Proyecto Laguna

Proyecto Laguna Completes Construction in Seven Schools

2009-04-19T18:49:00.002-06:00

Last week Proyecto Laguna completed construction of water tanks and latrine repairs in 7 schools. Thanks to the grant we received from Pangea, the technical direction from Living Earth Institute, and our hands on work every school in the Diria school district now has a water storage tank. This means that thousands of children now have access to water daily at school. Our initial plan to install tanks in 5 schools was expanded to 6 when costs were lower than expected. We were then able to expand to a 7th school. Last year we installed a water tank in the Monsignor school.
Along with installing tanks we installed hand-washing and mop-washing stations so that the children have a place to wash their hands and a separate place to wash the mop. It is our hope that the things the children learned during the water day celebrations will stay with them and they will wash their hands regularly and take care of the water system.
Along with the water tanks we also repaired latrines in several schools. In the El Arroyo #1 school we have bought the materials for a new latrine (the old one was almost full and the base was broken) and the parents are currently constructing it.
The parents, students, and teachers are very happy with this project and have committed to care for it and maintain it. We, at Proyecto Laguna, feel proud to have been able to help these communities and improve sanitation and health for these students.

Schools Celebrate World Water Day

2009-03-19T12:58:00.003-06:00

Diria schools participated in World Water Day Celebrations this week and learned about care of water, the environment, and personal hygiene. As part of our work constructing water storage tanks and improving latrines with Living Earth Institute and Pangea it is important that we educate the children and community on the proper care of the tank, hygiene, and other related themes. As a result we took advantage of World Water Day, March 22nd, and had celebrations in the school.
The 4th, 5th, and 6th grade children participated in a presentation competition and gave presentations on care of the environment, personal hygiene, and care of school property. The younger children performed folkloric dances and participated in a variety of games and competitions. The schools were very organized and excited about this event.
It was a very fun and educational day, a day in which the results of the work we have done in these small rural communities was evident.

Construction of Water Storage Tanks Starts in Six Schools

2009-03-05T11:39:00.004-06:00

Proyecto Laguna, working in conjunction with the Living Earth Institute, has started construction in six schools. Our initial plan was to install water storage tanks and repair latrines in 5 schools. Luckily, we were able to stretch the money to include six. This means that every school that is in the countryside of Diria will soon have a back-up source of water. Water is important for health and hygiene and having a storage tank will greatly benefit the students at these schools. We are also repairing latrines in these schools so that the children have a safe, private, place to use the bathroom.
Proyecto Laguna is also working with the parents at each school to help them raise money and put together a maintenance plan so that they can maintain this project independently. We are working in conjunction with the Ministry of Health to start classes in each school focusing on health and hygiene and proper use and care of water and latrines.

The Sta. Elena School has a Garage Sale

2009-02-09T15:34:00.003-06:00

Last month the local delegate from the Ministry of Education approached us for help with a problem; at the Sta. Elena school the kindergarten and first grade were sharing a classroom and the children were distracting each other too much for the teachers to teach them. He asked if Proyecto Laguna would help them build a division in the classroom so that it could act as two separate classrooms.
Proyecto Laguna met with the parents and teachers and helped them set up a garage sale fundraiser. The parents and teachers were motivated and well organized. We provided them with donated clothing, toys and household goods and last weekend they sold these items to people in the community. They made over $100 and now have enough to build the much needed division.
We are very happy that we were able to help them and glad that they were able to take the initiative to hold the sale and raise the funds.
Proyecto Laguna would like to thank everyone who donated items to the garage sale. You have made a difference for the kindergartners and first graders in Sta. Elena.

850 Needy Children in Diria Receive Backpacks and School Supplies

2009-02-05T16:17:00.003-06:00

The new school year in Nicaragua started on Tuesday and Proyecto Laguna has been hard at work getting together all of the school supplies and backpacks for the children.
Proyecto Laguna has distributed 850 backpacks, handmade by our seamstress group. All of our registered children received school supplies including pencils, notebooks, pens, erasers, pencils sharpeners, colored pencils, and more.
It has been great to watch the children walking down the street to school proudly carrying their backpacks.
Thank you to all of you who helped us help these children attend school and have a brighter future.

Proyecto Laguna to Install Water Tanks and Repair Latrines in 5 Schools

2009-01-22T15:04:00.002-06:00

Proyecto Laguna has received a grant from Pangea (www.pangeagiving.org) to install water tanks and repair latrines at 5 schools in the Diria area. We are happy to be working with Pangea again this year.
Living Earth Institute (www.living-earth.org) will be providing the technical knowledge and we look forward their engineer, Alice Lancaster, coming down to visit in February.
Proyecto Laguna will be managing the construction and working with the parents and teachers to help them set up a fund for maintaining the project. Proyecto Laguna will also be providing health education classes in the school to educate the children on the importance of using the latrine facilities, hand washing, and other hygiene issues.
When this project is complete over 800 children will have improved access to water and sanitation.
We would like to thank both Pangea and the Living Earth Institute for their continued support of our work and for their efforts to help the children of Diria.

Happy new year and thank you to all of our donors

2009-01-05T15:47:00.003-06:00

We hope you had a wonderful holiday season are having a happy new year.

With your help we were able to raise over $3000 through our calendar sales. This is enough money for us to ensure that over 800 children in Diriá, Nicaragua will receive the necessary school supplies to attend school in the 2009 school year.

We are very happy that we will be able to continue helping the children of this town and very thankful to you, our donors, for making our work possible.

Due to your generous donation each of the children enrolled in our program will receive a backpack filled with school supplies; notebooks, pens, pencils, rulers, crayons, pencil sharpeners, and more. Many children in Nicaragua are unable to attend school because their families cannot afford to buy them these basic items.

Your donation will also be used to keep our school nurse working in the schools providing basic medical care to the students.

Thank you for your generosity and caring.

We still have some calendars available if you weren't able to buy one before. Please contact us at contact@proyectolaguna.com if you'd like to order one...or more.

The Seamstress Group Shows Thanks

2009-01-05T15:45:00.002-06:00

In December our group of seamstresses and tailors threw a thank you party for us to thank us for all the work we have been doing with them. With their hard work and our marketing they have had more work and been able to support their families better. The seamstress group has been making reusable shopping bags and beach bags and has received contracts with a variety of businesses. Most recently they have started making clothing for a shop in Granada.
To show their thanks the seamstresses and tailors took our director, Jennifer Schwinn, out for dinner and dancing at the overlook in Diriá. Adolfo, one of the tailors, stated to Jennifer that they wanted to thank Proyecto Laguna for all our hard work in helping in their community and helping them improve their lives. It was a wonderful afternoon and it was nice to see how appreciative the community is.

Proyecto Laguna is Making a Difference

2008-11-19T17:56:00.004-06:00

Check us out and Join Our Good Work

Since its inception in January of 2007 Proyecto Laguna has achieved the following:

501(c)3 non-profit status,
Registered as an official non-governmental organization with the Nicaraguan government.
Provided school supplies twice per school year to over 800 students.
Provided over 600 pairs of shoes.
Provided over 200 school uniforms.
Provided 50 teachers with classroom supplies.
Provided basic medical care to over 900 students.
Worked with the schools to register them with the American Nicaraguan Foundation to receive furniture and school supplies twice per year.
Provided furniture, such as a cabinets and bookshelves, to the schools. Furniture was made by a local carpenter.
Provided sporting equipment to the schools.
Installed wall mounted pencil sharpeners in every classroom.
Provided small rewards every month to two students in each class as a form of motivation. A reward is given to the student with the best grades and the student who has put forth the best effort.
Formed parent groups in each of the three schools that work in concert with Proyecto Laguna to set goals for the schools. Parent groups are responsible for assisting with grant applications and fundraising. They raise funds through raffles, clothing sales, food sales, and movie nights. Each parent group has a savings account and use the money they earn to assist the school with maintenance and other needs.
Formed a cobblers co-op in Diria that makes shoes for the project.
Formed a seamstress co-op in Diria that makes backpacks for the project. The seamstress co-op has recently started marketing handmade bags and received contracts from businesses in Managua to make reusable grocery bags, beach bags, and other types of bags.
Received a grant from the Pangea Project in conjunction with the Living Earth Institute and installed a municipal water reservoir tank, a rain water collection tank, rain gutters, a drainage system, and repaired latrines in the Ruiz Castillo School.
Repaired and remodeled the pre-school building at the Anne Frank School which was previously in a dangerous state of disrepair.
Installation of new water reservoir tanks in the Anne Frank School.
Provided potable water to two schools with no water source by paying for water and transportation by ox-cart.
Applied for a grant to build school kitchens in two schools. The grant was approved and we are now on the waiting list for construction.
Proyecto Laguna is currently being considered by Pangea for a second grant for $10,000 to be used to install water reservoir tanks in 5 schools and repair existing latrines.

Received a grant from Google for advertising valued at $120,000 per year. (This is not a cash grant but we receive the equivalent from them in online advertising.)
Provided emergency food and clothing for families in severe need.

Provided medical care to several special needs cases including the following:

CT scans and medications for a child with epilepsy,
Orthopedic shoes and/or braces to 15 children,
Paid for surgery and medication for a child with an intestinal blockage,
Paid for physical therapy for several children,
Paid for psychological counseling for children with special needs,
Currently working to assist a child with an extra digit on each hand and foot receive plastic surgery,
Coordinated with Operation Smile to enroll children in Diria with cleft lips and palates to receive surgery, and
Paid for a mother with severe heart problems to receive testing and medication.

Organized the school gardens initiative in conjunction with the Ministry of Education and the American Chamber of Commerce.
and more!

Proyecto Laguna Bazaar-An Opportunity to Support Socially Responsible Nicaraguan Organizations

2008-11-18T08:19:00.003-06:00

Proyecto Laguna is holding a bazaar to help support socially responsible Nicaraguan organizations and to give you a chance to do some holiday shopping.

To date 25 socially responsible non-profit and for-profit organizations are attending and will be selling a variety of items such as:

Handmade Toys
Newspaper baskets
Handmade Clothing
Mosaic and painted tables
Homemade soap
Iron Art
Gift Cards
Artisan Chocolates
Handmade paper
Jewelry
Cheese
Calendars
Dried Fruit
and more!

