“I can see through my whole life how God put things together, and today I’m here (at Harding), and some days I can’t believe it.”
Freshman marketing major Katie Rosales’ journey from living in the Guatemala City garbage dump to being at Harding was not an easy one. Rosales grew up in a house made out of wood, corrugated metal and cardboard, while her mother and two older siblings worked in the garbage dump, collecting items to sell to recycling companies. Rosales’ father died when she was only 8 years old.
“My mom started working (in the garbage dump) when she was 12,” Rosales said. “She left home at that age, and then she started working there because she had just finished elementary school. She was 12, so she wasn’t able to find a job, so that was the easiest thing to do.”
Until about three years ago, public education in Guatemala was not free, but Rosales had the opportunity to go to private school through a non-profit organization called Potter’s House. Rosales said she began going to Potter’s House for vacation Bible schools, then started attending the tutoring program and eventually began going to school there through donations from a sponsor. She was the first in her family to graduate high school, since her older siblings and parents were always working.
Rosales said she is extremely grateful for the opportunities she had at Potter’s House and realizes how lucky she is.
“My older brother is only one year older than me, but he took the responsibility for being the man of the house and only finished elementary school,” Rosales said. “I feel like in some ways, (my family) let me live my dreams.”
One of those dreams was to learn English, which Rosales had the chance to do through tutoring at Potter’s House. She said she wanted to be able to talk to her sponsors without an interpreter, and that, as well as her parents, is part of what kept her motivated through school.
“I was so proud of how my mom works, so I wanted her to feel proud of me because of all her efforts and everything,” Rosales said. “I just remember when my father was with us he would say, ‘I want you to have the things I couldn’t have, and you have to work hard in school, and I want you to have a different future.’ So I always remember that, his words and everything.”
Rosales was 10 years old when she became a Christian and said she remembers clearly why she made that decision. It was two years after her father’s death, and Rosales said she was frustrated and confused about why God would take him away.
“At this summer camp, this person started preaching about God’s love as a father, and I was like ‘Hmm, I don’t believe it, because I was really sad,” Rosales said. “But I accepted Jesus into my heart and asked God to be my father, and I said, ‘If you really are the lovely God you say, I want you to be my father.’ That’s the best decision I’ve made in my life. And God not only has been my father; he’s been my provider and my counselor and everything.”
In order to graduate high school at Potter’s House, Rosales had to complete an internship, which she decided to do at Potter’s House. She worked as a translator between the children and their sponsors. One of the Potter’s House employees was a former Walton scholar and encouraged Rosales to apply for the scholarship and attend Harding.
“I was scared because my English was not very good,” Rosales said. “I understand a lot, but I was afraid to talk; but when I started doing my internship, they put me with the groups, and I had to talk in English. I always prayed and said ‘God, if this is your will, please open these doors, and if it is not, I know you will open doors here in Guatemala.’ But it was God’s plan.”
Rosales was awarded the scholarship and said her goal is to go back to Guatemala after graduation and work for Potter’s House.
“I really miss home because I’m really close with my mom,” Rosales said. “She’s like my best friend. I went to church with her. The churches here are different than the ones back in my country, so it was hard to adapt the first week, and I was homesick all the time, but I have met really nice people here—my Walton friends and the ones that are not Walton, but they are really nice people.”
