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I cannot believe our three weeks in Huancayo are coming to a close! We have been so busy since we've been here.... There is a national transportation strike today, which means no cars, taxis, buses or trains are driving anywhere in Peru. If they do drive, people will throw rocks at the cars, etc. Because of the strike, a lot of businesses are closed and we sort of have the day off, which gives me time to write....
The Andean Outreach Program (the group I am here with - there are six of us on this trip) works with a local organization called La Luz Esperanza (the light of hope) and we met with them early on and visited four small, rural schools that they have helped build and support in recent years. One school was just two tiny rooms in a house with a thatched roof, and chickens and a donkey crossed through while the kids were playing. This is where the 2 to 5-year-olds go in the morning, and where I helped teach/play one day. Through the same organization, we also helped teach classes to older kids one afternoon, after the kids had spent the morning helping their
parents in the fields. Most of the schools have dirt floors, leaking roofs and not much furniture, but La Luz has worked hard to build desks and brighten the school's walls with colorful and educational paintings. Our group also helped clean some of the schools and went around the town and spoke with parents and families about health and hygiene, how to clean cuts and scrapes, etc. The families received soap and other supplies too, and they were so grateful.
We visited two orphanages, Aldea Rosario and Francisco Mayer, and played with amazing kids at both. There are about 70 kids at Aldea Rosario, and you can tell that they run the show with very little help or adult supervision. One afternoon, I saw one little girl who must have been about 8-years-old yell at a couple of other kids because they tore down some blankets that she had washed and hung out to dry... "Did you wash those?," she screamed. It made me realize, once again, what a privledged childhood and life most of us have had.
At Francisco Mayer, the director of the orphanage told us of their plans to build a new facility for the
kids. It will cost $120,000 to build, and they have received about $80,000 from the Japanese government. They are trying to raise the rest by January, so that they can begin building the new facility they so desperately need. The kids here are so sweet, smart and happy... they seem that way everywhere here, really. After visiting these orphanages and hearing what was needed most from the people who work there, we took several trips to the market to buy rice, beans, soap, toothbrushes, toilet paper, clothes, toys and other supplies for the kids. We brought the supplies back to the orphanages and you would have thought it was Christmas morning... The kids were so excited and so cute!!
Two other visits we made, which probably touched me the most, were to San Juan Diego, an orphanage for children with HIV, and to Polivalente, a school for special education and kids with various disabilities. There are about 20 children at San Juan Diego, and most of their parents have passed away. The director was telling us how they have to take the kids to Lima once a month for treatment and how it took them so long to get
just one piece of medical equipment to monitor red and white blood cells, because the machine was so expensive. We brought the same supplies - food and soap, etc., - to this orphanage and the director had tears in her eyes. Most of us did too....
At Polivalente, we visited a classroom filled with blind children, another one for deaf children, one for autistic kids of various ages and levels, and a few other classes with kids with various and/or multiple disabilities. This school was much larger and in much better shape than most of the others we've seen, but of course, these kids need so much more and specialized things that are hard to find in Peru. The director was telling us how they cannot find supplies for the blind children, even in Lima. And they have a small kitchen, but the stove does not work and they now have to bring water in from an outside source because it no longer flows to the sink. We also visited this school's medical and physical therapy area, where the medicine cabinet was filled with few and old supplies. We bought a ton of medicine for the kids from the Ministry of Health here in Huancayo, and we will be bringing those back to Polivalente on Friday, along with visiting a local hospital.
We are all leaving this Saturday (and traveling a bit more), but before we leave, we will submit ideas for projects and grant proposals for funding. This is the first program of this kind that the AOP has hosted, but there are plans to host many more in the future. It has been an honor, and so much fun to help with this inaugural program. If anyone is interested in doing something like this in the future or if you're interested in donating money or more information about the AOP, please visit www.andeanoutreach.org. I promise your time, money, tears and/or smiles will be well spent! ;-)
Again, hope eveyone is well and thanks for reading and keeping in touch!
Love,
Brooke
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