This event is hosted by Proyecto Laguna and will be fun for the entire family with a children's story time, visits with Santa, organic food from Ola Verde, a full bar, and much more.

Please come down to Frontera Books on December 6th and support the non-profits of Nicaragua while doing your holiday shopping.

Date:	Saturday, December 6, 2008
Time:	11:00am - 6:00pm
Location:	Frontera Books
Street:	Semf. Enitel Villa Fontana, 200 v al lago, Esquina Sur Mama Delfina
City/Town:	Managua, Nicaragua

Changes to Service Delivery in 2009

2008-11-18T08:14:00.004-06:00

Dear Proyecto Laguna Supporters,

We hope that as an exciting year comes to an end you are all well and enjoying life.

On behalf of Proyecto Laguna, we are sending this letter to inform you of some changes that will be making in 2009 to how we deliver services to our communities and schools. Proyecto Laguna is currently working in three schools in Diriá, Nicaragua, and we have over 800 children registered in our child sponsorship program. We have decided to reformat the child sponsorship program to ensure that we deliver the best services to the students in our schools more equitably. We will continue to provide school supplies and medical care to children in need but we will no longer run the program through individual child sponsorships.

For those of you who have sponsored children, he or she will continue to be sponsored throughout the time you have committed.

In 2009, we will continue to provide school supplies and backpacks to the children who are involved in our program to help ensure that they are able to attend school. As funding allows, we will also provide shoes and uniforms to those in need. You, our generous donors, can continue to help keep these children in school by making donations to Proyecto Laguna that will be used to help these students. We hope that this move away from individual sponsorship will allow us to support a greater number of students instead of focusing on a select few.

Proyecto Laguna is dedicated to helping the people of Diria. We are working hard to continue our programs with the parent groups, sewing co-op, school directors and the health programs. We still rely solely on the donations of our supporters for funding. This year, your tax-exempt donation will go to benefit not just one child, but many more, and we hope that your support will continue.

Please visit our website frequently for blog updates at www.proyectolaguna.com. If you have any questions about the project or about this change, please don’t hesitate to email.

Thank you for your continued support,

Proyecto Laguna Staff

Proyecot Laguna Supports Diria's Seamstresses and Tailors

2008-11-18T08:01:00.004-06:00

Proyecto Laguna is currently working on marketing the products of Diria's seamstresses and tailors to other organizations and businesses to assist in providing a steady source of employment for these residents.
The seamstresses and tailors currently have a contract with Don Pan, a bakery chain, to make reusable grocery bags. They also have a contract with Ola Verde, a restaurant in Managua, to make canvas catch-all bags. There are several other business interested in their products and we hope to be signing contracts with them soon.
The seamstresses and tailors are very happy that they have this source of income and we hope that we will continue to be able to find businesses interested in their products.

2009 Calendars Available!

2008-11-03T09:33:00.006-06:00

It is with great excitement that we announce that our 2009 Calendars have arrived and are available for sale. Our friend Kristine Ambrose has been working hard to get the design perfected using her photographs from her visit last year.

We are very pleased with the outcome and think you will be too. The sales of the calendar is our major fundraising event this season. We know that money is tight all over the world right now and for this we especially appreciate all donations made to Proyecto Laguna. We are hoping to sell all 1000 copies before the end of the year. These funds will give us the budget to purchase school supplies for the new school year starting in January as well as keeping our nurse on staff and supplied with basic necessities.

For those of you in the United States, purchasing calendars is easy. The donation per calendar is $20 each. Simply go to this link on our website to use our secure server: www.pro yectolaguna.com . Click on "Give Now" and use the General Donation option. You will receive a confirmation email including a tax deductible letter. Then your calendar will be mailed to you from Los Angeles.

For purchases in Nicaragua please email us at: contact@proyectolaguna.com and we will let you know where they can be purchased or get them to you. The cost for the calendars in Nicaragua is 200Cordobas and we can accept cash or checks.

This is our first year selling calendars as a fundraiser and we hope to continue in the future. Please consider giving the calendars as gifts this year for the holidays. The donations made for each one goes a long way here in Nicaragua to make a big difference in the life of a child. Remember that all donations are tax deductible. Also, if you are interested in helping us sell them at your work, school or church, please contact us and we will be happy to send you as many as you would like. Thank you!

Nicaraguan Students Celebrate Columbus Day

2008-10-20T13:15:00.005-06:00

In Nicaragua Columbus Day is celebrated as Hispanic Day. Nicaraguans celebrate the unique culture they have as a mix of Spanish and Indigenous blood and culture. In the Diria schools there was a large celebration with folkloric dances, marching bands, and presentations of poems and songs.
Everyone had a nice morning as children and parents from all of the area schools gathered at Ruiz Castillo for the celebration.

Clothing Sale Helps Students Raise Money for Graduation

2008-10-13T08:47:00.002-06:00

A few months ago Proyecto Laguna was approached by the graduating high school students at the Anne Frank school. They asked us to help pay for their graduation ceremony. We decided that what we would do is help the graduating classes from Anne Frank--preschool, 6th grade, and high school--raise money for their own graduations.

Saturday was the big day and Proyecto Laguna brought in donated clothing and housing goods and the parents and students of the classes that are graduating held a sale. People from the community were able to come and buy clothing and household goods for very affordable prices and the students and parents were able to raise over $200 for graduation.
It is the hope of Proyecto Laguna that by providing an opportunity for the community to raise money for itself we are also empowering them and teaching them to help themselves and put the effort forth to make things happen within their own community.

Proyecto Laguna and ANS Drama Club Unite

2008-10-03T20:47:00.003-06:00

This week Proyecto Laguna recieved great news from the Drama Club at the American Nicaraguan School in Managua. We have been chosen by the group of about 70 Middle and High School students as their Community Service project. This is a great opportunity for both sides. The students at ANS will be learning how they can make a difference in the lives of children less fortunate while the foundation benefits from all the extra assistance! The Drama teacher, Mrs. Jennifer Gallegos, says that Proyecto Laguna was chosen because of our diverse projects including; improving access to education, providing basic health care, distribution of potable water and working with the community providing sustainable jobs. This week founder, Tracy Finch, spoke with the group about the foundation's mission and goals. We have begun discussing ways that the Drama Club can raise money and exactly how those funds can provide aid.

We would like to thank the school for this opportunity and we are looking forward to a long and successful relationship with the students at ANS!

Proyecto Laguna Purchases Materials to Make 850 Backpacks

2008-10-01T08:26:00.004-06:00

Last Friday, Proyecto Laguna, with two Diria seamstresses, purchased materials for 850 backpacks at the Oriental Market in Managua. The Oriental Market is the largest market in Managua and is always an adventure full of sights and sounds and the frantic market pace. All of the supplies were delivered to Diria and distributed among the 11 seamstresses and tailors who are now getting started on making the backpacks we will need to distribute to the students of Diria for the start of the new school year in February. By working with local seamstresses we are able to provide employment for local residents and the money we spend on backpacks stays within the community.
Proyecto Laguna is currently working on marketing the products of Diria's seamstresses and tailors to other organizations and businesses to assist in providing a steady source of employment for these residents. The seamstresses and tailors have made several sample bags and we have gotten some interest from businesses in Managua. We hope to complete contracts with these businesses soon and have more work for these seamstresses and tailors.

The Minister of Education Visits Diria

2008-09-24T18:49:00.003-06:00

On September 23 the Minister of Education visited Diria. The local educational community was very excited to receive his visit and prepared a large meeting including folkloric dance performances and presentations on the state of the education system in Diria. Teachers were given an opportunity to bring up their concerns directly to the minister; lack of latrines in some schools, a need for more classrooms, and a lack of basic supplies. The minister spoke of the literacy program that is working to eradicate illiteracy in Nicaragua and about the steps he hopes to take to improve the education system.

Donating by Check is Now Easier!

2008-09-22T20:24:00.004-06:00

Proyecto Laguna is happy to announce a new and easy way to make donations. Our bank in the United States, PNC, is offering a convenient way to make your tax exempt donation. You can simply mail a check to them directly with our account information in the memo line and the amount will be deposited into our account. When we receive confirmation that the check has cleared, you will receive a tax exemption letter to use while filing your taxes.

This time of year is critical for fundraising so please take this opportunity to make a donation today! We have many children that still need to be sponsored (only $100 per child, per year) so that they can have new shoes and uniforms to attend school. All donations to the general fund go to support the school nurse and basic medical supplies, school supplies at three schools and water delivered to two schools weekly.

To use this easy method of donating, simply send a check written to Laguna Project with our account number in the memo line, #5528164743.

Mail your donation check to:

PNC Bank

attn: Bank by Mail

PO Box 8108

Philadelphia PA 19101-8108

Thank you so much for your support! Without all of our generous donors, we wouldn't be able to continue our important work here in Nicaragua. If you have any questions about this donation method, please contact us anytime.

Nicaraguans Celebrate Their Country

2008-09-15T16:34:00.004-06:00

The last week has been full of parties and parades as it was the week of celebrating Nicaraguan Independence. The culmination of the week was on both Sunday Sept 14th, which is the anniversary of the battle of San Jacinto and Monday Sept 15th which is Independence Day. The schools had been preparing their marching bands for weeks and had a wonderful parade through Diria on Sunday.
On Friday afternoon there was a party in Diria and all of the students gathered to watch a torch, that had been touring the country, go by. The parent's group prepared juice and snacks and sold them at this party to raise funds to help maintain the school. The tamales Carla made where a smash hit and sold out in 10 seconds flat!

Proyecto Laguna Receives Grant From Google!

2008-09-12T08:00:00.002-06:00

It is with great pride that we formally announce that Google, the internet and information powerhouse, has enthusiastically provided Proyecto Laguna with a grant to help increase awareness of our work in Nicaragua. After many, many months of communication we received the approval and notification from their organization two weeks ago. This is incredible news for us and also a sign of the impact that we are having in this area of the world.

So what does this mean for Proyecto Laguna and what is the grant for?

