Border Partners Launches New “Mobile Health Clinic” to Reach Rural Areas

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The newly outfitted mobile health clinic will provide services and goods in rural communities. Here we set it up for the initial run to simply provide donations to the communities of Colonia Victoria and Entronque.

This March, Border Partners received a generous donation. It was a mobile camper van that was equipped to provide basic health services. Last week, our staff left Puerto Palomas to travel to the neighboring villages of Colonia Victoria and Entronque to distribute donations and food.

Starting in April, the van will serve as a “mobile health clinic” once per month. Dr. Parra and two community health promoters will travel to these nearby rural towns. While in Colonia Victoria and Entronque, they’ll provide health check-ups and address other community health concerns. The team will operate from the mobile health clinic.

Mobile Health Clinic to Underserved

In these harder-to-reach areas, the closest health clinic is often miles away. Improving community public health outcomes often happens through preventative care. Fortunately, our staff is experienced and trained. We are equipped to help people conserve their health and prevent disease. By administering basic health checks in rural areas, we can monitor glucose levels and identify diabetes risk in the underserved communities.

Providing preventative health services is an especially significant task in northern Mexico. In this area, rates of T1 diabetes remain high. By employing the mobile health clinic, we’ll address rural health disparities due to a lack of services. So, we propose that this will improve public health outcomes in the region.

We extend a heartfelt thanks to Merritt Reed. She made this generous donation in honor of her husband, Ron. We are looking forward to using the camper van to use as a mobile health clinic to serve the community through this new initiative she made possible.

Empowering Women in Puerto Palomas

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Palomas International Womens Day 2026

Border Partners attendees at International Women’s Day Dinner and Awards. Pictured (L-R): Aylin Vega, Victoria Ibarra, Blanca Maturino and Reyna Garcia.

On March 8th, Border Partners staff in Puerto Palomas celebrated International Women’s Day by attending a banquet in honor of local women’s contributions to their communities. The event was held in the municipality of Asención, hosted by the municipality’s mayor and attended by Border Partners’ staff Victoria Ibarra, Blanca Maturino, Reyna Garcia, and Aylin Vega.

The banquet featured a talk about Mexico’s most influential women. Outstanding women from the municipality of Asención received awards. Last year, Border Partners’ own Victoria Ibarra received one such award. Recognizing the importance of the event, Victoria remarked that “it is a day to recognize women for their achievements, regardless of national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic, or political divisions.”

Our Focus on Women

From our beginnings in 2008, Border Partners has championed the cause of women in Puerto Palomas. We’ve offered support of single women, for women head of households, for working women and for women seeking employment. Our first project was to create a women’s cooperative allowing them to earn income for their households by designing and producing products from Mexican oilcloth.

As a matter of fact, the majority of Border Partners staff in Puerto Palomas are women. Supporting women, according to the United Nations, is an effective way to accelerate economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve health and education outcomes. By supporting women, we’re even more effectively boosting Puerto Palomas.

Why is that true?

Supporting women supports development

Women of Border PartnersClosing gender gaps in the workforce and agriculture can significantly boost Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and productivity. 

    • Women often reinvest up to 90% of their earnings into their families. They cover nutrition, healthcare, and education for the people they care for. Men, however, invest only 30–40%. Women’s significant investment directly breaks cycles of poverty.
    • Educated women tend to have healthier, better-educated children. This improves the well-being of their communities and reduces child mortality.
    • Empowering women contributes to better community decision-making and sustainable development. Women often champion positive changes in environmental and social areas.
    • Enhanced Innovation: Companies with higher gender diversity in leadership roles show improved performance, innovation, and organizational effectiveness.
    • Supporting women’s access to education, financial resources, and leadership roles is more than a matter of rights. It also very effectively advances society.

International Women’s Day recognizes the long road women have walked, and continue to walk, to gain equal rights. It’s a day honoring the societal contributions, achievements, and struggles of women around the world. In Mexico, marches, protests, banquets, and other events took place across the country, with Puerto Palomas being no exception.

