Dear Friends,
The arrival of spring and the anticipations of Passover and Easter usher in new life, sprung from the earth, freed from captivity, and arisen. They mark the continual renewal of our human spirits, the essence of each of us wherever we find ourselves, here or in a third-world country: there’s always new hope and new life.
On Thursday, we return to Nicaragua for three weeks. We look most forward to spending time with our friends to observe, listen, review, and plan …but mostly “to be” together and to enjoy the miracles that happen when we take time to deepen our understanding of each other.
We never lose sight of all that you do to make this possible, and we are so grateful for you.
We send best wishes during this season of renewal, however, each of us welcomes, celebrates, and shares it with others. It’s a blessing in the lives of the many people we serve together.
Chuck
Archmere Academy and Nicaragua
It was a privilege to have been invited to Archmere Academy last week to share the work of Neighbors to Nicaragua with their very kind and thoughtful students. They are exploring the possibility of a service trip to our barrio, Nueva Esperanza, in November. We’re grateful to the director of academics and global studies coordinator, Mr. Tim Dougherty, for his leadership and hospitality. Tim will visit us in Nicaragua in a week to see our work first-hand, and to further map out an itinerary. We look forward to his arrival. Bienvenido! (Welcome!)
St. John the Beloved School: A community of friendship…sharing the spirit of St. Francis
Since our beginning in 2012, St. John the Beloved School has been a bedrock of support for our efforts through their projects, clothing drives, invitations to share the stories of our community, and through fundraising. These students are industrious! During Lent, the SJB student council organized a fundraising drive for our students at Centro de Opportunidad. Their inspiring work, generous sharing, and heartfelt efforts change lives and motivate us. Thank you!
Our “Wish List” is currently empty. Our gratitude list is currently full.
In our last newsletter, we shared our hope to raise funds to hire youth counselor Gian Carlos. The response from the M.B. Charitable Fund and the generosity of G.S through the Jewish Communal Fund was extraordinary!
We immediately implemented our program with our most vulnerable adolescents. They meet every Saturday morning with Gian Carlos who takes them through introspective and motivational exercises that lead them to further exercises in goal-setting and learning about combining efforts to problem-solve. Our students have an abundance of respect for him. So do we.
During our time in Nicaragua, we will explore a program for empowering the young women in our community in a mirror program. Eventually, we want to bring the two for productive, honest communication between young men and women.
It’s not only our students who are learning.
Hats off to our wonderful teachers, Marvin and Roberto. They have been attending summer programs, monthly government continuing education offerings, and they are learning a myriad of techniques from our master teacher, Jenny, about how to succeed in their new role as literacy teachers. After working under Jenny’s supervision, they now have their own students and are planning and teaching each day with supervision. Thank you Jenny and thank you Marvin and Roberto. Our community continues to grow stronger through your hard work!
Here’s to first teachers
We held our initial parent meeting for our new school year. The response was “standing room only”. Maycól, Jenny, and Amelia spoke at length with the many mothers who attended. They re-iterated the importance of parental involvement in their children’s education and explained the importance of the home as the child’s “first school.” On-line communication lines were set up, and support was pledged for these strong women who do so much to make their children be educationally fit. Before leaving, they requested a prayer for their children, and – of course – we were happy to comply.
