UpdateThe 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.
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.
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.
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.
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@proyectolaguna.com
This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.
Thank youWe 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@proyectolaguna.com
This newsletter will be sent out monthly and keep you informed of our news and the projects we are currently working on.
