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Erick Posada, father of two Reality Changers students, has dedicated his life to education. He and his wife Adriana were both born and raised in Guadalajara, Mexico, each the first in their large families to earn a college degree. For them, education wasn’t just a milestone—it was a doorway to possibility, opened only through sacrifice and determination.
So when they became parents to Naomi and Liam, they knew exactly what they wanted to give their children: that same doorway, widened.
A Move Towards the Future
When Erick and Adriana moved to the United States, they had to start over professionally. Erick worked graveyard shifts in factories while studying English during the day. At the time, they were living in the Bay Area and they were concerned about their children’s futures. “In the neighborhood where we lived, there were more people joining gangs than graduating,” Erick explains. “We wanted something else for our kids, something better for our family.”
Erick visited San Diego and he saw opportunities for his children’s futures. Even though the cost of living was more expensive, the city had higher-rated schools and a wider selection of community colleges and universities. He and Adriana quickly moved to San Diego with one goal in mind: to ensure that Naomi, a four-year-old, and Liam, a one-year-old, had pathways to college.
Building a Foundation of Discipline and Purpose
Throughout elementary and middle school, Naomi and Liam heard the same message from their parents every day: education matters. Erick and Adriana encouraged their children to define their career aspirations and emphasized the work it would take to achieve those goals. “This is a process,” Erick would tell them, “It’s a long process.”
Erick worked in various jobs to support his family: first in a cardboard factory, then as a dishwasher technician, and, later, a delivery driver. Adriana supported the children’s schooling, extracurriculars, and community commitments. She maintained daily routines of discipline and commitment: homework before soccer, responsibility before recreation, consistency above all else.
Discovering Reality Changers
When Naomi was in high school, friends introduced the family to Reality Changers—a program that, as Erick put it, had “been doing great work for years.”
Going through the college applications, scholarships, and financial aid at Reality Changers helped Naomi (and Erick and Adriana) to navigate the American college process. “My kids had the desire and the willingness to go to college, but not necessarily the funds or the resources,” says Erick.
Last May, Naomi graduated from San Diego State University, becoming the family’s first U.S. college graduate! She has a degree in Interior Architecture and now works for an international furniture company, designing store displays. Her success created a clear path for her younger brother, Liam, who joined Reality Changers in 2024. He is about to complete his first semester at San Diego State, where he is studying kinesthesiology.
How Reality Changers Makes a Difference
Erick feels that the Reality Changers program reiterated the values he and Adriana emphasize at home. Reality Changers, he believes, helps students to be committed, to work hard, and to strive towards a long-term vision.
In addition, Erick values the guidance that Reality Changers provides, especially when it comes to scholarship and grant opportunities. “The most important job that Reality Changers is doing,” he says, “is providing those resources. They’re making it possible for our kids to achieve their goals and make their dreams come true.”
For dedicated parents like Erick and Adriana, Reality Changers was there at exactly the right moment. It offered scholarships, application support, mentorship, and the assurance that their children were not alone on the path to higher education.
Paying it Forward
Today, Erick works in health insurance, finally using the degree he earned decades ago. He sees his own journey reflected in his children’s progress, and he knows that the work he and his wife put in has paid off.
Now that they have achieved their goals, the family feels they have a responsibility and an opportunity to give back. Erick is proud to connect people with health insurance and provide financial advising to families. Liam hopes to one day open his own physical therapy practice and serve athletes from his community. The family has remained involved in Reality Changers and is always ready to volunteer.
As Erick put it, “We will always be grateful and we need to do as much as we can to help.”
You can help more families like the Posada-Lizaolas to achieve their goals. Make a donation to invest in education today.