.April, 2023When
"Plan B" betters "Plan A". We
repaired the structural threats to our principal school builging,
only to find that unless we replace the entire roof, it could be
dangerous for the children and staff. 'What to do?'
We've decided to return to our original modus operandi:
in cooperation with our Mothers Clubs, we will be holding small
informal classes in various local venues rather than one central
school. This way, instead of bringing the children to our place,
we will take our schooling to their places. Have a look at our "
Mother's Clubs".
[This will mean the loss of State support, but assuredly will permit
us to educate and help more children.
And the special bonus will be that we can become ever more involved
with their mothers and their earning prospects (see "ARRIBAYA")
.
January,
2023
The New year is upon us - Time to begin a new school
term.. The
calendar is almost ready, the quuestion is: "Will
we be ready?" Our little schoolhouse in the sand
dunes is in need of general repairs, especially the
roof. We are considering
whether it can be ready by school-opening date. Of
teachers and social workers, we are in abundance. Alas,
our able and fathful project director has reached retirement
age. In fact, all our educational
projects are now in their third decade. Most began as
seed projects, to demonstrate to local and national
Governments how simple it would be to provide education
to the 20% of their children who live in the slums,
without birth certificates nor their names present on
the national grid. In Lima,Cusco, Bogota, Guyaquil,
Quito and Panama City we have either helped start local
NGOs to take over our projects, or else transitioned
them into the local or national public school system.
Now, what can we do
for Trujllo?
June
07, 2022:Was
Flag Day in Peru. One
of the day's events is to honor the most outstanding students
graduating Upper School this year. One of the best students
in our Alto Trujio shanty scool in 2017 was Wilson
González Rodríguez. And now, in 2022, Wilson is graduating
near the top of the Upper school in which we helped him
enroll.
Pictured to the right, Charo (the Project Manager of our
Trujillo activities) repreasents us at his honors ceremony,
and she prowdly pins the insignia of his achievement onto
Wilson's shirt. Wilson now lives with his parents in a
better part of the city. Much of the credid for this success
is due his parents. Their sacrifice in letting Wilson
study and not work to help support the family, played
an important role in where Wilson is today, and will be
tomorrow.
Febuary
23, 2022:SOS
In March our children, including those who will be with us for
the first time, return to in-classroom teaching for the first
time in two years. But
our little school
house is far from ready to receive them. We need to reinforce
the roof and install a new bathroom (the roof is sagging and
original bathroom facilities were destroyed when the watertank
fell through the bathroom roof and smashed all the porcelin
fixtures. We have estimates on doing the necessary minimum in
order to be able to open, but Bruce's pension (which is sgned
over to the school for as long as he lives) does not have nearly
enough in reserve for the repairs. If any of our dear ex-volunteers
out there are reading this, or any friends of the project: please
send something ASAP. Bless you and thank you. Here's where to
participate: https://bruceperu.org/bpoparticipate.html
December 17,
2021: Our annual Christmas Party is once again a reality for the
chidren in our little school in Alto Trujillo, Peru: thanks hugely
to our super teacher, Patricia and, wonderful Project Manager Charo.
December 17, 2021: Our annual Christmas Party is once again
a reality for the chidren in our little school in Alto Trujillo,
Peru: thanks hugely to our super teacher, Patricia and, wonderful
Project Manager Charo. December
15, 2021: Parents and friends in the community work together
to repair and clean up our little school in
preparation for the
Christmas party & Spring term opening. Closed most of the
pandemic, the roof needs reinforcing and a new bathroom installed.
July
05, 2021: It is now Winter in Peru, and our barrio students
have settled into the daily routine of lessons showing up
on their cellphones: one for the mornong session, and another
for the afternoon. The Delta Variant has just begun its spread,
so no decisions yet as to school opening dates, A few days
ago, the neighbor of our Alto Trujillo School heard a loud
crashing sound from our side of the wall. He climbed onto
his roof to have a look: our water tank had broken
through its frame and smashed the porceline services in the
bathroom below. We immediately dispatched a plumer from the
city to pinch off the pipe and see if anything cold be done
to temporarily repair things. Nothing could be done.