The grant given to us by Google is a marketing and advertising grant valued at US $120,000.00 per year. The grant is a permament grant and will be made available to Proyecto Laguna for as long as we operate in good standing within the regulations of our US 501(c)(3) status. The grant will provide advertising and marketing services from Google for increasing awareness of our programs and will help spread the word to potentially millions of people around the world. The importance of this is immense because now we have permanent "like kind" funds for an internet marketing budget, which is our greatest marketing and awareness resource.

The impact this grant will have on our work is substantial and the fact that we received this support and recognition from one of the largest, most well known and influential companies in the world reenforces the value of our work and programs here in Nicaragua. It is our hope that other companies will recognize the importance of what we do and will follow suit. So, if you are a company, business, corporation or group trying to locate a reputable foundation to support take note - Google has found unsurpassed success in making wise decisions - and they have chosen Proyecto Laguna as a foundation to support, this says great things about the value and integrity of our programs.

Thank you for your continued support and thank you Google! If you have any questions about Proyecto Laguna or would like to know how you can help please contact us.

Local Seamstresses Employed by Proyecto Laguna

2008-08-31T19:28:00.003-06:00

Proyecto Laguna recently met with local tailors and seamstresses to get started on making 850 backpacks for the start of the new school year in January. We work with local skilled workers in order to provide employment within the community of Diriá instead of spend our money on products shipped in from other countries. With this model we are able to empower locals, provide employment, and the money we are spending stays within the community of Diriá.

Attached is a photo of our parent’s group and the 10 seamstresses and tailors who will be making our backpacks this year. They are excited for this opportunity and we have hopes that we may be able to market their skills and have them make backpacks for other organizations in Nicaragua too.

Preschool Building at Anne Frank Inaugurated

2008-08-31T08:54:00.002-06:00

We have finished the remodel of the preschool building at the Anne Frank School. We were able to replace the rotting roof beams with longer lasting metal beams, replace the tin roof, amplify the windows, replace the doors, and build an attached office for the school directors with a storage area in the back. A group of students from the University of Washington visited last month and painted the newly remodeled building and also painted murals all over the school.

Last week the school had an inauguration party for the new school building. The children performed traditional dances and had a piñata. The parents of the kindergarteners presented Tracy Finch, founder of Proyecto Laguna, and Jennifer Schwinn, Community Development Director, with baskets of fruit to show their appreciation.

New Water Tanks Installed to Improve Access to Potable Water

2008-08-31T08:48:00.001-06:00

Thanks to a donation from Carol Caldwell we were able to install two new water tanks at the Anne Frank School. This school currently has to buy water that is transported from 3 kilometers away by ox-cart. The old tank was broken and had several leaks. Access to potable water is integral to health and now the students of this school have improved access to this resource.

Rain Gutters and Water Tanks Installed

2008-08-31T08:43:00.002-06:00

For the past year we have been working with the Living Earth Institute and Pangea to install rain gutters and water tanks at the Ruiz Castillo School. Construction is now done and the children of this school will no longer have to wade through standing water in the rainy season and they have a water storage tank that will provide potable water even when the municipal source is unavailable. This improvement of the school environment makes the school a safer and healthier place for the children to study.

School Supplies Distributed to the Children of Diria

2008-08-31T08:39:00.003-06:00

In late July Proyecto Laguna distributed over 750 packets of school supplies to the students of Diriá. July is the middle of the school year in Nicaragua. The packets included notebooks, pencils, pens, colored pencils, and more. The children and parents were very thankful for this help.

Thank you to all of you who sponsor children and help us ensure that the children of Diriá are able to have the appropriate supplies to attend school. Many children in Nicaragua do not attend school for the sole reason that their family cannot afford to buy them paper and a pencil. You can make a difference.

If you would like to sponsor a child please see our website-www.proyectolaguna.com.

June Newsletter

2008-06-09T14:07:00.002-06:00

May was a very busy month for us here at Proyecto Laguna. The rainy season has definitely started and each day it pours down rain, shutting down everything in Nicaragua until it stops. The roads out to Anne Frank and La Nicaroa are turning into rutted muddy lanes and soon it will be difficult to get to these two schools until the rains stop. It also was a month full of celebrations, fundraisers, and new projects.

A lot happened this month; we started construction at the Anne Frank School, had a movie night, held a garage sale, started working with a local furniture maker, and participated in Mother’s Day and Children’s Day celebrations.

Mother’s Day is the second largest holiday in Nicaragua (the first is Easter) and the festivities were wonderful. Unfortunately, due to a very intense tropical storm on Mother’s day, festivities were delayed a few days, but there weren’t any less fun. The children did folkloric and modern dances, read poems, and sang songs.

Children’s Day was also a fun day. Jennifer, our Community Development Director, was asked to hand out candy, in a clown suit! The teachers and school staff did dances and sang songs for the children in crazy costumes, and Jennifer danced around in a clown outfit handing out lollipops (she learned that dancing in a clown outfit in the sun is a sweaty business).

Construction
We have started a remodel/refurbishment of the kindergarten at the Anne Frank School. The existing pre school building is dark and dank, very little light comes in the windows, the wooden roof beams are rotting, there are holes in the ceiling, and the doors are hanging on their hinges.

We are replacing the rotting roof beams with longer lasting metal beams, replacing the tin roof, amplifying the windows, replacing the doors, and building an attached office for the school directors with a storage room in the back. The school directors currently have no office and have been using part of a classroom divided off by a couple of bookshelves.

For the past several months we have been working on getting all of the permits and finding a contractor so it is very exciting to finally have started construction.

We would not be able to do this project if it were not for the large donation made in the name of Stephanie Lerner which is paying for the majority of this remodel. Thank you so much for making it possible for us to provide a safer, nicer preschool classroom.

Movie Night and Garage Sale
The parents groups at Ruiz Castillo and Anne Frank are going strong. They have set the goal of buildings kitchens in both schools this year and are working on raising money for smaller projects and to save in their maintenance fund.

This month Ruiz Castillo had a movie night. The parent group raised over $100 by charging children 25 cents to watch a movie projected on a big screen, and selling snacks during the movie. The parents were so excited with the results that they plan to start doing movie nights more often.

At Anne Frank the parents group had a garage sale. Many people have donated clothing and toys to Proyecto Laguna. We brought these things to Anne Frank on a Saturday and the parents had a garage sale. This is a great model in a couple of ways; the parent’s group is able to raise money to use to meet their goals and the townspeople are able to buy nice toys and clothing for very low prices. The parent’s group raised close to $250!

Furniture
A few weeks ago the La Nicaroa School asked us for help. In this three room school, housing preschool through sixth grade, there was a problem. The pre-schoolers and first graders were sharing a classroom and they were constantly distracting each other. The first grade teacher asked if we could pay for a temporary wall to be put in the middle of the classroom. We took this a step further and are currently working with a local carpenter, Alfredo Ortega, to make a series of book shelves, some with doors and some without, to use to divide the classroom. This way, not only will the classroom by divided but the divider will be useful and more able to muffle sound.

Also, through working with a local furniture maker, who is the father of a child attending Ruiz Castillo, once again we are putting the money we spend to improve the schools back into the community.

We would like to thank St. Vincent de Paul High School of Petaluma, CA. We would not be able to build this furniture were it not for the donation they made to us. Thank you for helping us improve the quality of the educational environment at La Nicaroa.

Thank you

Thank to everyone who made a donation in the month of May. We depend on donations from persons such as you. A special thank you to those of you who are renewing your sponsorships-thank you for choosing to help a child succeed in school and in life.

May Newsletter

2008-05-06T16:29:00.002-06:00

May Newsletter
After the heat of April we are all looking forward to the rainy season. It has been so many months since the last rains that it is hard to believe that in a couple weeks the rain will start and not stop for several months.
April has been another month of planning and preparing for future projects. The parent groups at both Ruiz Castillo and Anne Frank completed applications to solicit funds to build kitchens in their schools. We have met with the Ministry of Education in Managua, with builders, and with school administration.

Seeking Sponsors
Proyecto Laguna currently has 685 students registered in our sponsor program and that number is growing all the time. Less than 20% of these children are currently sponsored.
We have a big school supply distribution coming up in July and we hope to have more children sponsored by then.
Sponsorship costs $100 a year and your sponsored child is provided with shoes, uniform, backpacks, and school supplies at the start of the year, a supplemental packet of school supplies in June, basic medical care, and supplies are provided to their classroom.
Please take the time to sponsor a child today. Child’s sponsorships make great gifts.

Medical Support
Proyecto not only provides basic medical care through our school nurse but we have also been able to help children with serious medical problems.
Last week as Jennifer was at the Anne Frank school she was approached by a woman who reported her daughter had been having severe abdominal pain for over a week, she couldn’t walk and she couldn’t eat. The mother couldn’t afford transportation to a doctor’s office let alone the price of the doctor and asked if Proyecto Laguna could help. Dina, the school nurse, accompanied this mother and daughter to a doctor and an ultrasound appointment in Masaya and a follow-up with an endocrinologist. The doctor reported that the little girl had a blocked colon that was threatening to perforate her small intestine. Luckily, we were able to start treatment before this little girl needed surgery, a colostomy, or had a dangerous infection due to a perforated colon.
Proyecto Laguna has paid for CT scans for an epileptic girl and medications to manage her epilepsy which has significantly reduced the frequency of her seizures. We have bought orthopedic shoes and/or braces for several children. We have paid for a dermatologist for a child with severe eczema and a physical therapist for a child with congenital hip dysplasia. We have purchased thousands of dollars in prescribed medications that families can’t afford to buy.
When we are approached by a family with a child in medical need, we pay for the treatment if we have the funding. If we don’t have the funding we seek it out.
When you donate to the general fund of Proyecto Laguna you help us meet the medical needs of children in Diria.

Shoes
The cobblers just finished an order of 124 shoes which were distributed to the children last week. So far this school year we have provided 328 pairs of shoes to children in need. Not only has this benefited the children but it has also provided employment to cobblers in Diria. We have about 20 more pairs of shoes that we plan to make, for sponsored children.
Please help us ensure that all of the children in Diria have shoes to wear by sponsoring a child or making a donation today.

