July 1999

A little boy who kept his promise

Four years ago, Ofelina and Efren Bravo went to Medical Service Bureau, a United Way-funded charity, for help purchasing eyeglasses for their little boy, Clever.

That’s where they met Rosa Molina, Executive Director of Medical Service Bureau. While visiting with Molina, Mrs. Bravo mentioned Clever was having problems with grades in school. Molina arranged financial assistance and referred Clever to a participating local optical dispensary to obtain his glasses.

A promise to improve school work

When the Bravo family came in to Medical Service Bureau with the new glasses, Molina leaned down to Clever and jokingly said, "Now that you have these new glasses, I want you to promise me you’ll work on doing better in school."

Clever nodded and solemnly said, "I promise."

Last month, when Molina stopped by the Bravos’ house, Mrs. Bravo asked her to come in to see Clever’s certificates.

Every year for the past three years, Clever has been on the honor roll at John Marshall Middle School. This year, he earned a 4.0 grade point average with straight A’s.

As Ofelina Bravo says proudly, "He promised you he would do better and he has done that."

‘Don’t worry about teasing’

Even before he got his first pair of glasses, Clever Bravo knew he couldn’t see as well as other children in his class, but he tried to hide the fact from his parents and his teachers because he was afraid the other children would tease him.

Now, he has a new perspective. "I would tell other kids not to be afraid of them. If they would get glasses, they could see better and they can get better grades," he says.

Clever’s mother is very grateful for the help she received at Medical Service Bureau, and she wanted Molina to see Clever’s honor roll certificates to prove it wasn’t wasted.

"If it wasn’t for the glasses, he probably wouldn’t have been able to succeed so well," she says.

‘Thank you for helping me see better.’

Perhaps the gift Clever presented to Rosa Molina on Valentine’s Day best captures the essence of this story: He gave her a little chocolate heart that said, "Thank you for helping me see better."

Molina says it is one of the nicest things anyone has ever given her.

Call United Way of the Plains at 267-1321 to find out more about how your money is helping our community.