...
And
now for some better news:
Charo Monzon joined us in 2004. Within a short time
we made her director of our children and woman's projects
in Trujillo. Her rapport with the people we serve
in the barrios, women and children equally, is so
caring and helpful. Her wonderful ability to organize
teachers, social workers, health care givers and to
arrange and manage events/projects is largely responsible
for what good we have managed to bring in Trujillo.
Thank you, dear Charo, on behalf of Trujillo.
March 16, 2021: We have had to relaunch recruitment for
the current semester and school year. Term officially began
the first of this month, however, due to the lack of contact
and communication in poorest barrios, we have been forced
to keep enrollment open, even as we continue our existing
COVID adapted virtual classes. The Ministry of Education also
asked us to include, this semester, teens who are still illiterate,
as well as our usual intake of entrey level younmg children. A Word About Our Finances:
Our monthly operating cost is now $1,700. The Ministry of
Education provides a full-time Teacher and part-time Social
Worker. Bruce and Ana Tere cover the cost of Charo´s
salary and the school building (which even in the Pandemic
is required for some services). We still provide a meal a
day, five days a week and starting 01 March, we will be responsible
for providing cellphones and Ministry-of-Education-discounted
chips. This comes just as a major donor has retired. Therefore,
beginning in March we will be about $900 a month short of
what it takes to keep our last shanty school open. Nicole
helped with an online birthday fund-raiser but thereafter
we are hoping for a few steady friends willing to chip in
monthly. Will you be one of these? If yes, please contact
our co-founder.
Used Cell Phones: Our students require cellphones in
order to receive virtual lessons day by day. Below is a collection
we are about to send with someone going from Spain to Peru.
If you too would like to join us in recycling your old-but-usable
phones; please
let us know and we will coordinate pickup and delivery with
the next person we know of going from your area to Peru. (Also,
it may be possible that postal shipment of Cell phones to
Peru is permitted where you are.). Either way, thank you on
behalf of the children you will be helping.
USED CELLPHONES 4 OUR STUDENTS
January
18, 2021: The Ministry of Education ask that we pass on all
the children in our clases to the next grade. Their motive is
to reinforce the psychologicaol well-being of the children (even
though some will be more challenged in the coming semester,
and require extra tutoring in order to keep up). We completely
agree with this decsion and are delighted to comply. And we
realise ths will require extra work from our staff to lift about
a quarter of the chidren now with us, for we are convinced it
is well worth an extra effort. The real challenge now: "Will
we be able to keep going for another year". To all of you
who have partcipated with us in the past, or even come along
with us up to the present, please consider whether ths project
merits the challenges we will have to overcome in order to continue
as before, into this, our 21st year.
2001
2005
2010
2015
2020
December
23, 2020: Making personal contact with the children now attending
the projects of Bruce Peru has been impossible for most of this
challenging year. So, without clearing it wth us first, Charo
and a brave Social Worker simply masked up for an adventure,
and hauled our bags of gifts over to the bus terminal where
they ran the 7 kilometer gauntled from City Centre to the far
barrio of Alto Trujillo. Over unpaved pot-holed sand and mud
roads they bounced along, their bundles and packages taking
up several seats. Far from being inconvenienced by the lady-Santas
taking up a quarter of the little bus, other passengers seemed
to get caught up in the spirit of the event: chearing the ladies
on their way. Before leaving Charo had passed word to all our
children who were on their on-loan school cellphones - that
she and the Social Worker were on their way to the little school
house, and they were bringing surprises with them. When the
Micro Bus hauled up near the little school about half our children
were there waiting for them. It would be their first non-virtual
human contact with any of us in several months. They loved it.
November
01, 2020: It is now 8 months since we locked the doors at
the Alto Trujillo school and began teaching our children by
alternative means. First via radio and more recently via WhatsApp
and help from a network of masked, socially-distancing community
helpers. This, in barrios 4,5 and 6 of El Porvenir, Trujillo,
Peru. Patricia, the dedicated teacher of several years standing,
in the mornings sends out via WhatsApp the daily lesson for
our intermediate level children. In the afternoon Patricia
will prepare the daily lessons in Mathematics and Integral
communication.
