Since I can remember

Since I can remember, I have had the urge to show kindness. Meeting a group of Tibetan monks inspired me to take a path that would lead me to understanding compassion, and leading a life that was mindfully disciplined. Because of this, I believe at a young age I decided I wanted to dedicate my life to non-profit work. From my early studies as an elementary and middle school student in the early 2000s, I became very familiar with human injustice and environmental impact. Growing up in Atlanta, Georgia, I grew up with a very strong sense of civil rights. When I moved to Houston, the influence that my Latino Roots had did not diminish that sense of Justice and equality over a state change. After having a "hero's experience" in Atlanta and saving a fellow friend's life during a swimming party, during high school, A few years after moving to Texas, and living on the Gulf Coast, I decided that I wanted to become a lifeguard so that I could be trained in aquatic safety and rescue. I had slight dreams of wanting to join the military, possibly as a coast guard rescue swimmer, however, my health was not always the best due to spinal injuries and mixed martial arts training and therefore the passion and drive I had to be a rescuer had to be expressed in some way. throughout the years I continued getting my CPR first aid and AED certification with the Red Cross, working with wake Parks at lakes around the Houston metropolitan area in the state of Texas. during covid, I became more impassioned about developing ideas that were progressive and open-minded, and would provide solutions for the world's biggest issues. However, that meant that I had to have incorruptible convictions. Therefore, early on in college, I decided that I was going to focus on real world experience, so that I could gain the knowledge necessary for applying what I was learning in school to a platform that could make a difference. after my friend and fellow University of Houston student passed away, in 2018, I found that life was too short to wait to commit to your dreams.. So I developed the idea of EarthThreads International on my first extended trip solo traveling in Guatemala, & in The following year we had our first holiday fundraiser. while visiting family on the Pacific Coast, A couple of years later, I began to imagine the first pillars of what I referred to as "The Grand Initiative". I believed that it would take a grand initiative on the part of individuals to make a difference. Choosing to manage waste properly, adhering to international laws concerning child labor, and being actively involved in local politics in order to provide the necessary resources such as water treatment that is necessary for developing communities. 

I began volunteering at a very young age. I was encouraged a lot by my family, by my church, and by my school. I was visiting my family in Guatemala at a very young age, so the impact of environmental pollution on my young mind allowed for me to find a relevance in the reports that I made in school on global climate change and human environmental impact. 

However, I was also very interested in history, and how government influence affected world affairs. And how those world affairs were now consequentially resulting in large scale and nearly unregulated environmental impact, for almost 7 decades. One of the cruelest forms of environmental abuse is plastic production. However, what is even sadder, are the multitudes of touristic hot spots make hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars a year without providing the basic infrastructures for their people. That you know the story. Like when you're walking in Bali or kathmundu, and you walk by a very polluted River. Or you are visiting Guatemala and you contract a waterborne disease. Although these things may be experiential for the tourists, these are daily life realizations and experiences for the local communities within these regions. Feeling very closely related to the plight of occupied people, such as the Tibetans and indigenous communities of the Americas, I feel that my work very naturally led me to participate in volunteer projects at school as well. On top of being the environmental student representative in the student government during my high school freshman class, and joining JROTC initiatives that awarded me a presidential recognition for volunteer hours, as I graduated high school making friends and doing fun community activities together like visiting the Houston Food Bank 

(Photo: Houston Food Bank - 03/12/2011 - celebrating a friend's birthday party)

and serving local spiritual community centers around the country and around the world, I began traveling independently as a volunteer for a natural disaster relief organization and as a Wilderness expeditioner. After 2 years of volunteering with this natural disaster organization, I decided that I would would volunteer independently in natural disaster relief and continue fundraising through EarthThreads International, raising funds through annual events and fundraising drives to donate on behalf of Charities tackling the world's biggest issues. One thing I dedicated myself to was being 100% non-profit, and now that I have developed EarthThreads Life Safety Academy, I look forward to more future projects and charity funding.

(Sinduli, Nepal - Natural Disaster Relief: December 2023)

(ISCKON Houston - Volunteer Service and Gardening Hours)

(Vermont Program 2023 - Natural Disaster Relief)

(Guatemala - December 2021 - Solo excursion visiting family in different regions of Guatemala)

Sincerely,

𝓒𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓵𝓪 𝓐𝓵𝓮𝓳𝓪𝓷𝓭𝓻𝓪 𝓦𝓲𝓵𝓼𝓸𝓷

Founder of EarthThreads International and EarthThreads Life Safety Academy