We’re grateful for the many contributions and dedication of the hardworking women at Border Partners. Without them, we would not be the organization we are. We’re thankful for all women around the world fighting for a more just and equitable future for women and men alike.

Our New “Heart Healthy Ambassadors” Support Puerto Palomas

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Celebrating the completion of training of three Heart Healthy Ambassadors for Puerto Palomas. (L-R) Dr. Francisco Javier Parra, Victoria Ibarra, Bianca Paulette and Benjamin Jacquez (MPH Consultant Constellation Consulting, LLC, and Aylin Vega.

Three leaders in Border Partners’ Puerto Palomas staff now can provide a new and important health care offering to the community. Aylin Vega, Dr. Francisco Javier Parra, and Victoria Ibarra recently completed certifications as “Healthy Heart Ambassadors.” Their training from the New Mexico Department of Health allows them to assist people suffering from high blood pressure.

Confronting Hypertension

With this training and certification as a trained facilitator, our Heart Healthy Ambassadors can help community members monitor and manage their conditions. Hypertension is endemic in Mexico. In fact, cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in Mexico. They account for roughly 24% of all adult deaths, with over 97,000 deaths from heart diseases reported in 2023.

Their focus will be assisting adults who either have a diagnosis of high blood pressure or who are currently taking medication to lower blood pressure. Over four months, our newly approved Heart Healthy Ambassadors will provide education, encouragement, and support to program participants. These designated participants will measure and track their blood pressure at home using a self-identified tracking tool. Our Heart Healthy Ambassadors will provide one-on-one office hours and offer group-based nutrition education to help participants gain better blood pressure management.

Heart Healthy Ambassadors’ Certification

Training for the National Healthy Heart Ambassador Blood Pressure Self-Monitoring Program training happened through e-learning. The ambassadors also received a virtual/live assessment on these key topics:

  • Enrolling eligible participants
  • Taking blood pressure
  • Setting up office hours
  • Coaching participants
  • Facilitating nutrition seminars

Our new Heart Healthy Ambassadors successfully earned their digital badges and now can access an ambassador resource hub. We appreciate the initiative these Heart Healthy Ambassadors took to finish this thorough training. They now are empowered with more tools and resources to prevent heart disease and strokes. This strengthens opportunities for health in Puerto Palomas.

2025 Impact Report Shows Importance of Our Work

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Our school foods program enhances the daily diets of school children by supplying the food service personnel in Puerto Palomas schools with fresh food and basic staples for healthy meals.

We are delighted to highlight several significant outcomes achieved by Border Partners’ projects in 2025. Now in our 17th year collaborating with the border community of Puerto Palomas, Mexico, to improve outcomes in our program areas of health, education, sustainability, and economic development, 2025 was a busy season full of expansion, reflection, and learning for our team.

Executive Summary Annual Report 2025

This child received her own serving of healthy foods.

This year, Border Partners had the opportunity to leverage grant funding to expand two new projects: a pilot program for our Youth Center “Inspire,” and our work with papercrete, a sustainable building material made of recycled paper mixed with concrete. Other projects, such as our daily Meals on Wheels deliveries to seniors and our work providing mental health counseling in schools, were phased out mid-year as we built capacity and focus to launch our new initiatives. Meanwhile, Border Partners’ daily work in the community gardens, running the computer center, and providing health checks and social gatherings for seniors, as well as nutrition classes in local schools, continued throughout the year. See a snapshot of our impact below:

2025 By The Numbers

Total Beneficiaries Reached….Over 7,000
Total Funds Raised……………….Over $400,000
Volunteer Participation………..Over 30 Active Volunteers
Programs Implemented……….Over 9 Active Programs

Our 2025 Impact by Program Area

Expanding Youth Services and Education

  • Youth Center “Inspire” Grand Opening in May 2025: 224 hours of after-school programming for 50 at-risk youth aged 10-17
  • Expanded summer school programming for 335 participants in June-July
  • Welcomed 3,261 visits to our education and computer center

