Pizza! (from Katy)

Check out a pizza-making activity that Katy and Amanda headed up at La Aldea Infantil:

What an exciting week at the Aldea! Rumor has it that the building with the bakery equipment is opening back up for bread production. The kids entered the Panaderia to help sweep, dust, and provide lots of energy! There was a house of boys that was especially hard-working, so this week spotlights on Casa 5. As a reward for working so hard, Amanda and I made pizza with them. They had never had pizza before, but sure wanted to try some. They were eager to help pat out the dough, spread on the sauce, and sprinkle on the cheese. It was a bonding experience and helped them all work together to create a masterpiece. Everyone helped and some good principles were taught amidst the fun.

We even mastered our pizza tossing!

On goes the sauce! Cesar headed this task.

Katy, Miguel, Jose, Amanda, Gabriel, pizza, Juan Carlos, Ruben, Jhonatan

Semillas de Amor: Eliecer

From Aaron and Leslie, interns at Semillas de Amor:

Eliecer (9) comes from one of the poorest families in Nueva Colombia, and we learned that he didn’t have any school shoes. To help him keep going to class, we gave him a pair of brand new shoes in addition to his backpack and school kit.

More posts and info about Semillas de Amor.

Click here to learn how to help another child like Eliecer.

Semillas de Amor: Fabian

From Aaron and Leslie, interns at Semillas de Amor:

Fabian (8) has two younger siblings that come with him each day to Semillas de Amor, Wendy (7) and Juan David (5). They come from a poor home, and often come in either dirty clothes, or simply without clothes. Fabian regularly shows up barefoot and/or shirtless. Along with a backpack and school supplies, we were able to get him a pair of new shoes and a white, button-up shirt for school.

Want to help a child like Fabian? Click here.

More posts and info about Semillas de Amor.

Semillas de Amor: Norbis

The following is from Aaron and Leslie, interns at Semillas de Amor:

Norbis (12) comes from one of the most upsetting family situations in Nueva Colombia. She has one older sister, and four younger sisters who come with Norbis to Semillas de Amor, but their parents don’t send any of the children to school. They live in a dimly lit house made of thin wood and corrugated tin, with dirt floors. As part of our goal to help all the sisters start attending school we went to their home and gave them each a backpack with a school kit. They were all very excited, and we were even able to finally meet their mother and ask her to start sending them to school.

Want to help Norbis attend school? Click here.

More posts and info on Semillas de Amor.

A Piñata Fiesta!

Leticia and Katy with a piñata

Blog post from Katy, a new intern at La Aldea Infantil:

This week was the last week for Janel and Hao. We had a fiesta on their final day, and this included piñatas which we had been working on making. The kids were so excited and some had never before even hit a piñata. They would race and collect the candy and goodies with each smack that was made. The tias were quite good athletes themselves! The day was full of smiles and fun, as we celebrated the hard work and time that Janel and Hao had dedicated to the kids at the Aldea.

Janel, Hao and Amanda with some boys from casa 5

Victor Manuel takes a swing!

Happy 4th of July!

For our American readers, Happy 4th of July!

We hope you have a great holiday!

More posts coming this week about Semillas de Amor!

Semillas de Amor: Wilson

This is the first of a series about Semillas de Amor in Colombia.

Our Project Director, Chris Jensen, gives us an insight about this area: "The kids in Colombia live in EXTREME poverty. I was there in May setting up the project before they got there and there are kids that are malnurished, have no shoes or clothes for school, the community where they live was founded by refugees and hhas no water and almost no sanitation. They don't even have a highschool. Currently we are trying to raise money for a youth center so they have better place to meet and study."

Read on to learn more about the children who come here:

(From interns Aaron and Leslie)

Wilson Matos (10) is one of the best opportunities Eagle-Condor and Semillas de Amor have to help a child in need. He’s a bright kid with an infectious laugh, but suffers from asthma as well as some deep psychological and social needs. His dad is currently in prison; he and his two siblings live with an abusive mother and transient stepfather in a tiny, inadequate tin house in Nueva Colombia. The lack of a functional family and consistent father figure have created some serious problems in his behavior, both in and out of school. In spite of all his challenges, he’s a fun kid who loves riding his bike, and wants to graduate from school so he can be a doctor.

Want to help Wilson continue his education? Learn more here.