Incentive Program
Proyecto Laguna is currently launching a new program in the hopes of rewarding and motivating students. Proyecto Laguna is going to provide a monthly “reward” to two students in each classroom. The rewards will go to the student with the best grades and the student with the best attendance and effort. Rewards will be something small, a fancy pencil, or a small coloring book. We hope that providing this reward will help motivate students to work hard in their class. As part of this program, we will also be providing larger rewards to the top students in these two areas at mid-year and at the end of the year.

Thank you
We would like to thank Rebecca Krzywda for her help with our accounting. Rebecca has been kind enough to assist us in setting up our accounting program and teaching us how to use it. Thank you Rebecca!

Thank you to everyone who made a donation in April, especially those of you who renewed your child sponsorships. We can’t do the work we do without your donations. Thank you for deciding to help a child in Diriá, Nicaragua to succeed in school and in life.

April Newsletter

2008-05-06T08:29:00.005-06:00

April Newsletter
March has been a month full of holidays, fundraising, planning, and setting goals for the future. Semana Santa fell in March this year. Semana Santa is the week leading up to Easter and is the biggest holiday of the year in Nicaragua. School was out for a week as many people went to the beach and/or participated in innumerable street processions. Semana Santa is a beautiful week where the churches are decorated with flowers and fruit, fireworks are constantly going off, and there are frequent parades in the streets.

March was a great month for us for fundraising. We are very thankful by the generosity of our donors. Tracy Finch, co-founder, utilized a vacation to the states to do fundraising in Maryland and Virginia.

We are continuing to work with the Living Earth Institute on the water-tank/rain gutter project, and with the Ministry of Education on the school gardens project. Also, we are starting construction this month on remodeling the preschool at Anne Frank.

A Family in Need
Blanca is a single mother of 3 children; Alondra, Miguel, and Isidro. Recently, Blanca separated from the father of these children because of domestic violence. She now is struggling to get by. Blanca has no stable source of employment. She takes in washing and does odd jobs when she can find them. She is struggling to provide adequate food to her children and doesn’t have any extra money to provide them with school supplies, shoes, or medical care.

Blanca’s children have been enrolled with Proyecto Laguna for a year, but have not yet been sponsored.

Isidro is 7 years old and in the 2nd grade. He reports that his favorite food is bread and butter and he wants to be a lawyer when he grows up. Miguel is 8 years old and in 4th grade. He likes to play basketball and wants to be a doctor when he grows up. Alondra is a charming little preschooler who likes playing with dolls.

To help these children succeed in school and in life please sponsor one or all of them now. Sponsorship is just $100 a year per child and provides the child with all necessary school supplies, shoes and uniform, basic medical care, and provides didactic supplies to their classroom. To sponsor these children please contact us at info@proyectolaguna.com.

Goals
This month we worked with the parent groups at Ruiz Castillo and Anne Frank to set goals for this school year. The parent groups both set the goal of building a kitchen with an attached cafeteria.
Currently, one mother from each classroom cooks each day, on a rotating schedule. The mother picks up the dry rice, beans, and corn and the next day brings it to the class for lunch. This system is difficult and inefficient. The parents, who already have scarce resources, are responsible for providing wood to make a fire to cook and for paying to grind the corn. If a mother forgets to pick up the food, the children in that class don’t eat, and sometimes food gets picked up from the school but never makes it back. It is also hard to control food hygiene when the food is prepared off site.

With a school kitchen only three mothers a day, on a rotating schedule, would have to cook. Two would prepare rice, beans and cereal, and one would prepare tortillas. There would be less wood used because all of the food would be prepare in one large batch instead of several small batches. And a cafeteria would provide an eating space for the children to use where we could ensure there are always available plates, cups and silverware-currently some children do not eat lunch because they cannot afford to buy a plate to keep at school.

The parent groups are currently working on writing up a proposal soliciting donations for this project. The photo in this section is of the parents and school directors at Anne Frank who are applying for funding for a kitchen.

We estimate that the cost of building a kitchen is $3000 with $2500 extra for the attached cafeteria. If you are interested in donating toward this project please contact us. If you are interested in fundraising at your school, church, place of work, or other organization, for this project, please contact us, and remember all donations are tax deductible!!

Fundraising Success in March
“A Night for Nicaragua” charity event was a success. The Kiss Café in Baltimore, was gracious enough to donate the event space and cook delicious Latin/Caribbean food. Over $3000 was raised for Proyecto Laguna including 12 new child sponsorships.

On Easter Sunday, Tracy Finch, our co-founder, spoke at the Westminster Church in Richmond, Virginia. Tracy gave a presentation on our project; what we do, why we are here, and what the realities of life in Nicaragua are. Parishioners donated over $2000 including 18 new child sponsorships. The Parishioners reported they were touched by Tracy’s speech and that the pictures she showed helped make the stories real.

Last week we received a check from the Baraca Bible Class from Westminster for $1248! In an attached note they told us, “we especially liked the fact that you seem to have found the best solution to empowering people to help themselves.”

We would like to say Thank You to the Kiss Café, Sammy Williams at Westminster Church in Richmond, VA, and the Baraca Bible Class. We truly appreciate all of the support you have given us!

Pre-School Remodel
The pre-school building at Anne Frank is in a state of disrepair. The walls are crumbling, the wooden beams holding the tin roofing is rotting, the paint is chipping off, there are no lights or electric sockets in the classroom, and the room is dark and uninviting.
Next week we will start construction and remodel this classroom. We plan to replace the wooden roof beams with metal, replace the roof, replace the doors, expand the windows, connect electricity, and patch the walls. We also plan on adding an attached office that will be used by the directors of the school. Currently the directors have a very small room that is sectioned off from a classroom by a bookshelf. We will build an office that is attached to the preschool that has a storage room in the back to store the dry rice and beans for the school lunch and plenty of space for the directors to work.

We are very excited for this project and look forward to working with the parents of Anne Frank who are will be volunteering their labor for this project.

Thank you
Thank you to everyone who made donations this month. We depend on your donations to make a difference in the lives of the people of Diria.

March Newsletter

2008-03-08T14:11:00.003-06:00

“A Night for Nicaragua”
As most of you know, Proyecto Laguna is hosting our first annual fundraiser on March 20th at the Kiss Café (2400 Boston St) in Baltimore, Maryland. Tickets are $45 in advance and $50 at the door. Ticket price includes Latin cuisine, beer and wine, mojitos, and entertainment. There will also be a silent auction featuring Nicaraguan crafts as well as many local donations. Tickets can be purchased online from our website, clicking on “donate now”. Even if you can’t make it, all donations are welcome and appreciated. We are looking forward to seeing many of you at this great event!
To buy tickets or make donation click here - http://www.proyectolaguna.com/

Living Earth Institute
We are making progress toward our goal of installing rain gutters and a back-up water tank at the Ruiz Castillo School. This is a goal the parents and school administration set in March of 2007 and it has been wonderful to see the pride and empowerment they have felt as this project has taken steps forward. Two engineers, Robin Kirschbaum and Pam Elardo, visited from the United States in February. Robin and Pam are from the Living Earth Institute (www.livingearth.org) and worked with Proyecto Laguna to earn a grant from Pangea (www.pangeagiving.org.)The engineers visited the Ruiz Castillo School and met with school personnel, our parent group, and a local contractor. They are currently working on their final technical designs. We hope to start construction in April.

School Gardens and Health Education
We continue to work with the Ministry of Education on the school garden project. In the month of February a Ministry of Education representative gave a seminar to Proyecto Laguna and school personnel on nutrition and how best to utilize a school garden.We are also in the process of coordinating with the Ministry of Health to set up health and hygiene classes for the schools. We hope to start these classes in the next few weeks

Thank you
Thank you to everyone who made donations this month. We depend on your donations to make a difference in the lives of the people of Diria. A special thanks to the Robeson family who, after reading our previous newsletter, decided to sponsor to the Guadamuz family. Thanks to the Robeson’s generosity, the Guadamuz children will be able to attend school this year.

Photographer
Photos in this update are courtesy of Kristine Ambrose. To see a selection of the photographs of our project taken by visiting photographer Kristine Ambrose please link to her website: http://www.kristineambrose.com/events.asp

How You Can Make a Difference Today
To make a donation now connect to our website: http://www.proyectolaguna.com/
For questions or comments feel free to contact us at news@proyectolaguna.com

Website and Blog Updates
You can find complete details and read current and past blog updates on our web site:
Proyecto Laguna Website - http://proyectolaguna.cmail4.com/l/355704/8i4irlyi/www.proyectolaguna.com
Pass It On! Please Share This Newsletter With Others

February Newsletter

2008-03-03T16:23:00.006-06:00

School is in Session
The first day of the new school year in Nicaragua was on February 4th. The weeks leading up to this day were busy for us!
Proyecto Laguna distributed over 500 backpacks filled with school supplies to children registered in our program at the three schools we work in. We were also able to supply a backpack to each of the teachers filled with notebooks, markers, pencils, pens, glue, scissors, and more. Each school also received supplies of blank paper, art materials, and office supplies.
Children and their parents renewed their contracts with Proyecto Laguna agreeing to be responsible, attend school, and complete their school work. Over 100 new children registered with us and will receive school supplies starting in July.
The children and teachers were happy to have their new backpacks and the community gifted Proyecto Laguna with oranges, toasted corn, kisses on the cheek, and blessings as a way of showing thanks. Parents thanked us for giving their children an opportunity to attend school.
We were thankful to have two of our board members, Kathy and Buzz Belcher, as well as three volunteers, Hazel Alemanza, Raul Planas, and Christy Myers, to help us distribute backpacks. We couldn’t have done it without their help.
The cobblers have finished the first batch of shoes and they did a great job. The shoes are well made in high quality leather. The cobblers should be finishing up our initial order in the next week.
There are still children who will not receive shoes this year, as we receive more donations we hope to continue providing more shoes to more children.

