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Jefferson Award winner: Sister Trinitas Hernandez DC, founder of the Rosalie Rendu Center in East Palo Alto.How she started: When Hernandez returned to the Bay Area in 1996 after working with delinquent youth and orphans in Colorado and the San Joaquin Valley, she spent a year trying to discover the needs of the poor. In 1997, a Latina asked Hernandez to teach her English. Soon there were three students and Hernandez realized they needed a consistent place to meet. She rented an apartment at the Carriage Manor in East Palo Alto and arranged to offer two English classes to members of the community. When no one came to the morning class, she wondered if she was doing the right thing. But six residents showed up for the afternoon class, and eventually, word spread and more residents in the complex signed up.
And now: The center offers four classes Monday through Thursday with an average of 10 students in each, most from outside the apartment complex. In 2001, Hernandez’s order, the Daughters of Charity, bought the 48-unit complex. With the help of the Junior League of East Palo Alto, the center opened the Tot Spot, providing child care for those attending classes. The center also offers a tutoring program for school-age children and runs a computer center.
At the Rosalie Rendu Center, we strive to break the cycle of poverty through education, mentoring, and raising the self-esteem of the entire family.
The awards are administered by the American Institute of Public Service, a national foundation established in 1972 to honor community service
