Semillas de Amor: Construction progress

The following is a post from Katy, who is an intern at Semillas de Amor:

July 12
This week has been awesome in Colombia!! We have completed the floor of the main room in the construction site, which is a big step forward. The process to set the floor was amazing to watch unfold. First, twenty buckets of sand had to be poured in with one giant bag of cement. After a good mixing, eight bags of rocks and ten buckets of water were added into the pile, completing the cement. Then the floor had to be leveled flat with sand dug up from a giant well being dug in the back of the construction site. Once all of this was set in place, the cement was poured, and then smoothed down with wooden poles. Once it was harden a red paint powder was smeared on top to make the floor even more beautiful! Everyone came and looked at the finished product and the kids were so excited to be one step closer to having a finished place for them to play. One child, Neiker, was so happy about the finished floor that he came running in during a tropical rainstorm two days after the floor was finished to make sure the floor was okay. He mopped it and then carried buckets of water off of the floor to keep it protected until we are able to put the roof up! 

Semillas de Amor: Community

The following is a post from Ryan, who is volunteering at Semillas de Amor:

July 11
Miguel and Guillermo were grateful to receive a package of cookies this week donated to the kids here at Nueva Colombia by the food bank in Cartagena.  Run by a Catholic Archdiosis, the food bank caters to not-for-profit foundations looking to give back to their community.  It is amazing to see the way in which various facets of the community work together to ensure that these kids are taken care of.  From various religions, to local teachers, to politicians, foundations like Semillas de Amor are able to find ways to help out the less fortunate.  

Huata: Quick updates from Lexi & Jordan

Lexi

I want to take this little miss home with me. I love her to death. 

Jordan

This week was amazing! Working at the special needs school has been challenging, but a huge growth experience. Especially with the 4th of July this week, I have become far more appreciative for the bounteous blessings we have in America. We truly are blessed! At the orphanage, we had a fiesta to celebrate all the birthdays in July. The kids enjoyed yummy treats and we had a dance paaar-tay. I've fallen in love with one of the little boys (he is the runt of both orphanages) and I wish I could take him home with me. Each and every day, this experience makes me want to serve an LDS mission.

Huata: New interns

Welcome to our new interns at Huata in the the Sacred Valley of Peru!

Jordan

I love helping the girls at the orphanage with their homework. They are so sweet and I have fallen in love with them all! We had a fiesta for all the birthdays and it was fun to see them get excited and have fun! 

Lexi

Ulhare is such a ladies man. I can't get enough of him. We had a huge squirt gun fight...so fun.

Aldea Infantil: Progress with Fabricio

The following is a post from Jill, an intern at La Aldea Infantil, giving us a report on Fabricio's development. Read more about Fabricio, here, here, here and here.

On Friday I had the opportunity to help Fabricio with his physical therapy. His field of vision is increasing and he is starting to focus his eyes on things around the room instead of just letting them wander most of the time.  His hand eye coordination is improving and Fabricio was able to sit up by himself for a few seconds longer this week! We have been giving him some extra love and we feel that this is helping him to progress more quickly. I am so excited and happy to see how much progress he is making!

Aldea Infantil: Winners!

The following is post form Annalee, an intern at La Aldea Infantil:

I have fallen in love with each and every one of the kids here at the Aldea.  Each child here has so many unique and amazing qualities that make them unique and special.  I have been taking the time to talk with and interview each kid at the Aldea.  I talk to the kids about what makes them happiest, what they like best about themselves, and what their dreams for the future are.  These kids all have amazing dreams and goals for their future!  There are so many future doctors, lawyers, actors and actresses.  I hope that they all will remember how amazing they are, and work to pursue their goals.  When I asked a young boy ,Isaac, what he wanted to be when he’s older, he said he wants to be a winner.  Isaac’s response sums up exactly what I wish and hope for all these kids… I hope that all the kids at the Aldea will work hard to pursue their dreams and be winners. 

Semillas de Amor Moms

The following is a post from Ryan, an intern at Semillas de Amor:

After a few weeks of trying to organize a meeting of the "moms," it finally happened.  Uris, in charge of all that happens in the foundation, was able to gather all the mothers of each child together on a neighbor's front porch and talk about community service and the value of the foundation in the community of Nueva Colombia.  Her example to each mother was powerful as she described how each mother had a task that she could complete to help her child move forward in obtaining a career or giving back to their community.  After the meeting, each mother volunteered her services whether they were helping haul water, helping serve food each day, or even pick axing to deepen a well needed to complete the building.  Uris's example was inspiring for each of us and for each mother as well.

Semillas de Amor: Cookies for the kids

The following post is form Izumi, an intern at Semillas de Amor:

As we all know, Semillas de Amor is a foundation that is made possible by the service and donations made by individuals who are willing to do what it takes to improve the lives of the children of Nueva Colombia. Everyday that the children are fed, it is because of the donations that are made. The food is helpful for the children's nourishment and well-being, but often times the children do not receive much more. This week, however, a local hotel in Cartagena took it upon themselves to provide the children with something a little extra, a bag of cookies for each child. It was literally Christmas in July! The best part was that they were even Christmas cookies. We are so grateful for the secret santas of the world.

