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Volunteer
program in Latin America helping street kids get educated
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In
South America:
Helping Homeless
Children
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They
begin by learning to play games on the computer, and little
by little our volunteers convert them to Microsoft Word
then reading/writing programs; then the internet and their
own E-mail account, then chat with other street kids in
Ecuador and Argentina. Finally our volunteers teach
them to design, publish and promote web pages on the internet.
Eventualy some of them will be able to work with our volunteer
Webmasters, designing and building webpages for clients;
and the best of them may even become Web Publishers, making
and publishing web sites which sell services and products
through their own internet business, receiving their income
from outside the poor local economy.. We have street children
aged 5 to 13 in the program, thus far our volunteers are
very encouraged by their enthusiasm and progress. In another
year we expect to have our first Webmster graduates.
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Most people in Latin Aerica, even
more the poorest of the poor (orphans and street children)
dream of one day being able to go to a rich country where
they can live their ideal of a normal life. For this reason
street children, who resist going to regular school because
it either does not fit into their parent's idea of earning
money in order to survive the present day, or their own work
vs. study priorities, are nonetheless eager to devote an hour
a day to learn English. Along the way, of course, they have
also to learn to read and write; and we are ready for them
with basic reading and writing courses, interwoven
into the rhythem of the English curriculum
as if part of it. The children and their parents - ithose
who have parents - seem satisfied with this program so far.
And our volunteers are satisfied with their progress.
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Children who actually sleep on
the pavements are afraid of institutions. Some come to eat
breakefast and lunch for free, but most of the day, and
every night they are stoned on glue or cocane base - it
is impossible to reason with them. So we organized a city
wide Football Championship
just for them one saturday morning: and they came in impressive
numbers.
“We combined the competition with medical, dental,
psychological and social services. We lso gave them a meal
and change of clothing..
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Our unstated mission, and the main point of the project, was to encourage
some of the children to enter one of three shelters in the
city dedicated to receiving such children. Directors and social
workers from two of these institutions participated with us
in serving the children, and when the competition ended and
we all sat down to a meal together
we were able to present them with their options: "
continue to live as you are, suffer
the cold nights and dirty unhealthy conditions, pass in and
out of juvenile detention centers and perhaps one day (soon)
die from the wretched affects of inhaling glue or smoking
cocanel. Or you can check into one of these shelters and receive
three good meals a day, a comfortable bed in a warm room,
care from caring people, and best of all bwecome educated.
Mundo De Niños was represented by their Volunteer Coordinator,
Monina, plus a social worker and volunteer child minder.
Hogar San Jose was represented by one of their directors,
two staff members and a volunteer. Both of these shelters
are for boys only.
The main girls shelter in this part of Peru, Hogar de la Niña,
will participate in a similar event here soon. Please Give,
help us help them. |
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“When the event ended many of the children did not want to
leave - understandable as few of them have any place to go
to other than back to the street. But they left with smiles
on their faces, with the knowledge that there are shelters
where they will be welcome when they decide to give up their
young criminal drug addicted lives (juvenile thieves, child
protitutes). They also left with some winter clothes, a few
with prizes. In fact all they left behing were a few broken
windows and some extracted teeth.We
entertained 35 the first Saturday, and we expect this number
to grow week be week. God willing many of them will find a
way out of the dangerous streets and into a life with shelter,
health, safety, sanity and education. Right now many
of them, boys and girls, are beggers, petty thieves, drug
addicts, prostitutes. They are abused, miserable and unhealthy
- we are desparate to help them. Please help us do this: GIVE
NOW!
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