While living in Mexico In 1972, the pervasive poverty that Dr. J. Marlan Walker observed deeply saddened him. He determined that he would help the wonderful people he had grown to love in some small way.  While there, he endeavored to help a small Huastecan Indian village in the jungle south of Ciudad Valles by initiating a project to bring potable water and electricity to improve their living conditions.  He followed his first successful project with a second: to provide the villagers in Ciudad Valles with dental care from a group of US dentists who had volunteered to come to Mexico and help.

Although deeply gratified with the improvement in the lives of those wonderful Husatecans, Dr. Walker observed that the most lasting and beneficial help he could give was in the realm of education.  The Husatecan village school took the children attending only through the fifth grade.  He worked out a program to take every boy and girl through their secondary schooling, and in some cases beyond.  These educational opportunities gave the village children the opportunity to escape poverty.

From these humble beginnings 41 years ago, Las Gaviotas was born. The scope of the projects have expanded to other countries in Latin America where similar conditions exist and where the needs are just as great.  While the early projects were varied, today Las Gaviotas’ focus is one hundred percent education.