10 Year Old Maite Rodriguez – Her Big Heart, Big Dreams and Big Impact Live On!
Maite Rodriguez is a little girl with a big heart, big dreams, and a big mission. Her life was tragically cut short, along with several other children in Uvalde, Texas. But her spirit and impact most definitely live on!
Maite is described by her family as happy, brave, courageous, charismatic, intelligent, and full of love. She was also a great student at Robb Elementary School. But then Covid disrupted her study habits and grades. Instead of giving in, she persevered and took action. And worked her way back to the honor role. In short, she possessed many great character traits and virtues that we highlight here on IMK.
Love of Animals and Nature
Maite loved nature and animals, especially Dolphins, Whales, and Dogs. She was an environmentalist and even wore green high-top Converse sneakers with a heart she had hand-drawn on the right toe to show off her love for nature!
And Maite was ambitious! She dreamed of one day honoring her love for the environment by attending Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi, since it is close to the ocean, to study Marine Biology!
Maite’s presence on earth was disrupted by a senseless act of violence in Uvalde, Texas. Her family, friends, and community miss her dearly.
Maite’s Impact Lives On
But her ascendance from earth has not stopped Maite and her family from making a big difference in people’s lives. In fact, her spirit and impact are growing each day.
Shortly after the events in Uvalde, Texas A&M University created a scholarship in her name that will be awarded to a student from Uvalde who will study Marine Biology. So while Maite did not get to pursue her own degree, she will help make the dreams of many others a reality!
Putting others first seems to be woven into Maite’s amazing soul. As a prime example of this, when violence threatened her classmates that day in Uvalde, she helped them to hide and take shelter, before doing so herself.
And now, Maite’s spirit is once again alive helping others and making a difference. Her mom, Ana Rodriguez, has become very involved in taking action to help prevent future gun violence.
In addition, some oceanic organizations, including the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, have all honored Maite by naming living sea creatures after her including a rare Ridley’s turtle, a beautiful young female Manta ray (Maite the Manta Ray), and a humpback whale calf!
Maite The Manta Ray
Here is video of Maite’s mom and brother releasing a rehabilitated turtle named after Maite back into the sea!
In Maite’s honor and dedicated in her name, InspireMyKids is going to create a “Careers That Count” guide for kids who want to learn more about becoming Marine Biologists.
Maite Rodriguez is a beautiful soul whose impact both here on earth and beyond lives on. She is a role model for young people in many ways including her awesome character traits and the way she put others first. Think about things you can learn from Maite and how to honor her life with your own actions and behaviors.
Additional Resources:
- Read other IMK stories about the environment and protecting animals
- Check out IMK’s great lists of quotes about character traits that Maite exhibited like perseverance, taking action, and bravery
Topics for Discussion:
- What is most unique about Maite?
- How does Maite’s spirit live on?
- Whose lives are Maite changing?
- Have you ever thought about what you could do to help others?
- What can you do to honor Maite’s life?
Take Action:
- Read an IMK article about how to prevent gun violence
- Here is InspireMyKids playbook for taking action to protect the environment and to help protect animals
- Coming Soon: Learn about all about careers in Marine Biology in IMK’s Careers That Count, dedicated to Maite
- Check out careers and jobs that help improve the planet and make a difference with the environment
- Check out the Action for Nature community which encourages young people to take action to nurture and protect the environment