Improving Community Health and Nutrition

  • 1,202 health checks performed by our team of health promoters
  • Provided nutrition classes, fresh garden produce supplements, and cooking classes to 605 students across 7 Palomas schools
  • Hosted 2 community-wide health fairs attended by 1000+ people

Sustainable Materials for Economic Empowerment

  • Our papercrete construction crew built 6 structures at local schools using 7,581 tons of recycled paper diverted from the local dump
  • Trained 6 local craftspeople in papercrete production and basic business skills

Cultivating Community in our Gardens

  • Harvested 673 pounds of fresh produce from our community gardens to donate to schools and community members in need
  • Maintained 3 year-round community greenhouses and 6 greenhouses at local schools and surrounding communities

You Support Our 2025 Annual Report

We extend a special thank you to:

  • Paso del Norte Health Foundation
  • North American Development Bank
  • The Marigold Fund
  • Grant County Community Foundation
  • Seed Money
  • Scott Davies
  • … and numerous other generous individual donors.

We could not have accomplished all this without your generous support. Thank you to all our donors, supporters, and volunteers. As we look ahead to 2026, we look forward to working together to build on our successes, learn from our challenges, and grow our capacity to learn and adapt. In everything we do, we help Puerto Palomas and surrounding border communities thrive. 

View and Download Our 2025 Impact Report HERE

Ulices Story: Transformation Through Sports 

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When Ulices first came to us at the Inspira Youth Center, he was a shy young man. He lacked self-confidence and suffered from issues with his weight. Initially he struggled to participate in sports activities at all – he tired quickly and often doubted himself. Even so, he showed a great drive to improve and learn.

As the months went by, and thanks to constant support by coaches in the volleyball and basketball activities, Ulices began to transform. Little by little, he improved his physical condition, confidence, and motivation. His effort was evident: he began to move with greater agility, participate with more enthusiasm, and fully integrate with his teammates.

Beyond physical changes, Ulices’ biggest achievement has been his personal and social development. The atmosphere of respect, camaraderie, and joy that exists during sports has helped him feel part of a group where everyone supports each other. Today, Ulices has not only lost a considerable amount of weight, but also displays a positive, cheerful, and participatory attitude.

His smile reflects pride in all he has achieved and motivation to keep going. His story shows that with support, discipline, and a healthy environment, young people can profoundly transform their lives.

Recent border activity: 2025 Edition

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Mexican artists decorated a section of the border wall in Nogales to symbolize those who have died attempting to cross the border.

Friends and supporters occasionally ask us: “What’s happening on the border these days? What changes do you notice?” 

And, they’re wise to ask this; because, the border area is always subject  to flux. What’s common or typical at one time may be entirely different another time. People change. Personnel changes. Political policies change. Weather changes. Many factors influence what is “normal” on the border.

So, in 2025, what are we noticing? We’d like to share some comments from our Border Partner connections.

International Migration Changes

One of our long-term volunteers, Billie Greenwood, attended the Binational Encuentro on the N. Mexico border in the Yuma (AZ) Sector October 12. This event gathered Roman Catholic bishops from both sides of the border as well as migrant supporters and activists from around the US with locals in San Luis Rio Colorado in Sonora, Mexico. 

The bishops signed a joint statement supporting the right to migrate and affirming the dignity of migrants. Meanwhile, the attendees heard a panel of experts from the US and Mexico explain their situations in 2025. Billie shared what she learned with us.

Migration in Mexico

There are no longer US appointments available for asylum seekers. Thus, there’s no avenue for people to plead for political asylum on our border in a regularized manner. These legal means disappeared overnight in January. Migrants seeking refuge are consumed with despair and bewilderment.

In Puerto Palomas, migration has disappeared. The migrant shelter in Palomas has closed. Colores United in Deming, NM has closed its doors. Casa Alitas in Tucson, AZ closed in January. Now, no one seeks shelter on the border to continue northward to unite with relatives or sponsors as they once did. 

