He also offered a word of caution. For her to attend Ransom Everglades, he recalled saying, significant financial aid would have to be part of the equation. “I told her that,” Rich Cabrera recalled, “from day one.”

On March 1, 2018, Inceni Cabrera learned she had been accepted into RE’s ninth grade, news that elicited screams and shouts of joy. That good news was followed by even better news, when she found out that two Ransom Everglades alumni would support her during her high school journey.

“I couldn’t believe it,” she said. “I wanted to go here so much. I was really happy to be part of the community.”

As Inceni enters her senior year as an RE Scholar, it’s difficult to determine who has benefited most from the relationship – Inceni, the school or the alumni providing funding. Cabrera is an active member of the school’s Diversity Council; she has volunteered with Breakthrough Miami; and she has participated in band performances (she plays six instruments), the upper school play, and the former Digital Art Club. She went from being a nervous first-time sailor as a freshman to earning her boater’s license as a member of the Advanced Bay Studies class. She plans to pursue sailing in the future.

“It’s been amazing. It allows me to see a really direct impact on a human being. That’s a really cool thing.” – Jon Madorsky ’91

“We are profoundly grateful to Inceni’s sponsors for making this her reality,” Rich Cabrera said. “It’s great that kids like my daughter get this opportunity, and are able to shine and grow and flourish.”

Rich Cabrera has developed close relationships with the alumni supporting his daughter – one of whom is Jon Madorsky ’91, an RE trustee since last year. Madorsky, Inceni Cabrera and her father are frequently in touch, sharing ideas on how to best support Inceni’s education – whether through summer opportunities, discussions of standardized testing or college application guidance. 

Madorsky, a managing partner of a private equity firm in Chicago, said he plans to continue investing in RE’s program even after Cabrera graduates in May 2022.

“It’s been amazing,” he said. “It allows me to see a really direct impact on a human being. That’s a really cool thing. I feel really good because Inceni is an extraordinary student of life, and to take that extraordinary student of life and help bring her to Ransom Everglades, that just makes the whole community better.”

The scholarship program offers donors the opportunity to support one student for four or seven years, and it is designed to ensure that Ransom Everglades attracts the top students in Miami, regardless of their ability to pay. All financial awards are need-based, not merit-based.

Ransom Everglades has a long history of supporting students with financial aid, offering more than $70 million in aid to more than 2,700 students over the last 15 years. It also has previously connected promising students with specific donors during their years at RE.

The school’s REinventing Excellence campaign, completed in June 2021, expanded on that tradition of student support, establishing a structure for gifts that matched generous individuals with outstanding students. The school has five new annual financial aid funds, and is looking to grow the program for the future. Individuals may provide full scholarships (annual commitment of $50,000) or half-scholarships (annual commitment of $25,000) for either four years (high school) or seven (middle and high school). The scholarships are designed to cover tuition and incidentals, relieving students and their families of financial anxiety during their time at RE. 

“We are profoundly grateful … It’s great that kids like my daughter get this opportunity, and are able to shine and grow and flourish.” – Rich Cabrera, father of Inceni Cabrera ’22

The son of a single mother who worked in the service industry, Thomas Willis ’04 received seven years of support from Ray Zemon ’66, one of the first to join the RE Scholars program. Willis returned to RE after college, serving as the director of summer programs, coaching baseball and managing the school’s facilities calendar. Willis said he could not have attended RE if not for the scholarship. 

“Little did I know it would change my life forever,” Willis said during the 2021 Ransom Everglades Parents’ Association virtual auction. “It was an unbelievable experience. If it wasn’t for financial aid, I wouldn’t have been given that opportunity.”

Financial aid gifts make a difference long after students have graduated, Director of Advancement Melanie Hoffmann said.

“Gifts to financial aid impact our students for their entire lives,” she said. “Inceni and Thomas are two wonderful examples of community members who benefitted greatly from the generosity of others. Donors to financial aid are offering the best gift they could ever give to a child: an education.”

Cabrera said she has grown more than she could have imagined during her time at RE. Having arrived as a shy ninth grader who struggled to fit in, she has become a more confident and outspoken student who has found her place. Learning to sail changed her life in a concrete way; participating on the Diversity Council and in RE’s arts program have shaped her in ways that are harder to measure. She loves computer science, and aspires to major in that field so she can create inclusive video games.

Each year, she writes thank you notes to the alumni who have supported her journey.

“I loved my friends from middle school, don’t get me wrong, but what we would mostly talk about is boys and crushes,” she said. “Here, everybody wants to have really introspective conversations.

“I was a pretty lonely middle schooler … I kept to myself,” she added. “Now, I have branched out more. My friends are great. I have learned so many things. I’m very happy I’ve been able to go to this school. I’m really grateful to those who have supported me.”

For more information about RE Scholars and gifts to financial aid, please contact Director of Advancement Melanie Hoffmann, mhoffmann@ransomeverglades.org.