Andrea Lopez made the courageous decision to leave her family in El Salvador and join extended family in the Bay Area to pursue “a better life with more opportunities.” Her vision of the United States as a place where she could achieve her goals is becoming a reality thanks to the support of Enterprise for Youth:

“I moved to the U.S. from El Salvador in 2020 and Enterprise has been with me ever since. It has been the best experience and the staff helped me find my path. I come from a somewhat traditional and conservative Salvadoran family and I want to break boundaries. I want to show the young women in my community that everything and anything is possible with effort and dedication.“– Andrea Lopez, Program Assistant intern, Enterprise for Youth

Andrea joined Enterprise in 2020 and completed two internships – the Reimagine Internship working with leaders in the San Francisco public schools and a SPUR internship, assisting with an event focused on improving our urban communities. Andrea tells us:

“Reimagine and SPUR impacted me in a good way, and helped me understand non-profit organizations. Reimagine taught me the purpose of looking for social and even global problems that we can address or even solve. The skills I developed are being organized and independent. I was able to work with more people in different environments and connect with professional networks. I discovered myself. Both experiences gave me a vision of my future and how I can be better as a person – I couldn’t have done it without Enterprise For Youth and their support.”

In these two experiences, Andrea was able to improve her research and public speaking skills, learn professional expectations, all while improving her English. This summer she was invited to be a leader at Enterprise supporting other young people as a Program Assistant. In her role, Andrea not only coaches younger interns along their internship journey, but she is also acting as a translator so youth can bolster their job skills while learning English, as she so recently did. 

As President of the Board of Directors, I choose to invest my time and money in Enterprise because our program changes lives every day. We build confidence and open the door to possibilities for our amazing youth. 

We are incredibly grateful for the support from our donors and partners. Our community helps breathe life into our mission. Please consider making a monthly donation of $17.34 that funds one hour of paid work at San Francisco minimum wage – that is twelve hours a year for a young person in need of a leg up. To make a gift, of any size, please visit our donate page and select ‘make this a monthly donation’ at checkout.

In honor of our founder and Glady Thacher Day this July 11, please take a moment to think about a person in your life that listened to you, gave you a shot, or influenced your life. You can provide impact for a young person in the Bay Area by making a donation to Enterprise for Youth. I hope you do!

Sincerely, 

Brent Hyder
President, Enterprise for Youth Board of Directors
President & Chief People Officer, Salesforce

“I discovered myself. Both experiences gave me a vision of my future and how I can be better as a person – I couldn’t have done it without Enterprise For Youth and their support.” – Andrea Lopez