Programa Velasco Logo

Meet María Ester!

María Ester grew up on the foothills of the Santa Ana volcano, on a flower farm, where her parents worked. This setting sparked a lasting interest in agriculture for her. For a number of different reasons, María Ester only attended school for a few days and didn’t return. As an adult and a mother at 23, she moved to San Salvador where she began preparing and selling lunches and typical food.She learned about the Women’s Empowerment Project (WEP) through her he participation in a Savings and Lending Group called the Community Fund, part of ANADES. She was interested in the WEP because she continued to sell lunches and typical foods, but she wanted to improve her sales and business skills.María Ester is adamant that she has learned and developed a great deal during her 2 years within the WEP. She changed many of her habits that she had previously. For example, she used to spend her profits the same day or a day after having earned them. She learned and now practices to manage her money and save a portion of it. In addition, she has improved her reading and writing through participating in the literacy class. Practicing these skills has given her more confidence and belief in her potential.

She runs her business out of her home, which is located in a very conflictive area. Many of her customers don’t want to go to her house to buy her products. So, for this reason, one of her goals is to open a separate location where she can prepare and sell her products.

We are very happy to support María Ester these last two years during her training with the WEP while she has worked toward her goals! Her progress would not have been possible without your help!
You can sponsor the dreams of María Ester or another entrepreneurial woman by clicking here.

Like this article?

Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share on Linkdin
Share on Pinterest