Around Town
I could never get sick of these views. This is what you see when looking out of my door and to the left.
They built a small seafood store of sorts right next door and this appeared to be an opening ceremony... They cleaned up the area nicely, I just hope it doesn't start smelling like old seafood because that side of our house is made out of screening!
A shot from walking home on the beach road by my house.
Love the random cows roaming the streets. This one is out front of the elementary school in the center of town.
Work on the Side
The pastor from the church where I fed children every week (Pastor Jaime) asked if we could help out with an extra project.
One weekend, Liz, Ivana, and I went to help clear out a section of land (removing vegetation and trash) that they will eventually use to build a kinder!
We only worked for a couple of hours...
but they were very appreciative!
The girls with Pastor Jaime.
The after picture--we didn't take one at the start, but it was a big improvement!!
Weekly Feeding at Eben Ezer
Getting lined up to enter the church!
Pastor Jaime making sure that the littlest ones get in first :)
Some of the kids I brought to the feeding.
The dish-washing assembly line! Using the pila, we first soap up and scrub the dishes. Then we use a bowl with clean water to rinse them. Afterwards, we dry them with a towel and put them away.
Our transportation <3
Last Week of VAP
PEP group in the last week of the second session.
They made and decorated pyramids :)
Mural Project!
In the last week of VAP, we worked on a Mural Project. Two of our volunteers (Denise and Sean) had conducted video interviews in Spanish with children in Seattle, Washington regarding art and education. They also had the students pose questions for our kids in order to start up a correspondence. As part of this project, they decided to have our kids create a mural that could be hung up in the community.
Denise and Sean were volunteering with us for 2 months as part of a nonprofit that they started, called ChangeStream Media.
ChangeStream Media partners with other nonprofits to film videos or short documentaries for various purposes (to raise awareness about organizations or specific social issues, to recruit volunteers, to support fundraising, etc.). They can also offer a lot of good advice to anybody who is interested in using technology in the same way! I will post more information about the projects they did with Honduras Children later =)
As stated on their website, "ChangeStream Media is a Seattle-based nonprofit organization that uses art, technology and digital storytelling to spread important ideas and support innovative grassroots organizations in disadvantaged communities around the world."
http://changestreammedia.org/
Here are the kids at the VAP Kinder group brainstorming about what they wanted to put on the mural. The theme was: "Educación para un Buen Porvenir."
Kids from the VAP Church group waiting to paint!
ChangeStream Media also has a Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/changestream
Brainstorming...
Let the creativity begin!
"We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot forsee." --Marian Wright Edelman
There is always time to pose for a picture!
=)
Adorable.
It was awesome to be there to help the kids express themselves through art.
Look at that focus!
Each child got to "sign" the mural...
with a handprint.
:):)
The finished product (although it didn't all fit in the picture)!
Too cute :)
A few of the volunteers had the children sign t-shirts as a memory <3
"Spread the love of God through your life but only use words when necessary."
<3 Mother Teresa <3
VAP End of the Year Fiesta!
On the last Friday of VAP, we had a party to celebrate an awesome program :):)
We had snacks and games to keep everybody entertained and happy!
Musical chairs...
and somehow I snuck into the game :)
Favorite game EVER: Ships and Sailors (Spanish style)! It's kind of a glorified Simon Says game that I learned at cheerleading camp in high school and then used a lot in my old job facilitating ropes courses and teambuilding exercises.
This command is obviously Chow-Time (4 people huddled on the ground pretending to eat!).
Ben--the human jungle jim!
We served pastelitos and chips to the kids.
Once again, a little bit of organized chaos is sometimes the best way to go!
“If you ever need a helping hand, it’s at the end of your arm. As you get older, remember the second hand is for helping others.” -Audrey Hepburn
Just hangin' out :)
We revealed the Mural Project and the kids were excited to see their work!
We had a great idea to let each child throw a water balloon at the volunteers...
Emma and I spent about an hour filling balloons up with water (they weren't water balloons so they were even bigger).
Waiting in line to get their balloons as I reviewed the "rules" for the water balloon throw.
I don't know why they were so excited ;)
Lining up... we look nervous!
And they look...
all too eager to soak us!
Ready, aim, fire!!
They got us good!
At the end of the party, I told all of the kids that this was the end of our Vacation Activities Program and that they should take the opportunity hug their volunteers. It got pretty emotional for a lot of us as we walked around and hugged all of the kids we had been working with for 3 months. Many of them will be involved in our projects during the school year, but not all of them. It was an awesome end to a great program <3
"Volunteers aren't paid: not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless."
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