Special Cases
In the last month Proyecto Laguna was approached and asked to help two families in great need.
The Guadamuz family was recommended by the vice principal of the Ruiz Castillo school. He reported that this family was extremely poor, the children had not attended school the previous year as the mother could not afford shoes, uniforms, and school supplies. In this family there are 4 generations living in a one room house. The grandmother and mother take in washing but the money earned from this barely pays for food.
The vice principal helped the mother register the children for school but he knew the children would not attend school without shoes or uniforms and would be unable to do their school work without paper and pencils.

The Leyva family lives in a small community called El Arroyo, about 30 minutes down a rough dirt road. We do not normally work in this community but were touched by the story of this family. Five months ago a mother of 5 was tragically killed in this poor farming community. The 5 children were taken in by their great-grandmother, Berta. Berta is an old woman and is unable to do any physical labor. She has no source of income and now lives with her 5 grandchildren in her one room house made from sticks tied together. The whole community has tried to help support this family by providing them with food but due the crops loss and prices increases no one has much to spare. The director of these children’s school had heard of our program and approached us to ask if we could help.
We visited both of these families and explained how Proyecto Laguna works; we would provide them with the necessary school supplies and in return they would be responsible for attending school regularly and completing their school work. Both families registered with us.
Upon hearing about the Leyva family Christy Myers agreed to sponsor all 5 children. The Leyva’s are very grateful. Due to Christy’s help we are able to make a difference in the lives of these children.
We do not yet have a specific sponsor for the Guadamuz family. Please contact us if you can help out with this family.

Penny Wars
We would like to thank The St. Vincent de Paul High School of Petaluma, California for choosing Proyecto Laguna to benefit from their Penny War fundraiser. As one of the charities benefiting from this fundraiser we have received a $1500 donation. This money will make a big difference in the lives of the children of Diria.
Penny Wars are a fun and effective way of raising money in a school, dorm, church or office setting. If you are interested in raising money for Proyecto Laguna please contact us and we will provide you with the information you need.

The American Nicaraguan Foundation
The American Nicaraguan Foundation has accepted applications from Proyecto Laguna’s schools. This means that our three school with benefit by receiving a shipment of teaching supplies twice a year. This will greatly benefit the schools and supplement the supplies that Proyecto Laguna is already supplying. We look forward to working further with the American Nicaraguan Foundation.

Sofia Kelly sets a great example
Sofia Kelly, a recent kindergarten graduate from the US, decided that she wanted to raise money to help Freddi, the boy her family sponsors. Along with a friend, she set up a lemonade stand and raised over ten dollars. Sofia mailed her earnings to us along with personal letters to Freddi wishing him well. We were impressed by Sofia’s caring and her willingness to work hard to try and help out a little boy who lives so far from her. If a young girl can raise $10, imagine what you could do.

Photogragher
To see a selection of the photographs of our project taken by visiting photographer Kristine Ambrose please link to her website: http://www.kristineambrose.com/events.asp

February
February is shaping up to be an exciting month for Proyecto Laguna. Mid month the engineers from Living Earth Institute will be visiting and completing their technical designs for the water/sanitation project at Ruiz Castillo. The school’s staff are very excited about this project and we look forward to it as well.
We also will be kicking off the school gardens project this month, working in conjunction with the Ministry of Education. We hope to have working gardens at our schools that will help to provide nutrition to the students as well as providing a hands-on natural science laboratory.
Proyecto Laguna will also start working with the Health Ministry to provide a variety of workshops for the students at our schools.
We hope that this year we continue to grow and flourish. We thank you all for your support in our first year and hope for your continued support.

Thank You
Thank to everyone who made a donation in the month of January. We depend on donations from persons such as you. We would like to say a special thank you to Karen Ameloot, Rebecca Parr and Natalie Christensen who donated several personal hygiene kits to Proyecto Laguna.

January Newsletter

2008-03-03T15:21:00.004-06:00

Non-Profit Status

Proyecto Laguna received a wonderful holiday gift this year, non-profit status! Proyecto Laguna is now officially a 501c3 Certified Non-Profit Public Charity in the United States. We are very excited for the opportunities this brings us and the benefits it brings to you, our donors. All donations are now tax deductible, and having governmental recognition opens a lot of doors for us.As a result of our non-profit status, all donations made in 2007 are tax deductible. We will be sending out receipts to all of our donors in the last year to use for tax purposes. If you don’t receive your receipt by the end of January please contact us at info@proyectolaguna.com.

Sanitation Project

In other good news, the Living Earth Institute has been awarded a grant from the Pangea Foundation to come to the Ruiz Castillo school and install two water tanks, rain gutters, and repair/replace the latrines. Our parent group is very proud of themselves as they helped solicit this grant, and the teachers and parents are all very much looking forward to the benefits the children will receive as a result of this project. The engineers from Living Earth plan on visiting in February to work on their plans. They are working in conjunction with Proyecto Laguna. We will be responsible for doing the community organizing and educating that is necessary to make this project a success.

Packing Day
In December teachers and parents from Diria came into Granada and helped us pack the backpacks that will be distributed to the children later this month. About 15 people showed up and helped us pack 700 backpacks with notebooks, pencils, erasers, dictionaries, pencil sharpeners, crayons, etc. Next week we will be distributing these bags to all of the children enrolled in our sponsorship program. Your efforts have made this happen and will make an incredible impact in the lives of these children.

Making Shoes
Proyecto Laguna is working with shoemakers in Diria to make pairs of shoes. Yes, there really are still cobblers! As we didn’t have enough money to make shoes for all the children, we asked the teachers to help us pick out the children who were most in need. The ones who are most in need are those who wouldn’t be attending school next year because they had no shoes. The teachers helped us gather shoe sizes for hundreds of children.Proyecto Laguna is working with local shoemakers because we believe it is important to keep investment within the community. By employing local workers, the money we pay to make shoes will go right back into Diria. If we were to buy shoes in the marketplace our money would go to shoes made in China. We have also found that by employing locals we get much higher quality goods, people take pride in making goods for their own community.As we receive more donations we hope to continue making more shoes for the other children registered with us. We need your help in this matter as there are children who need shoes who will not receive them at this time.

Photographer
At the end of December we had a visit from Kristine Ambrose, a professional photographer from Los Angeles. Kristine visited several of our families and took some truly amazing pictures. She plans on displaying her photos and donating a portion of the money she makes to Proyecto Laguna. We are also able to use her photos for our website and other advertisements. All the photos in this newsletter were taken by Kristine.
You can visit her website at: http://www.kristineambrose.com/

Thank you
We would like to send out a special thank you to Turf Valley Country Club located in Ellicot City, Maryland. They collected over $600 and donations of medicine. Thank you for your generosity.
We would also like to thank everyone who sponsored a child and those who donated money this month. Thank you for supporting the work we are doing and helping the children in Diria succeed in school and in life.

This newsletter will be sent out monthly and will keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on. Your help is greatly appreciated.

December Newsletter

2007-12-12T11:07:00.000-06:00

The Christmas shopping season is in full swing and that means many people are searching for ways to give meaningful gifts to others.
If you want to give gifts this year that have true meaning, and can actually make a small difference in the world, consider giving donations to Proyecto Laguna as Christmas gifts.
Donations of any size can make a big difference in the lives of the children in Diriá. Here are some examples of what your gift donation could do:

$10-enough clean water for the 250 students at Anne Frank School for a week -They currently have no local water source.

$25-Printing costs for school exams which children now have to pay and often cannot afford.

$50- Shoes, uniform, backpack, and school supplies for one student

$100-Sponsorship of one child for a year-including school supplies, medical care, and supporting their school

$200-Shovels, hoes, seeds, and all the other supplies needed to start a school garden that will help add fruits and vegetables to the children’s diet

$500-650 pounds of rice and 330 pounds of beans to provide a school lunch

$720-one year salary for the school nurse

$1000- four month supply of prescription and non-prescription medication for students in all three schools

$5000-construction of a school kitchen to assist in the preparation of school meals

When you make a gift donation you will be provided with a letter addressed to the gift recipient describing our project and showing that you made a donation in their name.
We hope that you will consider giving charitable donations to Proyecto Laguna as Christmas gifts this year.

A Special Thank You
We would like to thank Stephanie Lerner, who asked people to donate to us for her birthday this year. Due to Stephanie’s generosity we received a $5000 donation! This is our single largest donation to date and we are very appreciative. As a result of this donation we are well on our way to providing shoes to the children of Diriá and are also hoping to be able to repair and improve the kindergarten classroom at the Anne Frank school. Thank you Stephanie, you have made a difference in the lives of many in Diriá.

Graduation
The school year in Nicaragua has now ended and the children are on vacation until the start of February.
In the past week we have attended the graduations for the kindergarteners and the 6th graders at the three schools we work in.
The Ruiz Castillo school dedicated their graduation to Proyecto Laguna, which was quite an honor. Tracy Finch (co-founder) and Jennifer Schwinn (Director of Community Development) were invited to sit on stage during the graduation ceremony. As each child graduated they shook hands with Tracy and Jennifer before they left the stage. It was a wonderful experience to watch the children, standing with their parents, proudly receive their diplomas.
The director of Ruiz Castillo told us that they dedicated the graduation to Proyecto Laguna to show their appreciation of all of the work we are doing to help their school. This, once again, is a reminder that even though we feel there is so much left to do, what we have already done is greatly appreciated.
We would also like to thank everyone who sponsored a child and those who donated money this month. Thank you for supporting the work we are doing. Your donations make a difference.

Year in Review
As the end of the year nears we have been reflecting on our accomplishments. It has been a year of learning and challenges, also of joy and accomplishment. We have been able to establish many positive relationships in the community of Diriá and have been able to make a small difference in the lives of the children. We have been greatly impressed with this community; their warmth, their friendship, and their willingness to work hard to improve the lives of their children.
We would like to thank all of you for your support this, our first, year. Thank you for your donations of money, goods, and services. Thank you for spreading the word about our project. We have high hopes for next year and many years into the future. We hope to continue to work with all of you.

Thank you

We would like to thank everyone who sponsored a child and those who donated money this month. Thank you for supporting the work we are doing and helping the children in Diria succeed in school and in life.How you can helpTo make a donation now connect to our website http://www.proyectolaguna.com/For questions or comments feel free to contact us at mailto:contact@proyectolaguna.com ctolaguna.comThis newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.