Our Border Justice Project friends in Silver City have stopped collecting supplies to support migrants who are journeying northward. That’s because no new migrants are entering the U.S. 

Meanwhile, organized crime in Mexico has grown more powerful and vicious. Crime syndicates are responsible for disappearances, kidnapping and trafficking of migrants and others who are trapped in Mexico, unable to go north. These atrocities were once more commonly localized on the north border. But, now this violent activity has moved downwards into central Mexico.

U.S. Immigrants’ Situation

The immigrant communities in the United States are stricken with fear. They’re reluctant to leave their homes unnecessarily. Their church attendance has dropped dramatically. 

Their greatest need is reliable and legitimate legal aid. All those who can file for a U.S. passport would benefit from possessing one. This will give them greater legitimacy and afford them the right to travel beyond the US without needing to await for the passport application process.

New Employees for Our Health and Nutrition Projects in Puerto Palomas

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We are excited to announce two new employees to join Border Partners’ local staff in Puerto Palomas. They will help strengthen our projects focusing on health, nutrition, and community well-being.

New Health Promoter

We are excited to welcome Aylin Vega Joining our team of “health promoters” in the Border Partners office. Aylin is 29 and previously worked as a dental assistant. In her free time, she enjoys playing volleyball and making homemade candles. The health promoters perform health checks, host sports activities, organize events and contribute to our daily operations.

New Nutrition Educator

welcome to new employees

Expanding our staff will promote our goals in Puerto Palomas.

We needed an excellent person to oversee our work providing nutrition training and workshops across Palomas schools as part of our Healthy Eating project with the Paso del Norte Health Foundation. Dr. Francisco Javier Parra, a retired Palomas doctor, is eager to continue his spirit of community contribution in this role. Previously, he had his own practice and worked for 29 years in social services.

In his retirement, the doctor lives with his wife and two young grandchildren. He enjoys spending time with family, reading, and keeping up with current events. He’ll be our lead teacher for nutrition classes, with Joel Carreon transitioning roles and taking over the gardening workshops.

We are excited to have both of these professionals and their valuable skills on board with us, supporting our programs and realizing our vision of a healthy and thriving community in Palomas.

11th Annual Palomas Summer School: Building Skills & Community

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Puerto Palomas Summer School 2025 gave structure, fun and food to children. In this circle they are guided in structured activity by an adult leader.

This July, Border Partners held its annual summer school program for local youth looking for educational fun during the summer heat wave. For three weeks, we hosted a packed afternoon program for around 100 kids aged 5 to 13. We provided a variety of educational activities. We aimed to foster personal development, creativity, and connection for these young participants.

Over the three weeks, nearly 300 children participated in Summer School 2025. They received snacks and refreshments daily. Sharing food created moments of joy and connection around the table as important as time spent in the classroom or outside on the playground.

Sharing nutritious food around the table promoted good friendships and was just as important as the summer school classes.

Summer School Week ONE

The first week opened with activities ranging from welcome games and simple cooking classes to more hands-on science experiments. The students also had plenty of fun. 

They enjoyed movie afternoons, water games, and outdoor play. All of this gave them plenty of physical activity alongside the learning.

Summer School Week TWO

In the second week, participants explored their artistic side. They enjoyed another cooking session. They also discovered the joy of science with projects like kinetic sand and bubble blowers.

A summer highlight was the evening bonfire, where children roasted chocolates together for a moment of connection and reflection.

Summer School Grand Finale

We closed the summer school with a special celebration. At this event we honored all the birthdays with a piñata, cake, and games.

The children also enjoyed a visit from the local fire department. The fire fighters taught them fire safety. This skill is especially important in our dry region which is prone to high temperatures.

Thanks to the dedication of our staff, this year’s program achieved its goals: fostering respect, creativity, and community. It provided the children a summer with their friends that they are not likely to soon forget.

The success of this year’s summer school strengthens our commitment to offering enriching opportunities. We believe that learning and play go hand in hand. Combining learning and fun is a goal we will continue to honor in the programming our newly opened Youth Center will provide.

