Nuestra Escuela of Caguas marks 25 years with emotional graduation ceremony

Caguas Mayor William Miranda Torres presented the Mayor’s Medal in several categories.

By THE STAR STAFF

In celebrating 25 years of Nuestra Escuela’s (Our School) mission of love, its president, Ana Yris Guzmán, highlighted at a moving graduation ceremony the achievements of children, young adults and adults from Caguas who have transformed their lives through alternative education.

“25 years standing here, next to my husband Justo [Méndez Arámburu] being part of the Nuestra Escuela Community! I feel a chill in my soul when I say that number, because it is much more than a number; it means a quarter of a century of love, dedication, and unwavering faith,” Guzmán said during Thursday’s ceremony at the Caguas Fine Arts Center. “Having faith when there is nothing, when there seems to be no way out, is a gift that we human beings have. … Today, as we celebrate this very special graduation, let us remember that this night is the echo of 25 years of struggle, love, resistance, and dreams fulfilled. How exciting to see our graduates! They are living proof that our dream comes true every day. Today we celebrate a community that loves each other beyond words, a dream that is still being woven and a future that is still being built. Long live the Nuestra Escuela community!”

Nuestra Escuela has alternative education centers in Caguas and Loíza, as well as vocational schools in fashion, agriculture, tourism, and technology.

Hugs, tears, and loving messages characterized the graduation, which began with a special parade featuring 25 graduates, each holding an illuminated star, a symbol of the years Nuestra Escuela has been established. Most of the graduates were those who, in their respective graduating years, received the Ana Mercedes Méndez Jiménez Merit Award, named for the late daughter of co-founder Méndez Arámburu, in whose honor Nuestra Escuela was founded. As they marched, many reiterated their gratitude and pride “for the dedication, the love, for being a family, thank you to Nuestra Escuela for helping us give everything for my star.”

After the parade, Méndez Arámburu emotionally addressed the audience at the Caguas Fine Arts Center, saying, “I’ve been overcome with sadness these past few days, missing Ana Mercedes so much.”

“Today, seeing these graduates from these 25 years of coming here, I remembered their 25 victories, which included difficult but extremely rewarding moments with each one of you, even with the hardship you gave me,” he said. “From the bottom of my soul, I thank you for giving meaning to my pain and turning it into a beautiful legacy …”

Some 85 children, youth, and adults from Caguas and Loíza graduated from Nuestra Escuela this year. Of that group, 22 were children from Nuestra Escuelita, and 63 youth and adults from the community earned their fourth-year diploma from Nuestra Escuela.

As they marched, the graduates shared loving messages with their mothers, fathers, siblings, grandparents, and extended family, as well as with each other and other students, including “We did it,” “Fight for your dreams,” and “Never give up.

Caguas Mayor William Miranda Torres attended the ceremony, and the founders thanked him for his continued support of the school.

“Today is a day of profound celebration and hope,” the mayor said. “Each one of you, dear graduates, is a living testament that education transforms, opens paths, and ignites new opportunities.”

Miranda Torres presented the Mayor’s Medal for leadership to Gyan G. Mulero Huertas, for academic excellence to Elyann N. Rodríguez Cruz, and to distinguished graduate Dayran M. Torres Reyes.

The Ana Mercedes Méndez Jiménez Merit Award, in one of the most emotional presentations of the graduation ceremony, went to Alondra Nicole Rosado Alejandro.

“I feel proud, I didn’t expect it,” she said afterwards. “It was very emotional. I tell the young people of Nuestra Escuela to always be themselves, to set their goals and fight for their dreams.”