November Newsletter

2007-11-05T07:36:00.000-06:00

Update

The last few months in Nicaragua have been difficult. Hurricane Felix wiped out the north part of the Atlantic coast and recent rains have caused major flood damage in the north. Many people have died; many more are sick, homeless, and/or dealing with a variety of issues caused by these disasters.
Though our area has had record rain this year we have been spared any major physical damages. Due to the heavy rains most farmers nationwide have lost the crops they sowed just before the rains hit. As a result, prices are going up and many poor families cannot even afford to buy beans. Many of the families Proyecto Laguna works with live off of subsistence farming. These families will struggle this year with providing their families adequate nutrition.
The Nicaraguan school year ends on November 23rd and the schools are busy giving finals and preparing for graduation celebrations. Proyecto Laguna is helping the schools pay for part of the graduation festivities. Proud kindergarteners, sixth graders, and high school students will soon be receiving their diplomas.
This is a time of a lot of work for us. We are gearing up for the start of the new school year in February. It is our goal to provide backpacks, school supplies, uniforms, and shoes to over 600 students whose families cannot afford these things. We have already had the backpacks made by local seamstresses and we are able to buy the school supplies. We don’t have enough funding for the shoes and uniforms. Shoes are of the utmost importance as children will not attend school if they don’t have shoes. If they have to, a child can wear a uniform that is stained and patched, a little too small, or a little too big, but when a pair of shoes is worn through a new pair is necessary. A pair of sturdy shoes made a local cobbler costs $6. Your donation of $100 will buy 16 pairs of shoes and provide a job for a cobbler. Please take the time to make a donation now and help these children go to school next year.

To make a donation click here-http://www.proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

Give Child Sponsorships for the Holidays
Charitable donations make wonderful holiday gifts. This year, give the people on your list something that will make a difference. We will provide you with information on the child, a picture of the child and letter from them for you to provide to the recipient. If you want to make a monetary donation in another person’s name we can provide you with a letter from us thanking them for the donation and explaining our project and what their donation will do to help the children of Diria.
Last year, Tracy, our co-founder, gave her grandmother a child sponsorship for her 94th birthday. Tracy’s grandmother says that she has the child’s picture on her refrigerator and she is happy every time she looks into his smiling face. She likes knowing that she is helping him go to school.
Every year we worry about buying people gifts and often give people things they don’t really need. This year give the people on your list something that can help a child succeed in school and in life.

To make a donation click here-http://www.proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

Water Projects
Proyecto Laguna is working with the Living Earth Institute (livingearth.org). The mission of Living Earth Institute is to empower communities to protect their health and environment through the sustainable use of water resources.
Living Earth and Proyecto Laguna are working together to build/repair latrines at our three schools and to put in roof gutters that will collect rainwater and provide a source of water in the rainy season.
Two of our schools, Anne Frank and La Nicarao, have no local water source. Collecting rainwater will help them during the rainy season. Our other school, Ruiz Castillo, has water from the municipal source but this source is often turned off. We plan on installing a tank to store municipal water for use when this source is turned off. Also, we hope to put in a rainwater collection system at this school as a back-up water source.
Currently Living Earth and Proyecto Laguna are working together searching for funding for these projects. In the coming months we hope to have an engineer from Living Earth visit us to assess the needs at the three schools and finalize technical designs. We hope to be constructing at all three schools next year.
Proyecto Laguna is also working with the American Nicaraguan Foundation in the hopes that wells can be drilled at both Anne Frank and La Nicaroa. The vision of the American Nicaraguan foundation is to foster increased opportunity, self sufficiency and dignity for the poor in Nicaragua. Proyecto Laguna is currently working with them to complete an application for funding for these wells.
Due to the depth of groundwater in the areas of these two schools, estimated to be between 650 to 750 feet, the cost of well drilling is very high. It is our hope that if we are able to assist 2 or three large organizations, such as the American Nicaraguan Foundation, in working together they will be more able to serve these communities.

To make a donation click here-http://www.proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

School Gardens
Proyecto Laguna, working in concert with the Ministry of Education, is going to help Ruiz Castillo start a school garden. The Ministry of Education has a school garden program which teams up with local foundations to help schools improve education and nutrition through the implementation of school gardens. The Ministry of Education is responsible for training, Proyecto Laguna is responsible for providing the day to day support needed to keep the project going, and the school staff, students, and parents are responsible for keeping the garden healthy and productive. The goal is for the garden to not only increase the nutritional value of the school lunch by adding in needed fresh vegetables, but also for the children to learn about responsibility and natural sciences. We look forward to working on this project.

To make a donation click here-http://www.proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

Thank you
We would like to thank everyone who sponsored a child and those who donated money this month. Thank you for supporting the work we are doing and helping the children in Diria succeed in school and in life.

How you can help
To make a donation now connect to our website http://www.proyectolaguna.com/
For questions or comments feel free to contact us at contact@proye ctolaguna.com
This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.

July/August Newsletter

2007-09-05T10:25:00.000-06:00

Update
We are in need of sponsorships and donations in order to provide children with school supplies, uniforms, and shoes for the next school year. Please help us ensure that every child in Diria has the opportunity to attend school next year. The children in this picture are unsponsored and are writing letters to thier future sponsors.
In the last two months we have been working on several things. Our seamstresses and tailors have been busily making backpacks for the next school year, we had a second movie night, we handed out packets of school supplies to over 600 children, and more.
We are enjoying our work in Diria and are developing warm, positive relationships with the community. We hope you can help us continue doing this work by making a donation or sponsoring a child. Remember, 100% of donations go directly to our programs; nothing is taken out for overhead.
You can make a donation by linking to our website at -http://proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

We need your help!
We have had a nice response from a few people who are now sponsoring children. Unfortunately, there are still over 600 children who don’t have sponsors. The new school year in Nicaragua starts in January, and though that seems far away, we need to start working now to get uniforms and shoes made. It will cost $18 per child just to provide them with a backpack, a skirt or pants, two shirts, and a pair of shoes. This doesn’t include the cost of notebooks, pencils, etc.
As it is currently, unless we are able to raise a significant amount of money, we will be unable to provide uniforms and shoes to the children next year.
Please take the time to sponsor a child. For $100 a year your child will receive shoes, a uniform, backpack, and school supplies at the start of the year, a suplemental packet of school supplies mid year, as well as year round basic medical care. The child’s school will also receive support for classroom and office supplies as well as larger project such as installing water tanks or repairing buildings.

If you do not wish to sponsor a child but want to make a donation toward providing uniforms and supplies for next year, that is also welcome.
We also would like to invite people to challenge their work, school, church, or other organization to raise money for these children. We are able to provide information including brochures, a slide shows, and ideas on how to structure a challenge.
You can make a donation by linking to our website at -http://proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

For more information on how to fundraise or create a challenge you can contact us at jen@proyectolaguna.com

Seamstresses
Our group of seamstresses has been working overtime to make 700 backpacks that will be distributed to the children in January. We started early to give them time to make the uniforms also.

The seamstresses assisted us purchasing the correct materials and then divided it amongst themselves. Since then they have been hard at work sewing when electicity is available, some of them even using old fashioned foot pedal machines when the electricity is off.

We look forward to receiving the bags and hope to have enough donations and sponsorships to get started to on the uniform shirts in the next few weeks.

How Two Teenagers Made a Difference
We would like to send out a special thank you to Stephanie Huddleston and Jordan Willis in Woodinville, WA. Stephanie and Jordan are both 13 years olds, who together did odd jobs around their neighborhood during their summer vacation. They chose to use the money they earned to sponsor a child. Stephanie and Jordan are good examples of people with good hearts who are willing to work hard to help others. We are impressed by their example and hope they are proud of themselves. Hopefully they will enjoy their sponsorship of 8 year old Escarleth.

You can make a donation by linking to our website at -http://proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

Supply Distribution
In early July we distributed packets of school supplies to over 600 students at our 3 schools. Each child received 4 notebooks with paper, 3 pencils, 2 pens, a pencil sharpener, an eraser, crayons or colored pencils, a coloring book for the younger children, and a set of geometry tools for the older children. The children were very happy with their new supplies. We were also able to provide every teacher with paper, pens, pencils, glue, whiteboard markers, scissors and masking tape.

Second Movie Night
Our second movie night was a roaring success. Standing room only with many chairs supporting two children. The parent group raised close to $100 they hope to use to help build new latrines and a water tank at their school.
The children are constantly asking when the next movie night will be and our other two schools are starting to plan a movie night to fundraise for themselves.

In the News
The word about Proyecto Laguna is getting out! The media came to movie night and interviewed us about our project. To link to the article in Nuevo Diario click here- http://www.elnuevodiario.com.ni/2007/08/28/departamentales/57398
We are very excited that we are getting local recognition.

Thank You
We would like to thank Brianna Robeson and her class at the Charyl Stockwell Academy in Hartland, Michigan. This 1st and 2nd grade class collected school supplies and sent them down to us. They are going to do a fall collection of school supplies also. The children and teachers of Diria were delighted with the supplies. What a great example Brianna and her class are.

We would also like to thank Carol Caldwell and the women of Gray’s Lake, Illinois Jazzercise studio. They donated medical supplies which Carol Caldwell brought down in her recent visit to Nicaragua. Our school nurse appreciated the supplies and the children will also.

We would also like to thank everyone who sponsored a child and those who donated money this month. Thank you for supporting the work we are doing and helping the children in Diria succeed in school and in life.

