The UW Foundation’s own Ana Acevedo is a nontraditional first-generation student working toward a degree in marketing. Helping her along the way have been several donor-created scholarships, including the Hathaway. Family, community, and business are what get Ana out of bed in the morning.

“I have the great fortune of having a really stable and amazing family that has supported me through many facets of life, and so what motivates me is the fact that I have family and people who relate to me and want to support me,” Ana says. “My dad came up from just a low-level worker in restaurants and now owns one of the most successful Mexican restaurants here in Laramie. His perseverance and determination really motivate me to find my thing.”

It’s not just her parents and siblings. She’s also supported by her husband Jesus and their three kids. “I think about how I can inspire my little humans and equip them to be very kind and caring contributors to the people around them. It’s really cool to share with them, ‘You go to school and Mom goes to school.’ They see that it doesn’t just stop after graduating high school or whatever milestone they’re after—it can keep going.”

In fact, Ana and Jesus—who is a Sergeant of the Army National Guard—won this year’s Ellbogen $50K Entrepreneurship Competition for their business FINA Custom Work, which designs and develops customizable tactical gear systems.

Ana is so grateful for the support she has received, for the education she is getting at UW, and for the ability to give back. “The university has a great balance of tradition but also innovation that makes you really wonder what could be out there, where can I grow from here?” Ana says. “I’m really passionate about just bringing people together and seeing what their vision is—from personal to professional—to bring really quality time to this short life we have.”