Three years ago, Sister Patsy was at her church working on gathering a group of young adults for a church activity when a couple, Caje and Janice Remedios, walked in and introduced themselves. During their conversation, Sister Patsy began discussing Mercy Housing and its mission to bring affordable housing and resident services to those most in need. Their curiosity peaked, and the Remedios expressed their interest in supporting Sister Patsy and her work with Mercy Housing.

Sister Patsy recently explained, “I used to talk about Mercy Housing a lot at those meetings, and Caje and Janice became interested. They said that they would like to donate to help Mercy Housing in its work.”

A Passion for Education Leads to a New Scholarship Fund

As the conversation continued, the Remedios shared their story. Both widows, the couple met, got married, and started to think about how they could give back to their Bay Area community. Education was close to their hearts, as Janice’s first husband was a teacher. There was a scholarship program at Mercy Housing California’s Visitation Valley at the time. Sister Patsy and the Remedios continued to talk over time, and the idea of starting a new scholarship fund was introduced. With her deceased husband’s passion for education at the forefront of her mind, Janice and Caje decided to establish the Maduga-Remedios Visitacion Valley Scholarship Fund for Sunnydale residents either enrolling in college or already in college.

“We think experiencing life is important – to experience is to learn,” Caje Remedios shared. When the scholarship was introduced for first-year college students, they weren’t sure they would get one application.

Celebrating Scholarship Winners

They were wrong. In the first year, the Remedios received three applications; each applicant was awarded a scholarship at a ceremony/celebration at Britton Court.

“The resident services coordinators went all out to make the celebration happen,” Sister Patsy recalls. “They had the room decorated, and it was great. The families came, the kids, and the scholars,” she added.

“It was also important to Janice and Caje that they meet the kids awarded the scholarship,” Sister Patsy added. The Remedios met and talked to the winners, making the day more meaningful. “For everybody to be in the same room and to see the connection between the donors and the kids and their families…it was just an extraordinary moment.”

Now in its third year, The Maduga-Remedios Scholarship Fund has grown to $12,000 and has expanded to include returning students. “We received ten applications,” Sister Patsy shared. “Seven are first-year students, and the other three are returning students.” Including Shelia Hill and Sunnydale resident, Eric.

Foster Parent College

For several years, Shelia Hill has called Mercy Housing California’s Britton Court Apartments home. Located in San Francisco’s Sunnydale neighborhood, her lifelong dream was to become a foster (resource) parent. “My career goals are driven by a deep-seated desire to provide a safe and nurturing environment for children in need,” Shelia shared. “My journey towards becoming a resource parent has been profoundly shaped by my experience of living at a Mercy Housing property, where I have found support, inspiration, and a sense of community.”

Her passion for becoming a foster parent is rooted in her belief in the power of love and care to “transform the lives of vulnerable children.”

It is also personal for Shelia. Britton Court Resident Services Coordinator Segen Araya explains, “A pregnant woman was using illicit drugs on the bus. While the people on the bus were gawking at her, Shelia asked if she needed help and handed the woman her contact information.” The woman contacted Shelia a month later and asked her to take the baby. Shelia was able to facilitate a foster placement and later a successful adoption.

The Foster Parent program includes a curriculum of things that are good for soon-to-be foster parents to learn about – from anger management to trauma and abuse, “all of it across the board,” Sister Patsy shares. Sheila has also become a “den mother” to local youth experiencing homelessness and neglect. “She often provides shelter and basic needs,” Segen shared.

The Path to Nursing School

For Sunnydale resident Eric, receiving the Maduga-Remedios Scholarship has helped pave the way to becoming a nurse, which has always been his dream. “The foundation of determining who has a good life is having the basis of good health,” Eric shared at Mercy Housing California’s Home is Just the Beginning Gala earlier this spring. “To influence that good health to everyone around me, I must work in the healthcare setting – I felt like becoming a nurse would be my ideal career path.”

Shelia, Eric, and the other scholarship recipients have embarked on an exciting journey that brings them closer to achieving an important life objective. Sprinkling some joy in their learning experiences, Mr. Remidos said, “We are more than blessed to experience all these possibilities with our scholarship recipients.”

For information on donating to the Maduga-Remedios Scholarship Fund, please contact Sashi Jivan.