You can make a donation by linking to our website at -http://proyectolaguna.com/donate/index.htm

How you can help
To make a donation now connect to our website http://www.proyectolaguna.com/For questions or comments feel free to contact us at contact@proyectolaguna.com
This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.
If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter send an e-mail to: contact@proyectolaguna.com

June Newsletter

2007-06-20T17:24:00.000-06:00

Update
These last couple months have been busy, as usual. We have been working to get sponsors for all of the children registered with us. We have had a wonderful response and we are very thankful, but we still have over 500 children in need of sponsors. Please take the time to sponsor a child today. $100 will supply your child with school supplies, medical care, and support their school for a year.
Sponsor a child now-http://www.proyectolaguna.com/sponsorachild/index.html
We are gearing up to give a mid year packet of school supplies to all of our registered children. The school year in Nicaragua is from January to December and July is the mid year point. We have been assembling packets of school supplies so that each registered child will receive pencils, pens, crayons or colored pencils, notebooks, pencil sharpeners, erasers, and for the older children a packet of supplies for studying geometry.

We have been meeting with a group of tailors and seamstresses who are going to make school bags and uniforms for all of our registered kids. We are getting started now, budgeting, buying fabric, etc. so that we are ready when the new school year begins in January. We are working with people in the community so that the money we spend to help the children stays within the community.

Diria celebrated "Children's Day" with big parties in the schools. The teachers put on performances for the kids, there were pinatas and a lot of food to eat.

It has been a full month and we have really enjoyed it.

Surprise Party
June 19th was Tracy Finch’s (co-founder of Proyecto Laguna) birthday. In celebration Ruiz Castillo school threw her a surprise birthday party. As Tracy entered the school for a fictional meeting she found all of the morning children (about 300) lined up in the plaza singing her happy birthday. They had two piñatas, which the children enjoyed immensely, and served a delicious lunch to us and all the teachers. Each child presented Tracy with a birthday card and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Each birthday card had a special note to Tracy thanking her for providing shoes and school supplies to them and their school, thanking her for her big heart, and wishing her many more birthdays in the future.
It was a touching gesture by the school which made us realize that though we feel we are just getting started, what we have already done is very much appreciated by the community.

Child Sponorship-Berta's Story
Please take the time today to help a child in Diria succeed in school and in life.
This month we would like to feature Berta. Berta is 11 years old and has two brothers and one sister. She is a very smart girl and gets good grades, but may not pass the 6th grade because she has so many absences. Berta’s mother, Margarita, is a single mother who takes in washing and struggles to make enough money to feed her family. So, to help support her family, Berta works a few days a week in Granada selling ceramic whistles to tourists. Though school is important, and Berta realizes this, she has to make the choice between getting an education for her future and eating today. It is no mystery why she chooses to miss school in order to work and make money.
Berta reports that her mother hopes someday to buy them a mattress so that they won’t have to keep sleeping on the floor with just rice sacks for cushion and warmth. A thin foam mattress costs $11. For Margarita, who makes about $40 a month, that is a fortune.
Sponsoring Berta would take the stress off her family for buying her school supplies and paying for her medical care.
We hope that as our funds grow we will have enough to hire women such as Margarita to work cooking school lunch or cleaning the school and pay them a fair wage so that their children are free to attend school.
There are over 500 children with stories similar to Berta’s who need to be sponsored.
Please take the time today to sponsor a child in Diria. Help us empower the community through education.

Sponsor a child now-http://www.proyectolaguna.com/sponsorachild/index.html

Movie Night
On June 15th we had our first movie night at the Ruiz Castillo School. We have been working to help the parents learn how to raise money so that they can take an active and empowered roll in helping their children’s school. So, we decided to have a movie night. Proyecto Laguna provided the movie and the projector, the school provided the place, and the parents brought snacks and drinks to sell and helped to set everything up.
Movie night was a great success. One Hundred and seventy people came and watched Madagascar (in Spanish of course) on the big screen. The kids loved it. They were laughing and clapping and cheering. None of the kids had ever been to a movie theater so this was their first time seeing a movie on a big screen. We don’t have a final figure but the parents raised about $100 and are excited to do it again sometime soon.
The parents group, on their own, have opened a bank account and are in charge of all the money they raise. They have chosen a president, treasurer, secretary, etc. Through raffles and the movie night they have raised over $200 in 3 months. For a place were most people make under $100 a month that is a lot of money. They are very happy about their success and hope to continue making money so they can help pay to build latrines in their school.

Thank you
We would like to thank Nicholls State University, school of nursing, for donating $500 dollars to pay for two girls, Dayanira and Elizabeth, to receive medical care for seizure disorders. With this money Dayanira and Elizabeth will be able to get long overdue brain scans and we will be able to pay for a few months of the mediations they need to manage their disorders. Thank you Nicholls State University!
We would also like to thank everyone who sponsored a child and those who donated money this month. We have received more donations this month than any previous month! Thank you for supporting the work we are doing and helping the children in Diria succeed in school and in life.

How you can help

To make a donation now connect to our website http://www.proyectolaguna.com/For questions or comments feel free to contact us at contact@proyectolaguna.com

This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.

If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter send an e-mail to: contact@proyectolaguna.com

Sponsor a Child Today

2007-05-21T13:49:00.000-06:00

There are over 500 children who need sponsors.

Help a child succeed in school and in life.

Proyecto Laguna hopes to provide all of our enrolled children with a packet of mid-year school supplies in July, provide shoes to the children who still don't have them, and keep providing free basic medical care to all.

We need your help to make this happen. Please take the time to sponsor a child today.

http://proyectolaguna.com/sponsorachild/index.html

For $100 a year you can supply a child in Diria with school supplies, basic medical care, and support their school. You will receive a picture of your child and letter from him or her. You will also receive information on your child‘s family and your child’s goals for the school year. All children available for sponsorship have completed a contract with Proyecto Laguna. They have set goals for the school year and have agreed to attend school regularly and to put forth their best effort. The parents have agreed to support their child in attending school and completing their schoolwork. The parents have also agreed to participate in the school; attend parent meetings, assisting the teacher as needed, etc. All children who are sponsored will receive school supplies at the beginning of the school year in January; including uniforms, shoes and backpacks. A supplemental supply of school supplies will be provided in July (pencils, notebooks etc.). Sponsorship money will also be used to meet the child’s basic medical needs and to support their school.If you would like to help a child in Diria succeed in school and life, sponsor a child now. If you are interested in sponsoring more than one child we can assist in finding a sibling group so you can sponsor children from one family. If you would like to challenge your place of business, church, or other group to sponsor a large number of children please contact us and we can provide you with information on how to do this, contact@proyectolaguna.com

Click below to sponsor a child now: http://proyectolaguna.com/sponsorachild/index.html

April/May Newsletter

2007-04-09T12:06:00.000-06:00

Update
The last two months have been busy for Proyecto Laguna. We have been moving forward with our plans as well as gearing up for our child sponsorship program. We have registered over 500 children between 3 schools who need sponsors to help pay for their school supplies, medical care, and support their school.
Also, we have started working with the parents at Ruiz Castillo to set goals and fundraise for larger projects.
We met with a local shoemaker in Diriá and put in an order for over 270 pairs of shoes! Buying directly from a shoemaker helps increase the quality and durability of the shoes. It also provide a job within the community. So far, he has delivered half of the order and the shoes are high quality. The children and their families are very happy with them.
We also decided to start helping a third school.

Nicarao School
The headmasters of Anne Frank are also headmasters of the Nicaroa school in the rural community of La Zopilota. They approached Proyecto Laguna and asked us to work with this school. They explained that this community is very poor and needs help. The Nicaroa school serves just over 50 children in 2 multi-age classrooms. The nearest water source for this school is 6 kilometers away. Many children are unable to go to school because they are busy transporting water during the day. This is a rural community and many children work in the fields to help support their families. The children at Nicarao were a beautiful and polite group. As we entered the classroom they all stood and said "Buenos Dias", at recess time many of the children stopped to chat with us. We at Proyecto Laguna feel that this school deserves whatever assistance we can lend.

Child Sponsorship
For $100 a year you can supply a child in Diria with school supplies, basic medical care, and support their school. You will receive a picture of your child and letter from him or her. You also will receive information on the family of your child and the child’s goals for the school year. All sponsored children and their families have completed a contract with Proyecto Laguna. They have set goals for the school year. The children have agreed to attend school regularly and to put forth their best effort. The parents have agreed to support their child in attending school and completing their schoolwork. The parents have also agreed to participate in the school; attend parent meetings, assisting the teacher as needed, etc. We have completed registration at all three schools and have over 500 children in need of sponsors.
If you would like to help a child in Diria succeed in school and in life, sponsor a child now. If you are interested in sponsoring more than one child we can assist in finding a sibling group so you can sponsor children from one family.

To sponsor a child see our website- http://proyectolaguna.com/sponsorachild/index.html

Here are some examples of children who need sponsors:

Naydelin Nohemy Roderiguez, Pre-School
Naydelin is 4 years old and in pre-school. She has an older brother who also goes to Ruiz Castillo. Naydelin’s father works as a money taker on a public bus and makes $2.25 a day.
Naydelin’s favorite animals are bunnies and her favorite color is red. She likes to eat beans and rice and hopes to be a teacher when she grows up.

Jonny Pedro Franco Gómez, 3rd grade
Jonny is 10 years old and in the third grade. He lives in a large extended family with 13 children and 6 adults in the home. His mother makes and sells tortillas and brings home approximatley $10 a week.
Jonny’s goals for this school year are to study, attend class daily, and to pass his grade. He likes to play basketball and his favortie animals are dogs. Jonny hopes to be a police officer when he grows up.

Berta Adilia Gutierrez Mercado, 6th grade
Berta is 11 years old and has a brother, Francisco, who is also in 6th grade. Berta lives with extended family, there are 3 adults in her home, and 4 children. Her mother, Margarita, works cleaning and ironing clothes. Margarita makes $40 a month to support her family. Berta works before school and on weekends selling clay whistles to toursists, in nearby Granada, to help support her family.
Berta reports that this school year she wants to graduate from primary school and improve her reading skills. She hopes someday to have a career with computers.

