Students of the Month

By Judith Meyer

If you are talking with Karina (age 12) and Spencer (age 9) Ferguson, you would never guess that 3 years ago, they lived in a small town about two hours from Tegucigalpa, Honduras, the capitol city, and spoke only Spanish. They and their parents moved to St. Louis to join their grandparents and other family members. One reason for coming was to help care for their grandma, who is in a wheelchair. Initially, they went to a public school, but the Adopt a Student scholarships they both have received enabled them to transfer to Green Park Lutheran School in Fall 2012. They live quite close to the school and their family has joined Resurrection Lutheran Church, where their baby sister was baptized.

Karina and Spencer’s mom served as a translator for doctors and other professionals before their baby sister was born last year. Their dad owns a roofing firm. A cousin from Honduras has been visiting for the last month; he is here in St. Louis visiting colleges with the plan to attend college somewhere in the United States next year.

Karina’s favorite subject at Green Park is literature, which is not surprising since her favorite activity is reading fiction. Karina really likes Green Park, not only because she has lots of friends, but because she likes how they teach—“I understand more.”  Spencer likes that Green Park is smaller, less crowded, so he can actually know more people. He sings in the Green Park Choir, and is a member of the LEGO Club. Spencer’s favorite out of school activity is playing with LEGOS, whether alone or with friends, and he plans to be a builder when he grows up.

Both Karina and Spencer expressed thanks for the scholarships which enable them to attend Green Park Lutheran School.