Children’s dreams are the light of the future, and every child who walks into the Mighty Writers program carries a future inside them — a future shaped not only by the circumstances of their birth, but by those who believe in them. Mighty Writers El Futuro, at 1025 South Ninth Street, sits in the heart of the oldest outdoor food market in America, which locals call the Italian-Mexican market — a corridor that has been home to immigrant families since the 1880s. First Italians, then Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Korean merchants, and for the last quarter century, a wave of Mexican families, many from the Puebla region, who transformed the street into a vibrant «Puebladelphia.» It is here, surrounded by that living history of resilience, that Mighty Writers is writing its own story — one student at a time.

«There is nothing worse in this world than wasted talent.» — A Bronx Tale. That line from the classic film A Bronx Tale could serve as the founding creed of everything Mighty Writers does. Because talent is precious and supporting it will brighten the lives of children and the people they will serve in the future. Walk into any classroom, any playground, any block in South Philadelphia, and you will find talent in abundance. The question is never whether the gift is there. The question is whether anyone will show up to cultivate it.

Led by someone Who Knows What Is at Stake

Claudia Lizeth Peregrina is one of the people who shows up — and her own story tells you exactly why. Born in Mexico City, Peregrina received her first art lessons at her grandmother’s side. Her grandmother, an indigenous Purépecha woman from Michoacán, was a master of traditional embroidery, and when young Claudia visited, she would sit on a small chair and listen as her grandmother told stories while her needle moved through the cloth. Claudia learned to make colorful flowers bloom across the canvas while her grandmother instilled the importance of helping others. Peregrina recalls: «My grandmother always told me to do good while teaching me the art of traditional embroidery,» says Claudia. She did not know it then, but she was learning the fundamental truth that would shape her entire career: that making art is an act of advocacy. Claudia holds degrees in contemporary art from La Universidad de las Bellas Artes and in psychology from UNAM and is trained in art therapy.

Since moving to Philadelphia, Peregrina has brought that legacy to many organizations such as Fleisher Art Memorial, Mural Arts Philadelphia, the Barnes Foundation, the Philadelphia Seaport Museum, Providence Center, WOAR, and Philatinos, among others — working as a teaching artist, offering cultural classes in embroidery, painting, and photography. In 2018, the Leeway Foundation awarded her an Art and Change Grant, and in 2019, it honored her with the Leeway Transformation Award. That same year, she was the lead artist for Fleisher’s seventh annual Day of the Dead celebration, teaching students to make the vibrant paper flowers that adorned the ofrenda.

Now, as Regional Program Director for Mighty Writers, she oversees El Futuro on 9th Street and a second program in Kennett Square, bringing to both the same conviction her grandmother passed to her: that every child deserves someone who will sit with them and help them make something beautiful.

Reaching out to all children and their families

In today’s economy, a child may come home to an empty house — not because their parents don’t care, but because they are working two or three jobs just to keep the lights on. There is no one to sit down and help with fractions. There is no one to explain the difference between a topic sentence and the main idea. Mighty Writers El Futuro fills that gap, Monday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. Students in grades 3 through 8, as well as high schoolers, arrive at a warm, welcoming place where they receive a nutritious meal, homework help, and instruction in writing, literature, math, and science. The After-School Academy, the organization’s flagship program, is built around a high-quality curriculum that takes students beyond rote learning into long-term projects in narrative, informative, and persuasive writing. Social and emotional learning is woven into every session — students practice self-awareness, compassion, and resilience alongside their academic skills. The message is clear and consistent: your voice matters, and the world needs to hear what you have to say.

Art, music, and the full expression of a child

Homework help is only the beginning. Mighty Writers also offers literary arts workshops tailored to different age groups, using music, visual arts, theater, and dance to reach children whose gifts may not show up on a standardized test. Past workshops have carried names that suggest joy and ambition in equal measure: Hip-Hop Poets, Girl Power Rocks, Musically Mighty, Give Me the Beat.

This spring, El Futuro is going further — taking students on college visits, museum trips, and workplace tours, offering hands-on workshops that expand what children understand to be possible for themselves. For many of these young people, these will be first: the first time they step onto a college campus, the first time they see themselves reflected in a professional setting.

Mighty Writers summer camp extends that horizon even further. Six to eight weeks of innovative programming ensures that learning does not stop when the school year does. Each activity includes a writing component. Mighty Writers knows that the pen is never far from experience, and that putting words to wonder is itself a form of power.

Rooted in the community, open to all

El Futuro also hosts Family Write Nights, bringing parents and children together around storytelling. Bilingual programming in English and Spanish honors the culture and language of Latino families. The organization’s commitment is explicit: no proof of U.S. citizenship is required to participate.

That commitment deepened during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Mighty Writers began distributing meals and groceries to families in need. Today, several locations — including El Futuro — continue to provide food, diapers, period products, and books through the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). In a community where need runs deep and trust is earned slowly, showing up with essentials is its own kind of teaching.

Supporting the work

Mighty Writers El Futuro needs sponsors and funders to continue its programs. Without continued investment, the after-school meals, arts workshops, college visits, and bilingual literacy support are all at risk. Every donation is a bet on the future — on the idea that the next great writer, the next community leader, the next generation of professionals is already sitting in that room on 9th Street.

Claudia Peregrina’s grandmother taught her that a story and a stitch are the same gesture: one passes something precious from hand to hand so that it is not lost. That is what Mighty Writers does, every afternoon, in the oldest immigrant market in America. The future is made of the dreams of children — and on 9th Street, those dreams are being tended.

CONTACT & RESOURCES

MW El Futuro | 1025 South Ninth St., Philadelphia, PA 19147 | 215-602-0236

Program Contact: Claudia Peregrina | cperegrina@mightywriters.org

Mighty Writers El Futuro: nutriendo sueños y oportunidades para la niñez latina en la región de Filadelfia