President Bush Meets with Training, Internships, Exchanges and Scholarship (TIES) Recipients 
Hyatt Regency Mérida
Mérida, Mexico 

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/03/20070314.html
I want to invite Mexican young people to come together and commit to their community and our country. Education is the only means to improve our quality of life and achieve peace, social peace in the entire world. 
Once again, thank you for this scholarship program. I hope the U.S.A. government will continue to support this program so that other young people can have the same opportunity that I have had. Thank you. 
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, Victor. What was the name of the family in Bentondorf? 
MR. LÓPEZ RUIZ: Peter and Mary Shaffer (phontetic.) 
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I thank them. I hope they feel good about the fact that they helped you. There's a lot of American families that have great compassion for people around the world. And thank you for sharing the story. 
Marcela. You went to Texas. 
MS. RUIZ: I went to Texas. Good morning, Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen. Being a small business owner is more than just a job or as a way to take a living. It's a calling in life. The power of having an idea, taking a risk, and starting a small business that fulfills a need in the marketplace, and that creating jobs is truly magical. In Mexico, there exists a very strong entrepreneurial spirit, just like in the United States, where men and women from all over the country are ready to engage their God-given abilities, work hard, and improve the life of their families. 
I have dedicated my life to helping businessmen and women in the state of Aguascalientes live their dreams and start their own small businesses. My center, CEINNOVA, was started in 2001 and has since helped over 300 small businesses start and prosper, which has resulted in the creation of hundreds of jobs and improved the lives of countless families. 
A key factor in the CEINNOVA SBDC success was having the opportunity to participate in a training program offered by the Unversidad Autonomous of Guadalajara and the University of Texas at San Antonio, and supported by USAID. The diplomatic training program shared a small business counseling and training best practices from the 1,100 centers from U.S. small business development network. This training not only helped us for better assist the entrepreneurs of Aguascalientes, but it also linked up with counterparts in the U.S. and helped us support a growing Mexican association of SBDC now led by the Universidad de (inaudible). 
On behalf of the many businessmen and women that we have helped, I would like to thank you, Mr. President, and the American people for supporting us. I am very proud of the work of CEINNOVA SBBC and the Mexican Small Business Development Center Network are doing here in Mexico to grow the small business sector, create jobs, and improving the life of its community.