Blog Posts

Happy Mother's Day

5/15/2017

I’m writing today in honor of mothers of children with special needs. I’ve had the blessing of getting to know many of you as your child’s teacher. I can never say I’ve walked in your shoes. But I can say how grateful I am that you’ve allowed me to walk with you a short distance along the path. I can thank you for sharing your child with me.

Happy Mother’s Day to you.

Your path is steeper, more rocky, than most. Progress may be measured in baby steps. It’s not the path you generally chose in the beginning, but it is the path you follow.

You and your child have taught me so much. You’ve taught me patience, joy in expression of single words, in walking a single step; peace when one day, or one hour, is quiet and calm. You’ve taught me that every child has strengths, that every child is capable of learning and growing. You’ve taught me that a child who may not be able to speak, or read and write, or sit calmly in a chair, may be capable of love to a depth that those of us on a more traditional path can only imagine.

I have a beautiful granddaughter with Down Syndrome. She speaks very little but her smile is as bright as a rainbow and her laughter is a birdsong in a summer breeze. I'm honored to walk a little ways alongside her mother.

Many of the mothers we meet in Peru are single parents, often struggling with severe poverty. They may wash clothes by hand for a living or sit on the street all day selling bread that they baked before the rest of us even awakened. They carry small children on their backs, wrapped in fabric as bright as the Andes sunrise. Their path is rocky and steep.

Happy Mother’s Day to you, mis amigas. Feliz Dia de las Madres.

Quiero decir Feliz Dia de las Madres a toda las madres de ninos con discapacidades en las escuelas San Manuelito, Senor de los Milagros, PRITE San Ramon, y PRITE Huancayo. Feliz dia y que Dios las bendiga.

0 Comments

Record Flooding

3/29/2017

It’s Still Raining in Peru

Fortunately, our family is safe, as are the schools where we volunteer.

But much of Peru has recently experienced record flooding and mudslides. More than ninety people have been killed and tens of thousands have been injured or left homeless. Hundreds of miles of roads have been destroyed and numerous buildings have collapsed. And it’s still raining.

Heavy rain is projected to continue into April. The devastating rains have been caused by El Nino, with unusual warming of surface waters of the Pacific Ocean.

Areas of greatest concern are shelter, water, sanitation, food security, healthcare, mosquito control, and water-borne disease.

People have asked us how they can help. We're suggesting donations to the Peruvian Red Cross at www.ifrc.org.

Muchas gracias, Amigos.

Shoes

3/1/2017

One of our most joyful experiences in Peru is going to the shoe store. We buy new shoes for children who have just received leg braces, donated by students at the Kauri Sue Hamilton School for children with severe disabilities in Riverton, Utah. These students have outgrown their braces and they and their parents generously give them to us.

This time we took three children, two three-year-old girls and a seven-year-old boy. All of their mothers went with us, as well as Catherine Paola Krammer Davila, director of San Manuelito School in San Ramon. It’s a walk of several blocks. Last year, we carried some of the children because the baby strollers we gave the school several years ago had worn out. So, with the girls in brand new strollers and the boy in a wheelchair, we were on our way.

One little girl made the whole shoe store smile. As I held her arms, she moved her legs and tried to walk. Her whole body danced in excitement and I think perhaps she had a glimpse of the freedom awaiting her when she learns to walk. I’m betting that the next time we go, she’ll be walking.

It Takes a Village

2/20/2017

It Takes a Village to Help a School

When we go to Peru, we are constantly surrounded by members of Francisco’s family; his siblings, his cousins, his nephews and nieces, their children. We could do nothing for the schools in Peru without them.

They meet us at the airport with flowers and balloons; drive us and our eight pieces of luggage to sister Maria’s homes in Lima and San Ramon, sister Julia’s home in Huancayo; take us shopping in crowded Lima, where pedestrians do not have the right-of-way, to purchase supplies for the schools; help us organize materials for each school; drive us on winding roads across the Andes mountains to Huancayo and San Ramon, or sometimes ride with us on a bus; walk to the street market each morning to purchase fresh bread, pan del dia, and anything else we might need for the day; cook amazing Peruvian cuisine (papa a la huancaina is my favorite); wash our clothes by hand in a back porch sink and hang them on a clothesline; go with us to the schools, share with us, laugh with us, advise us.

Francisco’s family has truly become my family as well, my siblings, my cousins, my nephews and nieces, my children, my grandchildren. I am grateful beyond words for their presence in my life and today, and every day, I want to thank them.

