The Candace Cameron Bure Podcast
From Poverty to Possibility: Jonathan's Story Part 3
Fri, 28 Feb 2025
What would you do if a school uniform stood between you and an education? For Jonathan, this was his reality. Growing up in deep poverty, he faced unimaginable hardships, from hunger to homelessness. This week, in part 3 of his journey, Jonathan shares how something as simple as a borrowed uniform determined whether he could go to school. His story is a powerful reminder that education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty—but for many, it's out of reach without help. It’s true. We’re better together. And this season, I’m asking our podcast community to do something TOGETHER to make a difference in the world. Want to be part of the change? Visit Candace.com and click on “Compassion” to see how you can help change the life of someone like Jonathan. Come back next week for the next chapter in his story. To see how we can make a difference together, go to https://ccbpodcast.com/compassion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What is the focus of this podcast episode?
Life is like a roller coaster, but it's so much better when we go through it together. It's true. We are better together. And this season, I'm asking our podcast community to do something together to make a difference in the world. There are hard things going on around us. Hurricanes, floods, fires, people hurting.
And as followers of Jesus, we show up in the hard stuff and we build relationships with people who need us. We give. Each week, I'm bringing you a short piece of an interview with a special guest, and each week, you'll hear more about what we can do together. These are short episodes, less than 10 minutes, so come join us.
Chapter 2: What challenges did Jonathan face in his early life?
My mother, she was working in a factory, but she was making maybe less than a dollar a day. So we were barely paying a very small check in this ghetto. And I was very sick, dealing with asthma because of the humidity of the small shack where we were. And in this context, I remember, let me think, spend days without eating because we didn't have any money.
We barely could pay the small check where we were. My mother decided I need a place. I cannot have this baby in the street. And that journey of working in the streets, being aware of the dangerous reality in my neighborhood as an early age, maybe five. Since I was five, I was in the streets selling empanadas to help my mom. And I didn't understand what we were going through.
Chapter 3: How did Jonathan's family cope with poverty?
In fact, I don't have any bad memory on those early stages in my life. Besides the dentist setting. Life for me as a child was like any child would be. Normal life, just playing around.
So your mom made it as... Great as she could, and you didn't know the difference of anything. So you felt love from your mom. And that's really, as a child, I think is what's most important.
Chapter 4: What memories does Jonathan have from his childhood?
Yeah, I mentioned that intentionally because I didn't realize we were in poverty.
Yeah.
I do remember moments that I felt sad. Like my father was not with us at home. I always questioned why my father was not at home. I have those memories. I do remember there were moments that I felt ashamed. My shoes were broken. So my shoes, they flip flop. And in the DR, we say hungry shoes. Here, people say talky shoes.
Chapter 5: Why was having a school uniform crucial for Jonathan's education?
And I say mine were both hungry and talky at the same time because they slap so hard. Those were moments that I do remember being sad because I had to walk with my shoes broken or that they had holes down the sole and I needed to take cardboard and put it inside. I don't know if children need a uniform to go to school here in the U.S.?
Depends on the school you go to.
Okay. Yeah. In the DR, public school, you must go with a uniform. Okay. You need a uniform.
Okay.
And it is the same with private school. My guess is because of the situation that I was going through, which most of the population was in poverty. You don't have enough clothes to go to school. And it is maybe to identify children.
So are you not allowed to go to school if you didn't have the uniform?
I couldn't.
So you're denied an education because you couldn't afford a uniform to go to a public school.
Exactly. And I do remember someone in my ghetto, a friend, well, a neighbor, he lent me his uniform so I could go to school in the morning four hours. Run at noon so he can have his uniform back so he could go to school in the afternoon.
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