La Aldea Infantil: Helping Perla

The following post is from Jill, an intern at La Aldea Infantil: 

This week we decided to make a memory flashcard set of the alphabet for Perla. We were all focused on teaching her how to recognize and write the first few letters in the alphabet and it was cool to see how quickly she was learning. We think we can help her a lot in this way and its great to see her enthusiasm for learning!

Alegria de Vivir: Meet Jhon Felipe

The interns at Alegria de Vivir, Katy, Ryan and Izumi introduce us to Jhon Felipe: 

Introducing Jhon Felipe! This five year old boy has an amazing spirit. He has a wonderful smile and a cute and quirky sense of humor. In November, the Alegria de Vivir foundation was able to raise up enough money to send him to Bogota to receive a much needed surgery on his legs to help him walk. The surgery was successful, but unfortunately there wasn't enough money raised to be able to purchase a brace. Since November Jhon Felipe has been practicing walking, but without a brace he is unable to learn the proper leg movements. With the help of a brace and physical therapy he will be able be contribute to society with his sweet and caring spirit. With the help of Alegria de Vivir and Eagle Condor these children like Jhon Felipe will be able to live a happy and healthy life.

Katy, Ryan, Izumi

Aldea Infantil: Boosting self-esteem

Check out this great activity the interns at La Aldea Infantil have cooked up. This post is from Annalee: 

As interns we’ve been working on boosting the self-esteem of all the children at the Aldea.  We take a night at each house and focus on why each child is important.  We’ve made this crazy looking stick, and whoever is holding it is the child we are spotlighting at the moment.  Everyone shouts out different things they like about this person or something they are good at. Each kid gets a chance to be spotlighted and hear what other people like about them.  It’s really hard for the kids to say nice things to each other; they just aren’t use to vocalizing the nice things they think about each other.  It always starts out a little slow, but by the end of the night the kids are really good at giving each other compliments.  I love seeing their faces as they hear good things about themselves.  A couple of the kids have started crying as they have heard positive comments about who they are and why they are special.  It’s really touched my life to see the happiness this is bringing to the children.  

Thanks!

Annalee

Semillas de Amor: El agua es vida

The following is a post from Ryan, an intern at Semillas de Amor:

June 19
Water is life here in Colombia.  Each drop is collected, saved, and then used for multiple purposes.  Even though rain falls in abundance, water always seems scarce.  Maybe living in conditions where no running water exists highlights water's importance to me but it is obvious that to most Colombians, water plays a significant part in their lives.

For the kids in Nueva Colombia, water means even more.  Washing dishes or clothes and cleaning the house can wait-- swimming is what takes precedence.  And these kids can swim anywhere-- the waterfall near their homes in Mamellar or the stream that feeds the falls.  Even though trash has invaded the stream and begun to pollute the water source, these kids know how to appreciate the water's refreshing nature on a hot day.  With school out for three weeks, the stream will become an even more important part of daily life than before.  After all, what's summer vacation without a trip to the pool?

Aldea Infantil: Meet Alyson

We are excited to have Alyson as a new intern! In the following post, she describes her arrival and first week at La Aldea Infantil: 


June 17
When I arrived at The Aldea early Monday morning I was immediately overwhelmed by the quaint and cheerful environment. Ten little houses, painted orange and pink, surrounded a big grassy area. There was a rusty old playground and a cement soccer court and all the large rocks had colorful, animated faces painted on them. It appeared to be a mini village, especially designed for little kids.


While the peaceful atmosphere quickly disappeared once the kids came back from school, the place still remained a cheerful, safe haven from the outside world. For many of these children, The Aldea is a sanctuary from some rather awful things. I am grateul to be a part of that sanctuary.

My week involves playing and chatting with all sorts of children. One girl I often talk with, Maribel, is only a year or two younger than me. She taught me how to make these colorful little bracelets, and we have become friends. Maribel is a great help to the interns. She often helps me when I can't understand the little kids' Spanish and is always willing to watch after the little ones with us. As I sat making one of those bracelets with Maribel, I wondered what fate or power made me the intern, the girl with loving parents and the financial means to travel to her country, while this intelligent, sweet girl, barely younger than me, was the orphan? I will likely never know the answer to that question. But I suppose it doesn't really matter. That is the situation and my responsibility is to help in any way I can.

Aldea Infantil: Update on recycling program

The following is a post from Jill, an intern at La Aldea Infantil:

June 17
This week, we found out that the recycling bins at the Aldea outside had been dumped into the same pile on the other side of the wall- the same wall that the recycling bins were leaning up against. So we put on some gloves and went to work! Maribel and I, along with another intern from Scotland, organized this huge pile of recycling. We built a little wall and separated each section (plastics, glass, cardboard, etc). This will benefit the Aldea because they can sell the recycling and make some profit!  

Read the original post explaining the Aldea's recycling program.

Aldea Infantil: Craft fun

The following is a post from Stephanie, an intern at La Aldea Infantil:

June 15

This week we got the chance to do a fun craft with the kids. It was so fun to see their excitement and creative energy at work. We made egg carton caterpillars’ and the kids loved putting on lots of glitter, bouncy eyes, and lots of color; I loved seeing the kids joy as they made them! I LOVE these kids; they have so much excitement for life and love to share with us.