TWO CENTS WORTH

July 19, 2015 by riplipboy

TWO CENTS WORTH

Originally Published the Week of July 22, 2015 in Western Outdoor News

There was a time…

A penny bought you a piece of Bazooka Bubble Gum.

A nickel got you a pack of trading cards.

A dime was worth a comic book.

A buck was a month’s subscription to the daily newspaper…delivered to your doorstep.

Now…

A dollar isn’t even a good tip.

Five bucks won’t get you a gallon of gas

Twenty bucks in your nephew’s birthday card…you might as well have given him underwear.

A hundred dollars barely fills your gas tank

A few weeks ago, we had a small tournament here with our fishing fleet in La Paz. Not a big deal. But a fun deal!

After all, we have a bunch of pangas. But, we had a great time. It was sponsored by Western Outdoor News.

There was a small jackpot at the end. When I say, “small” no one was going to be able to buy a new condo with it or have to worry about getting an IRS audit. Our little soiree was not on the level of any Bisbee’s or Gold Cup event.

But, $600 bucks is $600 bucks, right?

The winner, Bill, got his prize and did two really cool things. He picked up everyone’s tab for the awards dinner.

Then, he simply donated the balance of more than $400 to us at Tailhunter for a scholarship fund my wife helps sponsor here in La Paz. Specifically, the money was donated to the FANLAP scholarship program which helps economically disadvantaged students.

I knew Jill had been working with this organization before. She admirably works with a lot of them. I can’t keep ‘em all straight. God bless her. And I was gratefully amazed at the wonderful gesture.

But, then I found out what $400 really gets you. It changes a life. It could be the difference between working in a taco stand and sweeping floors for life. Or something better…much better.

You see here in Mexico, most never get past 6^th grade. That’s all the schooling that’s guaranteed. Imagine how far your kid would get with a 6^th grade education. Many kids come from homes where the parents may not read or write either.

After 6^th grade, assuming they make it that far, a family has to decide if it can or will send a child further. It’s a big hardship.

Usually, a boy is chosen. He’s the potential future breadwinner. Girls, it is felt, will only get married and pregnant (not necessarily in that order), so the education isn’t warranted.

Four hundred dollars keeps a kid in school for a year. A whole entire year. It provides uniforms, shoes, food, school supplies, transportation from outlying areas and so much more. Four hundred bucks is what some American kids spend on an outfit or their gym clothes.

FANLAP started in 2005 with five scholarships and now does 20-30 a year. Totally non-profit. No high-paid executives or fancy buildings. No gala fundraisers. Everything to help a kid get a bit more of a future with opportunities.

In return, the kids must keep up their grades and perform community service such as cleaning or painting in the neighborhood; covering graffiti or tutoring other students. Win-win for everyone.

I’m not writing this to pimp the program, but rather to point out in a day-and-age, when it seems a kid “needs” $200 Air Jordans; a $100 cell phone; and $100 designer jeans just for the first day of school, there’s still some value in our “disposable income.”

In Mexico, four hundred bucks keeps a kid in school for a whole year!

And I’m also applauding the generous hearts. Bill’s gesture caused several other participants at our event to also slip Jill an envelope. Several of our clients, since then, heard what happened and have also given us donations. Another amigo, himself a retired educator, is in the process of setting up funding to take a youngster all the way through high school, and possibly college.

As one of them told me, “When I think about what I blow in Vegas in an evening or what I spend to take the family out for the evening… can keep a kid in school and change their future…yea…that makes a difference. That’s a good investment.”

It’s about value. And values. The important ones.

That’s my story!

Jonathan

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Jonathan Roldan has been writing the Baja Column in Western Outdoor News since 2004. Along with his wife and fishing buddy, Jilly, they own and run the Tailhunter International Fishing Fleet in La Paz, Baja, Mexico www.tailhunter-international.com. They also run their Tailhunter Restaurant Bar on the famous La Paz malecon waterfront. If you’d like to contact him directly, his e-mail is riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com or drop by the restaurant to say hi!

______________

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

TAILHUNTER FISHING FLEET #1 Rated on Trip Advisor

TAILHUNTER RESTAURANT BAR #1 Rated in La Paz on Trip Advisor

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Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

U.S. Office: 8030 La Mesa, Suite #178, La Mesa CA 91942

Mexico Office: 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:

http://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videos:

http://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

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