The Hightstown-based nonprofit group received national recognition this month.
By: Scott Morgan
HIGHTSTOWN Luz Horta considered the possibility of winning and thought to herself, "This might be nice."
That was an understatement. She figured there was a chance, of course, but winning?
Well, it happened. And Ms. Horta got to change her sentiment from "might be nice" to "I’m just so amazed."
That change of view came when Ms. Horta stepped to the podium in San Antonio, Texas, on Feb. 7 and claimed one of 13 national awards from the National Latino Children’s Institute on behalf of Better Beginnings Daycare Center.
According to the NLCI Web site, La Promesa de un Futuro Brillante (the Promise of a Brighter Future) is a biennial award granted to community-based service organizations around the country that embody commitment to the success of Latino children. Every other year, the award is given to a handful of organizations the institute considers replicable and strategically innovative in their efforts. Or, in the institute’s own words, it rewards those organizations it deems to be "exemplary models of what works in the Latino community."
The awards ceremony was part of a weeklong conference on Latino youth issues, which also featured a youth summit and panel discussions. This is the first time Better beginnings has won the Promesa.
Though there is no money associated with the award, Ms. Horta, Better Beginnings executive director, said the award (a prestigious one at that) is about something more. It’s about recognition.
"This really validates the hard work that everyone here does," she said. "(Winning) wouldn’t have been possible without help from everyone."
For Aida Campoverde, co-director of education at Better Beginnings, winning the Promesa award which recognizes efforts to help Latinos up to the age of 19 shows that Better Beginnings is more than just a day-care center.
"People come for all kinds of help," Ms. Campoverde said. She listed some of the center’s other services, such as computer literacy, English as a second language skills, credit counseling and health education. People, she said, "improve and learn in their own way."
But the award also proves Better Beginnings is doing its job, she said.
"Better Beginnings should feel very proud," Ms. Campoverde said. "Even in a small community like Hightstown, we are in the eyes of everyone."