Parent Meeting
Proyecto Laguna held the first parent meeting at Ruiz Castillo. There was an impressive turn out of 26 parents who were all motivated to improve their children’s present and future. In this meeting we explained to the parents the model we are using of community involvement and investment. We explained that our position is to help the community learn how to set goals, plan, fund, implement, and support projects. We will assist in facilitating this process and in funding, but that the community would be responsible for raising money to make a symbolic donation toward the project. The parents were excited and motivated and had many ideas on how to proceed.
The parents, and school administration, set the goals of building new latrines and setting up a water tank (this would be back up water as the municipal water system is often off). The parents have started fundraising and in their first raffle raised 1000 cordoba (about $55 dollars)! The parents were very excited about their success and plan on having regular raffles as well as setting up a monthly movie night at the school to raise more money.
Proyecto Laguna is working with engineers in the states on latrine design and implementation.
If you are interested in donating towards the building of a latrine and/or a water tank please visit www.proyectolaguna.com to make a donation.

Clean Water
Proyecto Laguna has also been busy contacting organizations who specialize in installing wells to see if they may be able to help in this area. There are three small villages in this area, without access to water; Palo Quemado, Los Jirones, and La Zopilota. We are hoping to join with a well building organization who can help these villages. If any of you could help link us to organizations who build wells please contact us at contact@proyectolaguna.com.

Fundraising
If you are interested in fundraising for Proyecto Laguna there are many options. You can put out a challenge to your business, church, professional group, or extended family to raise money or to sponsor a large number of children. You can start a penpal/fundraising relationship with a classroom in Diria. You can have a fundraising event in your community. Proyecto Laguna can provide you with fundraising information, including a slideshow explaining our project, the community, and the needs of the community.
For more information on fundraising, e-mail us at jen@proyectolaguna.com.

Donations
Thank you to all of you who made donations in March, your donation is appreciated and has made a difference in the lives of the children in Diria.
A special thank you to Hazel, Raul, and Ramon who helped greatly registering the children for sponsorship, and to the Nicholls State University in Louisiana's nursing program for thier donation, we look forward to working with you in the future.

How you can help - To make a donation now connect to our website www.proyectolaguna.com
For questions or comments feel free to contact us at contact@proyectolaguna.com

This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on. If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter send an e-mail to: contact@proyectolaguna.com

March Newsletter

2007-03-05T13:50:00.000-06:00

Update
February was an interesting and busy month. We met with the parent administrations at both schools and with the Ministry of Education. We are hoping to form a committee of parents at both schools who will work more closely with us and assist us in our work. We feel that community involvement in the project is integral in long term sustainability and hope to assist the community in learning how to plan, complete, and sustain necessary projects. We also hope that working closely with the community will help us identify the issues and projects that the community values and will be motivated to participate in and sustain. One of our big tasks in the coming months will be forming this committee of community members and starting to identify and work on projects with them.

Penpals
We completed out first round of penpal letters with the pre-school at Anne Frank. The children answered a variety of questions such as their favorite foods, activities, etc. These were sent off to the states to respond to letters from a class in Virginia. We look forward to receiving more letters from the class in Virginia.
If you know of a class that would be interested in fundraising for Proyecto Laguna and having a pen pal relationship with a class in Nicaragua, send an e-mail to jen@proyectolaguna.com.

Casino Night Success
On February 10th we had a Casino Night benefit at Euro Café. It was a great night and we raised over $850. Over 30 people attended and we had a nice evening of chatting, gaming, and telling people about the work we are doing. Thank you to Euro Café, the local businesses who donated to our silent auction, and to everyone who attended, your support is appreciated.

Medical Exams
In the third week of February, two volunteers, Robin Kirschbaum and Staci Morgan, assisted the school nurse in performing physical exams on the majority of the children in both schools. We plan on completing exams on the children who were absent in the coming weeks. Children were weighed, measured, and checked for a variety of illnesses. Children with medical issues were provided with vouchers to go to the medical clinic in Granada. Many children were found to have parasites, lice, and suffer from malnutrition. We now are going to provide treatment for the lice and parasites and work on implementing vitamin treatments. Thank you to Robin and Staci for their hard work and thank you to everyone who donated money to assist us in paying for the necessary medications and medical care.

Donations
Thank you to all of you who made donations in February, your donation is appreciated and has made a difference in the lives of the children in Diria.

A special thanks to the people of Turf Valley Country Club and to the friends of Robin Kirschbaum. Each group sent down a suitcase stuffed with much needed medical supplies. Your donations are appreciated and will be put to good use.

How you can help
To make a donation now connect to our website www.proyectolaguna.com
If you are interested in doing a fundraiser at your place of business, church, or other organization send an e-mail to jen@proyectolaguna.com. We will assist you with information and materials to use for fundraising.

For questions or comments feel free to contact us at contact@proyectolaguna.com

This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.

If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter send an e-mail to: contact@proyectolaguna.com

February Newsletter

2007-01-11T14:04:00.001-06:00

Start of School
January was an exciting month for us as we geared up for the start of the new school year. We were able to use out initial donations to provide school supplies to the neediest children and some basic supplies to the schools.

The first day of school was January 29th and once again the school yards are filled with children. We installed wall mounted pencil sharpeners at both Anne Frank and Ruiz Castillo. The children had never seen wall mounted pencil sharpeners before and lined up as soon as they were installed to use them. We also provided pencils, erasers, and paper to both schools. These supplies will be given out throughout the school year to the neediest students. We also provided shoes to many students who were not attending school because they had none. The smiles on the faces of these children as they proudly wore their new shoes were wonderful. Both schools received donations of jump ropes, basketballs, volleyballs, soccer balls, baseballs, and baseball bats for use at recess and in physical education classes. We are off to a good start and hope to be able to continue to provide much needed supplies to these schools.

Casino Night Benefit
Proyecto Laguna is having a casino night and silent auction at Euro Café on Saturday, February 10th, at 6:30pm. Euro Café is on the northwest corner of the central park in Granada, Nicaragua. Entrance is 200 córdobas and includes gambling chips, a free drink, and a free dessert. All proceeds will go directly to Proyecto Laguna. We are looking forward to this opportunity to raise funds and spread awareness of the work we are doing. We hope to see you and your friends on Saturday.

Pen Pals
Proyecto Laguna has started a pen pal program with classrooms in the United States. We are starting with a pre-school class in Virginia that is fundraising for us. They have sent us introduction letters and pictures and the pre-school children at Anne Frank have drawn pictures and been helped to write letters to be sent back. If you know of a class that would be interested in fundraising for Proyecto Laguna and having a pen pal relationship with a class in Nicaragua, send an e-mail to jen@proyectolaguna.com.

Children's Medical Care
Our school nurse, Dina Morales Alemán, started working with the start of the new school year. She is working at each of our schools one day a week. Dina is able to provide basic medical care to the students; wound care, medicines for minor illnesses, etc. In just the first days of school Dina has been approached by a girl in need of eye surgery, a boy who, due to a fall, was unconscious for 30 minutes-his parents couldn’t afford to take him to a doctor, a girl with a serious skin condition, and many others.

Children who require medical care beyond what Dina can provide need assistance paying for that care. We are able to refer these children to the Alabama Clinic in Granada, where, for $1.70, they are able to receive all of their medical care throughout the course of their illness or disease.

We are planning on conducting physical examinations on all of the children at both schools in March. We hope to see each child and assess physical health and refer children on for further medical, dental, or eye care, as needed. After conducting the medical exams we are planning on treating the children for parasites and lice and providing vitamins. We hope to conducts these examinations and treatments every 6 months.

To this end, we are requesting donations to assist in treating these children with much needed medical care. The cost will be a total of $3 per child; 50 cents for parasite treatment, 1 dollar for lice treatment, and 1.50 for vitamins. With a total of 750 to 800 children being served we need to raise $2,400 dollars. If we are able to raise extra money we will be able to provide this service to other children in the community.

At a cost of $3 per child for basic parasite, lice, and vitamin treatment and $1.70 for medical treatment for serious illness, how many children can you afford to help?
Please connect to our website to make a donation today http://www.proyectolaguna.com/.

If you are interested in doing a fundraiser at your place of business, church, or other organization send an e-mail to jen@proyectolaguna.com. We will assist you with information and materials to use for fundraising.

Donations
Thank you to all of you who made donations in January, your donation is appreciated and has made a difference in the lives of the children in Diria.

To make a donation now connect to our website www.proyectolaguna.com
For questions or comments feel free to contact us at contact@proyectolaguna.com

This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.

If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter send an e-mail to: contact@proyectolaguna.com

Newsletter January 2007

2007-01-11T13:27:00.000-06:00

Getting Started
Proyecto Laguna is getting started as is the new school year in Nicaragua. School starts on January 29th and there will be approximately 750 students in the two schools we are currently working with.

We have been meeting with the headmasters and the mayor’s office to get things off the ground and are meeting with all the teachers next week to introduce them to our project.

It is an exciting time for us and we are getting off to a good start. We have just hired a school nurse to work part time, and are gathering school supplies for the start of the school year; notebooks, pencils, etc.

Next week, Rodney Robeson and his family are coming to Diria and are going to install 15 wall mounted pencil sharpeners in the schools. This is going to help a lot as most of the children can not afford to buy pencil sharpeners and are often out of class trying to find a student or teacher who has one they can use. Rodney and his family are also bringing 2,000 pencils to help stock the schools for the new school year.

Thank you all for your support in this endeavor. We look forward to helping the people in the community of Diria gain the skills to improve their own lives.

School Nurse
We have hired a school nurse to work two days a week, one day at each of the schools we are currently serving. Dina Morales Alemán is a licensed nurse who studied at the Polytechnic University of Nicaragua. Dina grew up, and currently lives, in Diria and will be working at the elementary school she went to as a child, Ruiz Castillo.

We are currently only able to hire Dina part time. We hope that in the future we will be able to raise enough money to offer her a full time job. Salary for a fulltime nurse is $200 a month. When we are able to hire her fulltime we will also be able to provide medical services in more schools.

We are currently in the process of acquiring all the supplies that will be needed by Dina. We need everything; gauze, alcohol, a scale, a stethoscope, parasite medication, the list goes on and on. If anyone is able to assist us financially or materially with these supplies it would be greatly appreciated.

Donations
Thank you to all of the people who have made donations to Proyecto Laguna. Your donation makes a difference in the lives of many.

To contact us with any questions of comments send an e-mail to info@proyectolaguna.com

To make a donation, go to our website and click on the donate link www.proyectolaguna.com