tijuana mexico
CNN
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Estefanía Rebellón knows the trauma that comes from being forced to flee home for safety. She understands the fear and uncertainty felt by the more than 70 million migrant and forcibly displaced children around the world.
She too was an immigrant child.
“My family's case is the same as that of many refugees and migrants at the border. Leaving home was never an option for my family. We got kicked out of it.” said Rebellón, 32.
When she was 10, her family left Cali, Colombia, due to death threats against her father, who had to go into hiding. They settled in Miami, and with the support of the school's teachers, Rebellón flourished. Now, through her nonprofit Yes We Can World Foundation, she provides education to children living in limbo in shelters along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Rebellón moved from Miami to Los Angeles when she was 21 to pursue an acting career. In 2018, she was so moved after her volunteer work at an immigrant camp in Tijuana that she put her career on hold.
“There were no schools established to help these children. “They were walking around the camp barefoot,” she said. “I couldn’t forget what I had just seen. And I was like, ‘I literally have to go back.’”
Rebellón and her partner, Kyle Schmidt, used about $1,000 of their savings to buy tents and supplies and set up a temporary school at the border. They recruited volunteer teachers to provide learning opportunities at the camp.
“We set up the school overnight… and we only spoke to two kids,” Rebellón said. “It spread throughout the camp, there were over 50 kids around us.”
In the months that followed, when families living in the camp were moved into shelters, Rebellón and Schmidt wanted to continue providing educational services.
“I thought, “What if we turn the bus into a mobile classroom and take it to all the different shelters?” said the rebel. “We literally searched Google and YouTube for ways to convert a bus into a mobile classroom.”
The following year, Rebellón and Schmidt bought a bus, demolished it, and worked with a shelter to take the modified bus across the border. Their goal is to provide bilingual education programs to keep children in school.
“Every family we work with, every child we work with every day, is legally seeking asylum,” Rebellón said. “They are going through all the necessary processes.”
Rebellón's organization employs professional teachers and tailors the curriculum to the specific needs of each student. The program has been approved by Mexico's Minister of Education and is offered to children ages 3 to 15, a critical period for their education, Rebellón says.
![Since 2019, CNN Hero Estefanía Rebellón and her organization have provided school programs and stability to thousands of children living in limbo.](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231005193333-estefania-rebellon-kid-art-cnnheroes.jpg?q=w_1110,c_fill)
Despite the challenges she faced as a child of immigrants, she said she was fortunate to have teachers who advocated for her and guided her along the way.
Many migrant children do not receive this support, often struggling and missing out on valuable school time. Many people have been on the move for months, if not years, and have difficulty getting to school because they are on the move without a permanent home. Safety, economic instability, poverty, lack of transportation, and perceived legal status are also factors.
“People don’t realize this is such a long process for the family,” Rebellón said. “You don’t just arrive at the border, apply for asylum, and your life changes like a rainbow. It takes decades, a lot of effort and a lot of pain.”
Rebellón's family went through a decades-long legal process to gain political asylum and later U.S. citizenship. Her parents, who were lawyers, had to give up their jobs in Colombia and find new jobs in the United States to support her family of five. Her mother worked several jobs as a caregiver and her father worked nights at Walmart. He worked there full time for nearly 20 years.
“I share my immigration story with (the kids) every chance I get,” Rebellón said. “I always hope that the kids that come through our program realize that being an immigrant is not something to be ashamed of.”
![Rebellón's programs run throughout the year and offer a curriculum tailored to the needs of children ages 3 to 15.](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231005191802-estefania-bus-classroom-cnnheroes.jpg?q=w_1110,c_fill)
Currently, the Yes We Can Foundation educates 250 to 300 children a day through four schools and three mobile school buses located along the border. Rebellón said that since 2019, the organization has served more than 3,100 immigrant children from 10 countries.
The program runs Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The school operates all year round with no summer breaks. We also provide school uniforms, backpacks, and school supplies free of charge. Classes not only focus on Common Core instruction in language arts, math, and science subjects, but also address practical, immediate needs, such as how to translate basic information, including phone numbers and addresses.
“I want our efforts to be permanent,” Rebellón said. “And when it’s all over, we’ll be proud to say we were there when people needed us most.”
Want to participate? Please confirm Yes We Can World Foundation Website Find out how you can help.
To donate to the Yes We Can World Foundation through GoFundMe: Click here