From Venezuela to the Naval Academy with the help of an education choice scholarship

RIVERVIEW – Rosa Salom Garcia’s car was reinforced to withstand bullets because the threat of being kidnapped was a part of everyday life in Venezuela.

She was a leading eye surgeon in her native Caracas with a practice spread over multiple locations in the city. Her daughter, Maria Castillo Salom, attended private school.

Life was great until it wasn’t.

Until the political climate became volatile in the mid-2010s, with the government confiscating some of Rosa’s offices. Until kidnappings of citizens who could pay huge ransoms were commonplace. Rosa feared for her safety as well as Maria’s.

“All I wanted to do in life I did,” Rosa said. “My life became Maria’s life.”

So, in the summer of 2017, mother and daughter moved to Riverview, east of Tampa. Rosa gave up her medical practice and left her family for a safer, better future for Maria.

“She never said, ‘I did this all for you,’ but I knew,” Maria said. “I knew all the sacrifices she had made. She left her whole life behind, and my main goal was to make her proud.”

Maria, who arrived in time for the seventh grade, continued her private school education with the help of a Florida Tax Credit Scholarship, which is funded by corporate donations to Step Up For Students.

Maria finished elementary school at nearby St. Stephens Catholic School, then attended Tampa Catholic High School, where she graduated in 2023 third in her class with a 4.0 GPA and an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

“We’re forever grateful for Step Up,” said Gabriel Casas Diaz, Rosa’s husband and Maria’s stepfather. “Without Step Up’s help, Maria won’t be where she is right now.”

That first year at St. Stephens was not easy for Maria, now 20. An honor roll student in Caracas, Maria had little trouble in science and math, because two plus two equals four in any language. But her English was limited, and she struggled with American History. The smaller classes at her new school provided the right educational setting, because teachers could take the time to work with Maria. They knew she was a bright student, and they were determined to help her succeed.

They explained assignments during class and tutored her afterwards.

“I had teachers who were truly devoted to me,” Maria said. “Honestly, I took up a lot of their time.”

Attending a Catholic school in her new home offered some much-needed familiarity with her faith as she adjusted to the move to a new country.

“It was really good to be connected to my faith,” she said. “It was a difficult move. My father is still in Venezuela. So is my extended family.”

In the eighth grade, Maria wrote an essay about the life she left behind. She didn’t leave anything out. She wrote about the violence, the poverty, the never-ending fear for her family’s safety. The essay was for a contest where the winner received a $10,000 scholarship toward high school. Maria finished second.

But her essay was forwarded to the administration at Tampa Catholic. Maria was asked to apply and was accepted. The essay earned her a Mary Neary Scholarship from her new school. That coupled with a scholarship from the Diocese of St. Petersburg for her grades and the FTC scholarship enabled Rosa to afford Tampa Catholic.

“I am eternally grateful for the (Florida Tax Credit) scholarship, for allowing me to make it through,” Maria said.

Maria found the teachers at Tampa Catholic as helpful and encouraging as those at St. Stephens. It wasn’t long before she was taking AP classes. She studied French and became president of the French National Honor Society. She took six math classes and continued her education during the summer though Florida Virtual School.

She recorded more than 200 community service hours from volunteering at Feeding Tampa Bay and the Humane Society of Tampa Bay. She played three years of soccer, stopping as a senior only because her courseload was too demanding.

When asked during her junior year by Tampa Catholic’s college counselor about her college plans, Maria answered with the three words: The Naval Academy.

Somewhat stunned, the counselor suggested the University of Notre Dame as a safe school, where she could join its Navy ROTC. But Maria had her eyes set on the Naval Academy, which could lead to a career in the Marines or the FBI.

Gabriel retired after nearly 29 years as a Marine, and Maria likes the camaraderie he has with fellow Marines, those he’s known for a long time and those he just met. It’s “Oorah” and an instant bond.

Maria, who became a U.S. citizen in 2020 along with Rosa, received the acceptance email from the Academy on March 31 of her senior year. She already had been accepted to Notre Dame and the University of Florida.

She had just finished taking an AP biology exam when she noticed the email alert on her Apple Watch. She was excused from class and called her mom with the news. They both cried.

“My mother, she’s my role model,” Maria said. “I had to make her sacrifice worth it.”

Rosa has changed careers since moving to the United States. She earned a liberal arts degree at Hillsborough Community College and is a certified mental health counselor, working with immigrants.

“I really appreciate all that this country made for Maria, for us in general,” Rosa said. “She has a great opportunity. Maria’s future would be different if she remained in Venezuela. Totally different worlds.”

Maria loves her new world.

“I feel like the United States opened its heart and to us and I've just been so grateful,” she said. “It certainly is amazing. I don't think it could be a better place in the world, and that's kind of the reason I'm serving the country, to show I’m so grateful to it.”

Roger Mooney, manager, communications, can be reached at [email protected].