Thoughts of a United States Marine in support of a mission are typically associated with hardened individuals that will take the fight to the enemy’s front door or storm off naval ships and aircraft platforms in support of humanitarian efforts. However, Marines worldwide are making a difference in other aspects that do not require a weapon.
Every year, Quezada Family Charities, a charity run by 1st Lt. Jose Quezada, an air support control officer with Marine Air Support Squadron 3 and a Santiago, Dominican Republic native, hosts a toy giveaway during the Christmas season for elementary schools in the Dominican Republic. QFC provides hundreds of children with gifts their parents would otherwise not be able to afford.
“You never really know how good your life is until you have seen these places,” said Quezada. “These families have almost nothing. I will give a little girl a doll, and I can tell by the way that she smiles and squeezes it that she appreciates it a lot.”
Quezada explained that his mother, Lidia Quezada, creator and vice president of QFC, coordinates with school directors and principals in the Dominican Republic to make this event an annual success.
This year, QFC will add San Jose Adentro and Los Cocos, both Dominican Republic schools, to the sponsorship list. As a result, those schools’ students will receive hundreds of toys, school supplies and uniforms for students, according to QFC’s website, http://quezadafamilycharity.org.
“I have seen 16-year-olds in third grade,” said Quezada. “I want to do everything I can to make sure these kids have a better education.”
QFC established the Quezada Family Scholarship Program as a method of motivating and supporting students and their families. Since the implementation of this program, 70 percent of classes involved have improved grades and test results, according to http://quezadafamilycharity.org.
At the end of each school year, three schools participate in the scholarship program for grades four through 11. One boy and girl from each grade receive a plaque and funding based on the highest overall grade point average.
“We just gave someone a QFC full-ride academic scholarship to medical school,” said Quezada. “We saw that he was the best in his class and that he deserved it. He will have to find a job if he wants to do things away from school, but as for the schooling itself, he doesn’t have to worry about it.
”The Quezada family collects donations, such as gently used clothing to support the program, but most of the monetary funding comes from the Quezada family, he explained. QFC distributes dozens of uniform items to impoverished students who do not have the funds to purchase them each year.
In addition to clothing, toys and school supplies, the Quezada family arranges an annual Christmas food giveaway, providing families with rice, beans, oil, sauces and many more cooking supplies so they can enjoy a great meal with their families. Fresh meat accompanies the cooking supplies.
“[Marines] are continuing to win hearts and minds around the globe,” Quezada said. “At the moment, this charity only impacts several hundred, but I hope to continue its growth and eventually have it listed in the Combined Federal Campaign where it can reach tens of thousands.”