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CDF-Minnesota Beat the Odds® Awards Dinner 2009
March 12, 2009 - March 12, 2009CDF-Minnesota will host its 17th Annual Beat the Odds Awards Dinner to honor four exceptional Twin Cities high school seniors who have overcome tremendous adversity to succeed in both school and life. This year's event will be emceed by Minnesota Public Radio personality Kerri Miller. More Information
Edwin Rosas
Chaos and upheaval have always been a part Edwin Rosas’ life. At age seven, he saw his “nice, caring, religious” mother handcuffed and jailed by INS officers. Two weeks later, she was deported to Mexico as a non-U.S. Citizen. To add to the turmoil, she had just been diagnosed with kidney and lung cancer and had no health coverage.
The upheaval split up the struggling family as Edwin and his brother – both U.S. citizens – joined their mother in Mexico, while their father stayed in California to continue working as a manual laborer. In Mexico, Edwin cried often, worried that his mother was dying. To help pay her medical bills, he worked picking vegetables after school. When her cancer went into remission, Edwin felt like a “dark cloud had lifted.”
During the two-and-half years in Mexico, Edwin’s mother attempted to return to the United States three times but was stopped at the border each time. Finally, the family was allowed to reunite in California.
Beset by financial problems, the family decided to look for a better life in Minnesota. But with limited English ability and few work skills, his father had trouble finding work. The family split again and Edwin stayed with relatives in Utah until his father found a job in Minnesota. All the moving affected Edwin’s education and English skills, and made it hard to keep friends. His family’s precarious economic situation often forced him to skip meals, sometimes for days.
Edwin says all the adversity has made him stronger and more appreciative of what he has. As his family has slowly gained some economic stability in Minnesota, he has excelled in many areas. Seeing a lot of children in Mexico living in poverty, he said began to appreciate the importance of education and the opportunities it brings. Today, he is near the top of his class with a 3.86 GPA. He is a member of the National Honor Society, and a captain of the soccer team and a letter winner in both track and cross country. An accomplished violinist, he has been named to the Honors Orchestra the past three years and he has performed at the Ordway. Beyond that, he volunteers each Sunday at his church and spends time tutoring local elementary students.
Edwin plans to attend the University of Minnesota, where he’ll study to be a Math Teacher. “I want to help students who are struggling like I was,” he said. “The Beat the Odds scholarship means I can focus more on my education, and less on paying for it.”
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