No podemos hacer nada en Peru sin la familia de Francisco. Ustedes son en verdad mi familia tambien. Los queremos mucho. Muchas gracias, familia Sabuco, y bendiciones a todo.

The Art of Helping

2/14/2017

0 Comments

We’re excited and humbled by the generosity of our good friend, Raynola Dominguez. Raynola is a gifted artist who has recently established an artist collective called El Alcanze, which means “The Reach.” The purpose of the group is to “give, reaching out to those in need, through their creative work.” Their first project is an art auction on Facebook which will benefit our nonprofit organization, Amigos de San Manuelito.

We serve children with disabilities in Peru, through their schools, families, and communities. We currently work with two schools for children with severe disabilities, one in San Ramon, at the entrance to the central jungle, and the other in Huancayo, high in the Andes mountains, as well as infant-toddler early intervention programs at each location. We’ve made annual trips to Peru since 2010 and have provided educational materials, teacher training, wheelchairs, communication materials for children who can’t talk, leg braces for children who can’t walk, shoes, toothbrushes, computers, books, and many other items. We’ve even had the joy of helping to furnish a playground for the children at one of the schools and of seeing their smiles and laughter as they play in it. We’ve become close friends with amazing educators and have received much more from them than we could ever give.

You can see Raynola’s artwork at https://www.facebook.com/Raynola-Dominguez-Artist-76292133…/. I’ve chosen to show you her sunflower picture because I like the thought of the sunflower reaching for the sun. I believe that as we, like the sunflower, like the El Alcanze artists, reach beyond ourselves, beyond our small corners of the universe, we encounter truth and beauty and joy that we would otherwise not know.
Muchas gracias, Amigos.

0 Comments

A Wall That Welcomes

1/29/2017

0 Comments

The PRITE (Programa de Intervencion Temprana) early intervention program in San Ramon, Peru is a welcoming place for babies and toddlers and their parents. It’s a place of smiles and laughter, of encouragement and support, as teachers provide therapy to their youngest students. These children have disabilities such as Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, vision and hearing impairment, and generalized developmental delay.

Prior to leaving on each trip, we talk with the directors of the programs about their priorities, their dreams. We listen and, to the extent that we’re able, we help with their wishes. When we spoke with Edith Gladys Calderon, director of PRITE San Ramon, she told us they needed a wall. The program, which just opened its doors in 2015, was growing and a second teacher had been hired. Two teachers were sharing a small classroom. With babies, toddlers, parents, teachers, and therapists all in one room, the children were easily distracted. Edith wanted to know if we could build a wall to divide the classroom, giving each teacher her own space.

We hired a contractor when we were there in July and, after we left, the wall was built. Here are some pictures of the process and of the amazing ladies serving in this program. They have become our friends, some for several years now, and have welcomed us just as they welcome the children and parents. Thank you, our dear friends, muchas gracias, queridas amigas.

0 Comments

Giving Tuesday

11/29/2016

It’s Giving Tuesday! Please consider making a donation to help children with disabilities in Peru. Money donated today will go toward buying a specialized wheelchair for a little boy with severe cerebral palsy who lives high in the Andes mountains of Peru.

We work with four schools in Peru – two for students with disabilities from ages three to 20 and two early intervention programs for infants and toddlers. We’ve put in a playground, bought wheelchairs for children who can’t walk, provided augmentative communication for children who can’t talk. We currently pay for medication for two little girls with severe seizure disorders and are making plans to assist a young woman who will turn 20 this year and no longer qualify for educational services. We make donations to a local food pantry and recently built a wall which turned one larger classroom into two smaller classrooms to accommodate growth in the program. We’ve bought materials, including a microwave and blender, to enable one of the programs to provide daily snacks to their students. We’ve taken leg braces, donated by a local school for students with disabilities, for children with orthopedic problems, and then bought the children new shoes to fit over their braces.

We’re a small 501(c)3 organization. We make annual trips to Peru and work closely with the directors of the programs to determine their priorities. We’re committed to using 100% of donations to help the children, their families, their teachers, and their communities and personally reimburse any fees deducted from contributions.

Have a wonderful day. Muchas gracias, amigos!

Amigos por Siempre - Friends Forever

9/25/2016

This sign was on the wall at San Manuelito School in San Ramon, Peru when we arrived there in July. These people are truly our friends.

