacific as we celebrate the children of Team Orange employees who are graduating from high school and college! We are especially proud of those pictured above who have participated in our scholarship program.
Eight years ago, we started a scholarship program for children of employees who will be the first in their families to attend college. When an employee (who had not graduated from high school himself) approached us asking about help for his daughter who wanted to go to college, we became motivated to provide financial and planning assistance. The program has grown and we are excited to help many of our employees who do not understand the college preparation and financial aid process, work through that process to help their children achieve that goal.
This year, two more of the students in our scholarship program are graduating, making that six graduates from our scholarship program over the years. We also just granted five $5,000 scholarships for this coming school year and we are excited to see the program continue to grow and look forward to celebrating graduates again for many years to come.
This Year's Graduates
Lesly Rangel Linon, daughter of Jose Rangel Hernandez (Parkrose Branch) – Lesly graduated from Portland State University this June with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work and with a minor in Spanish. During her last year at Portland State University, she did an Internship at the St. John’s Relief Nursery in a preschool CRN therapeutic classroom where she helped out and also built relationships with not just the children but the families and staff as well. Through her time at Portland State, she has been part of TLC-TNT where she has been doing community service throughout the year. She plans to give back to her community and find a job where she will be a resource for those marginalized communities that are struggling and she hopes to be a great social worker. Lesly thanks Pacific Landscape Management for their help in providing financial support for these opportunities in her college journey.
Gustavo Calderon Perez, Son of Adolfo Calderon (Hillsboro Branch) – Gustavo also graduated this June from Portland State University, earning a degree in Civil Engineering. Throughout his college education, he consistently maintained a remarkable 3.51 GPA. In the upcoming fall, he will embark on his graduate program with Portland State, focusing on structural engineering. During his time as an intern at Acute Engineering, Gustavo gained valuable experience designing light-framed structures, including residential houses. Currently, he is interning at ZCS Engineering and will transition into a full-time role following his graduation from graduate school. At ZCS, Gustavo undertakes a diverse range of responsibilities, such as designing seismic retrofits for aging buildings and creating plans for new constructions. Gustavo expresses his gratitude to Pacific Landscape for their unwavering support throughout his college journey, emphasizing the significant relief that their financial assistance has provided. He acknowledges the incredible impact that Pacific Landscape has had on his life, remarking that the opportunity has been truly transformative.
Upcoming 2023-2024 Scholarship Recipients
Jazmin Antonio Pena, daughter of Margarito Antonio Santiago (Sherwood Branch) - Jazmin will be continuing her second year at Portland State University. She is entering her sophomore year as a Business major. Aside from her academics. She is very engaged in her community. When she’s not at school she is at her church, serving. She has taken several leadership positions at her church including being a part of the worship team. She also takes great pride in the work she does as a Logistics/Supply Specialist serving for the Oregon Army National Guard. Jazmin is dedicated to becoming a better person by serving those around her. She dreams of one day continuing to serve her community through the business industry. Jazmin is extremely grateful to be given the recourses to continue pursuing her education at PSU.
Mayra E. Marin, Daughter of Maria Villaverde (Sherwood Branch) - Mayra will be continuing her second year of college at the University of Oregon. She is entering her sophomore year as a Psychology major with a minor in Computer Science and Latinx studies. She is very engaged with the identity-based clubs on campus like UO Muxeres (a club for Latina women on campus) and UO MEChA. Mayra has been an intern for UO Muxeres during her three terms at UO and will be the finance director for the 2023-24 UO Muxeres Board. She will also be working as a Residential Assistant (RA) for the upcoming year. She is excited to be given the opportunity to help students transition into college. Mayra is also grateful to be given the resources to continue pursuing her higher education at UO.
Joyce Gomez, Daughter of Raul Gomez (Hillsboro Branch) - Joyce will attend Portland State University full time, for her undergraduate degree to major in Criminology & Criminal Justice with a minor in Law & Legal Studies, along with a pre-program in Pre-Law. After completing her undergraduate, she hopes to be able to make it into Lewis & Clark College and join their law program for grad school. Joyce says her parents are the most hard-working people - her father is humble and is always teaching her to grow. And her mom has taught her to be tough and advocate for herself. Joyce was inspired to choose this profession because it impacts people like her in many ways, and the court system amazes her with so many functions - to serve justice and uphold the law, instill peace, address corruption, and fight injustice.
Eselle Yepex, Daughter of Gustavo Yepez (Sherwood Branch) - Eselle has been accepted to the University of Oregon and will be studying psychology. She is looking forward to furthering her knowledge of the Spanish language to help serve the Hispanic population and their shared culture. She looks forward to having an impact and connecting with people within her own community, which are often underserved. Eselle has worked throughout her high school career to save for college, but she says this scholarship will help make her college dream a reality.
College Assistance and Preparation Programs
In addition to the scholarships, we have helped our employees and their families with college preparation by getting them aligned with several programs designed to assist Latino students and their families with college preparation. These programs include:
AVID
https://www.avid.org/
Adulante Mujeres
http://www.adelantemujeres.org/
Oregon 4-H Outreach Leadership Institute
https://extension.oregonstate.edu/4h/outreach
Latino Network
http://www.latnet.org/overview-aboutus
We look forward to continuing our assistance and motivation for our employees to help their children who are interested in setting a goal to attend college.
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