We are all praying for a more rapid end to this pandemic and
a return to classroom teaching (and in the meantime the arrival
of more used cellphonenes for the children).
Note: Please everyone, do
all you can to protect yourselves and everyone else. Bless
you all, Bruce, Ana Tere and Charo.
generic
Images
September
28, 2020: A couple of our oldest and dearest friends and supporters
of this project have recently asked to be excused so they
can contribute more to their local charities, ones in which
they can participate personally. Not so long ago they could
join us in Peru and participate directly - they also went
on their own to pitch in. Great help, fun and moral support.
Of course we understand, things change, and no excusing is
required. We are, on behalf of the children, eternally grateful
for all you have done. It has been a real joy and satisfaction
to be shoulder to shoulder with you in this rewarding cause.
Next April we will celebrate our twentieth anniversary since
opening the first of our schools for street kids. It too was
in Trujillo, Peru. Since then we have opened schools in six
other Peruvian cities, numerous in the barrios surrounding
Lima. And we have opened in seven other South American countries
and Panama. Many are still operating, in the hands of affiliated
or friend NGOs. Most in Peru have been transitioned into an
informal educartion branch set up especially by the Ministry
of Education.
In the current circumstances we talked of retiring the project
altogether at the end of this year. With our co-founders gone,
the only resources we will have is a small rent and my local
pension. Not enough.
On the other hand Ana Tere and I, each, cannot bring ourselves
to let down the children still there, who are counting on
us. We have, therefore, determined that by whatever means
we will carry on educating, encouraging and aiding the children
we have been blessed to receive. Notes from this month: Facemasks - delivering them
to Peru, distributing them to our kids, "please wear
em don´t share em". So far, thankfully, we have
lost none of our dear little ones to the virus.
Bless you all, Bruce.
Ana Tere
Making Masks
Children
In The Streets
Wearing Them
August
10, 2020: We have had, once again, to re-dial our adaptation
to Coronavirus in delivering effective education to our at-risk
children in one of Peru`s roughest barrios. Portable radios
proved difficult for the kids to hold onto in the snatch-and-grab
Darwinian atmosphere of the barrio. Coordination between teachers
and radio station was already chancy owing to transport irregularities
in a Pandemic. Then teachers, unfortunately, began to succumb.
Things were not working as we had hoped.
The final blow came when our long-term and wonderful teacher,
Patricia; partly through her own merits and (sadly) through
attrition in the ranks of the Ministry of Education: got promoted
to Regional Director. She nonetheless refused to abandon our
children - as there is no available teacher to take her place
- however she has but little time for us owing to her new
responsibilities.
So, Charo, helped by a make-shift staff, does all the prep
and support work Patricia would have done. From the beginning
of August, therefore we have stopped working with radios and
a local broadcaster.
We now work solely through our local support group. We send
lessons to them through WhatsApp in their cell phones, and
from this, they teach the children directly, by ones and twos.
Charo coordinates these dear helpers, spread out in the community,
and Patricia sends the WhatsApp messages directly to their
cellphones.
So far it is working better than the radio system had. The
transport, however, and extra staff hours for prep and coordination
are proving to be a pecuniary challenge. Thank heavens none
of our children has yet caught the virus. May things carry
on this way until the Pandemic lifts.
Charo
Patricia
Support Group......
May
01 , 2020: In the midst of the Coronavirus shutdown we have
designed, considered and expiramented with a number of ways
to educate our at-risk children while protecting them and
the community from exposure to the pandemic. With help from
the Ministry of Education, our creative teacher and staff:
we believe we have now mastered this challenge.
As from today, with the participation of a regional radio
station in Trujillo, we are broadcasting lessons for two
hours in the morning and two hours in the afternoon to first
form (Classes 1 and 2) and second form (classes 3 thru 5)
students. Cheap radios are ubiquitous in the barrios surrounding
Trujillo, and with help from a dedicated team of community
volunteers: we are able to teach many more at-risk children
than we could reach with our earlier schemes. .READ
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