It’s incredibly gratifying to get to know the wonderful, amazing teachers and staffs at these schools. We’re working at four schools now for children with disabilities, two for children ages three to twenty with severe disabilities and two early intervention programs for infants and toddlers up to age three. The teachers and staffs of these programs are hardworking, dedicated professionals who are changing the lives of their precious students.

These pictures show the teams from each school, (1) PRITE (Programa de Intervencion Temprana – early intervention program) Huancayo and (2) Senor de los Milagros School in Huancayo, high in the Andes mountains; and (3) PRITE San Ramon and (4) San Manuelito School in San Ramon, in the beautiful central jungle.

Amigos por siempre – friends forever. Muchas gracias, Amigos. You give us more than we could ever give to you.

Teachers Day

8/28/2016

Wednesday, July 6th, was Dia del Maestro, Day of the Teacher, and the schools were closed. Maria, the director of Senor de los Milagros, took us to lunch and we had an interesting conversation regarding services for adults with disabilities in Peru. For families without money, there are none. As I understand it, children with disabilities can receive services from public schools from birth to age 20, with a greater intensity of services in Lima and other large cities and much less in rural areas, but on their twentieth birthdays, the children’s care, for the rest of their lives, regardless of severity of disability, becomes totally the responsibility of their families, with no governmental support.

Maria described how frustrating this is to her. She and her staff work tirelessly to provide the highest quality education they are able, with limited resources, to their students with severe disabilities. And then, suddenly, it’s over. The child is out of school, with nothing to replace it, no job coach, no DSPD, no Medicaid, nothing.

We had a similar conversation two years ago with the president of the parent’s organization at our first school, San Manuelito, with a mother struggling to find help for her two young adult children with Down Syndrome. “No hay nada,” she told us, “There is nothing.”

Maria asked if there is any way Amigos de San Manuelito might be able to help these families. Our first thought was, “No, we can’t. We’re too small. We don’t have enough money.” As the conversation continued, we realized that maybe, on a very small scale, there is something we can do. Maybe we can help one child, one young adult with disabilities, to have at least a slightly better quality of life. Maybe next year the young woman with severe autism who calmed when we gave her headphones, who will turn 20 next year, maybe there is something we can do, something, to help her family in some way with her care. And as we grow as an organization, maybe another young adult, maybe another, maybe another.

It takes a village. The need is so great.

Highlights from Huancayo

8/21/2016

Friday, July 8, 2016

Tuesday we had the wonderful experience of visiting the Señor de los Milagros school for children with severe disabilities in Huancayo, Peru. Everyone gathered in one room to celebrate Dia del Maestro, Day of the Teacher, a holiday honoring teachers. We were able to pass out gifts and interact with children and teachers. Several people made speeches honoring the teachers and thanking us. I felt humbled and grateful for all their kindness. I felt compelled to say something, in my limited Spanish, so I talked about how glad we were to be there, how much we admire their hard work and dedication, and that we are all working together for the benefit of the children. They gave certificates and cakes to the teachers, showed a slide show of the students, and had belly dancers accompanied by a young dancer with Down Syndrome, a student at the school. They served lunch of quinoa with a cheese sauce and rice and, much differently from schools in the U.S., served wine with the meal.

The most rewarding experience for me occurred with a 19-year-old young woman who was screaming as she entered the room. The director, Maria Cecilia Ore Vidalon, had told us about her last year. She has severe autism and noise hurts her ears. We placed headphones on her head, which muffled the sound, and immediately she relaxed. She was quiet, calm, smiling occasionally, throughout the morning.

We gave Maria a laptop computer, donated by Affordable Laptops in Riverton, Utah, and saw the beginnings of tears in her eyes. Although the government has given the school a computer, she has not had one of her own, one that she could take back and forth from school to home. She is a deeply committed educational professional. When we first met her last year, she said, “Es mi vocation; this is my vocation.”

We also gave a wheelchair to a nine-year-old and set up a ball pit for the children. We gave the school a box full of school supplies and passed out toothbrushes and toothpaste to everyone. I did a little training in calming strategies for children with autism and sensory sensitivities, as well as in picture communication systems for children who cannot talk. The teachers were welcoming and friendly, eager to learn new strategies, full of compassion for their students. I wanted to stay longer.

<<Previous

Forward>>

Happy Mother's Day

Record Flooding

Shoes

It Takes a Village

The Art of Helping

A Wall That Welcomes

Giving Tuesday

Amigos por Siempre - Friends Forever

Teachers Day

Highlights from Huancayo

Author

Archives

Categories