Velasco Education Fund Awards First Scholarship Recipients

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First winners of the scholarships from the Velasco Education Fund are ready to launch their futures with further post-high school studies: (L-R) Andrea Enriquez, Nancy Victoria Murillo, Uriel Enriquez, Santiago Quinteros and Nancy Flores. Not pictured: Damian Elezier Gonzalez Escajeda.

Border Partners is pleased to announce the recipients of the Velasco Education Fund scholarship, awarded this year for the first time, in memory of Juan Velasco.  Creating the Velasco Fund was Suzanne Dulle’s idea as a way to honor Juan’s commitment to the education of students in Puerto Palomas.  His friends and other supporters of Border Partners responded to the idea with amazing generosity.  

Following a selection process spearheaded by General Manager, Juan Rascon and Program Manager, Victoria Ibarra, along with Suzanne Dulle, Juan’s partner, the Velasco Education Fund gave out four scholarships, two to students at each high school in Puerto Palomas.

However, in this case 2+2 does not equal 4:  a total of SIX students will benefit from the funding from the new foundation! After interviewing and selecting finalists, four students asked if they could split the funding between them, rather than only two receiving more money. We applaud the students for this show of mutual support and believe it reflects highly on their character. And, we congratulate all of the winners who will head off to university this fall! 

First Velasco Education Fund Awardees

A little information on the recipients:

  • Damian plans to study marketing and volunteers his time teaching the guitar.
  • Uriel intends to study Business with a focus on international trade.
  • Nancy Victoria also wants to study Business and is a math tutor for younger students.
  • Andrea plans to major in Psychology.
  • Nancy Guadalupe and Santiago, both Border Partners volunteers, will study Medicine and Physical Conditioning, respectively.

Congratulations to this year’s winners.  We are so excited to see what you will do and to follow your educational journeys over the next few years! And thank you to the late Juan Velasco, whose memory shines on gratefully in the bright futures of these students. 

Youth Center “Inspire” Officially Opens its Doors in Puerto Palomas

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officials at Inspire Youth Center opening

Officials, leaders, educators and youth supporters of the commuity joined our review stand to inaugurate the opening of the Inspire Youth Center.

Monday, May 12th marked a joyful occasion for Border Partners and the entire community in Puerto Palomas with the opening ceremony of the Inspire Youth Center. It’s a vibrant new space dedicated to fostering growth, connection, creativity, culture, and health for the children and youth in Palomas. 

We were honored to welcome a panel of local leaders and committed partners in youth education and well-being. This roster included the following persons:

  • Ms. Rosa Elia González Quezada, Principal of Ford 170 Elementary School

  • Ms. Manuela Carmona Chavira, Principal of Arnulfo Alvillar Corona Preschool

  • Mr. Edwin Yahir Durán Martínez, Preschool Zone 43 Supervisor

  • Mr. José Luis Villa Serrato, Principal of Secondary School Técnica #25

  • Ms. Ninfa Romo, Municipal Councilwoman

  • Peter and Polly Edmunds, Founders of Border Partners

  • Scott Davies, Board Member, Border Partners

  • Juan Rascón, General Manager, Border Partners

  • Victoria Ibarra, President of the Lions Club and Director of the Inspire Youth Center

Activities, Performances at Youth Center Opening

We were also delighted by the presence and energy of the center’s new passionate instructors, including Ramon Quinteros, Jesus Arana, Coach Adrian Chaparro, and Ms. Andrea Perez, who will contribute to the curriculum and courses at the center moving forward.

The event featured a formal flag ceremony, carried out by the honor guard of Secondary School Técnica #25 under the direction of Coach Adrián Chaparro. Attendees were also treated to a delightful dance performance by the school’s dance group, directed by Professor Adauto Chávez.

Community Effort Produced Youth Center

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who made this significant day possible—especially the members of Border Partners, our educational partners, special guests, supportive families, and most importantly, the children and young people who will give life and purpose to this new space.