GEORGIA — What started as an after-school program designed to help students build character and improve academically has grown into a nonprofit serving thousands of Latino families across metro Atlanta.
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Two young men who once participated in La Amistad’s programs now credit the organization with helping them achieve success in school, college and their careers.
“Yeah, this is where it all started,” said Ramiro Juarez as he reflected on his journey with the organization.
Juarez said he entered elementary school as an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) student and did not know English. Neither did anyone else in his family. He said La Amistad’s after-school programs helped change that by offering educational opportunities for both children and parents.
“I was an ESOL kid throughout elementary school,” Juarez said.
Jose Perez also found support through La Amistad from kindergarten through high school. He said his mother worked tirelessly to ensure he and his brother had opportunities to succeed.
“My mother was doing everything she could to get us the resources, me and my brother, the resources we needed to succeed,” Perez said.
Perez said the program provided a place where students could complete assignments while receiving additional academic support.
“If I wasn’t at La Amistad, when would the homework be done?” Perez said.
The organization combines tutoring and academic enrichment with opportunities for recreation and personal development. Juarez and Perez said those experiences helped them reach major milestones, including graduating from high school and earning degrees from Oglethorpe University.
“We were preparing ourselves for success and being able to be somebody,” Perez said.
Since 2001, La Amistad has served more than 28,000 people through programs aimed at helping families grow academically and personally. The nonprofit now operates satellite campuses across metro Atlanta.
Today, both men have returned to support the next generation. Perez works in operations for the organization, while Juarez created a “College Club” program to help students and families navigate the path to higher education.
“We help coach the parents and we let them know this is what the process looks like, this is what we’re on and this is what you can do to help,” Juarez said.
La Amistad is celebrating its 25th anniversary this weekend with Fiesta, a gala honoring the lives impacted by the organization over the past quarter century and supporting its future work in the community.
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