September 9, 2007 Sunday Sept. 9th. Following each service,
BizKidz of Brazil and our Y. O. U. Kids will be selling “Thank
You Cards with a purpose.” These cards contain original art by
Brazilian youth. The envelopes for the cards are hand made paper from
recycled materials. |
September 12, 2006 Hi, Everyone I’ve had a lot of problems with my computer with little time to fix things. But I’ve found a place where I can get online in Safe Mode and risk sending email. So here’s an up-date. I think the project is doing quite well. At first I was concerned that the number of kids appears to have diminished, but I think now it is more manageable. When I was here last year, it was great to see so many kids but it was pretty chaotic. There are four programs under way now and a fifth is planned: (1) Handicrafts in the main building for the majority of the kids. In the pictures attached you can see some of the kids showing me their handiwork in making tapestries. They also embroider tea towels by hand (the borders) and by machine (the interior designs). It’s not all work; they play checkers, chess, dominoes, and a game I brought where they build a tower with pieces of wood. I will be bringing some of their products home with me to put on display at Samba Brasil and at La Boehme Gypsy Bazaar. (2) Sports in a nearby building that houses a playing floor for basketball, soccer, and other sports. The kids get training their by professional trainers provided by the city government. They go there four days a week. The pictures show them getting instruction from one of the trainers who, on that day, was running them through various tests to determine their abilities and conditioning. The trainers actually do more than they’re paid to do…they like the kids and help out in the main project also. (3) The community garden, where they grow green vegetables used in the project and sold to the neighboring houses. The new garden manager, Donizette, has done wonders since he began in July. With a grant from my Rotary Club, we have guaranteed his salary for six months. Hopefully, by then, the garden will produce enough income that it will sustain him. You can see in the photos the new water tank and the system for irrigating the plants, the greenhouses for growing seedlings, the better organization of the garden and the high quality of the plants. They grow and sell beets, lettuce, carrots, onions, kale, and okra. More vegetables are coming. The kids who work in the garden adore him and the work they are doing. (4) The computer school in a nearby building. The kids get two 1-hour sessions on the seven computers that have been donated. They are old computers and it would be great if they were upgraded. They do have high-speed internet via a wireless system transmitted from a local hotel. But the computers are slow and they limit the speed. There is room for more computers in the classroom, which in the picture of the building has an entrance on the right, under that large tree. (5) There is an entrance to another part of the building, visible in the picture on the left. That part is actually a small residence which will be used to cook and dehydrate various fruits and vegetables for sale to stores and individuals. The equipment for that is being purchased now. They already have the dehydrating oven and a stove was purchased yesterday.
My main concern is that there are not very many adolescents participating in the enterprises of the project, except for the community garden. Most of the kids in the main building are 8 – 10 years old. They all enjoy what they are doing and are quite talented. I will be talking with Darci about the lack of older kids in that part of the project and also the turnover of kids participating. I also want to know how the kids are being taught skills that will eventually serve them in business and employment. The kids are happy and the staff treat them with love and respect, something they wouldn’t get out on the street. I have talked with the president of a Rotary Club in Divinopolis, about 60 miles east of here. He was very interested in the project and wants to know more. I think Darci and I will go there tomorrow to discuss the possibility of starting a project in that city of 200,000 people under the co-sponsorship of Rotary International. That’s about it for now. Enjoy the photos. I’ll have more when I get back and my computer is restored to normal operation. Blessings, Bob |