Child sponsorship update from Salto, Uruguay

Update for child sponsors from the SOS Children's Village Salto, Uruguay from Winter 2007/2008

Dear sponsors,

Yet another eventful and busy year has gone by. Mr. Milton Moreira, by now firmly established in his job as director, had the active support of the newly established Village Committee, made up by four mothers, who participated in taking decisions affecting the communal organisation and helping the youngsters in finding alternatives for their social insertion. This included those living in the village and Youth Facilities and those already independent, but still in need of advice, encouraging them to learn by trial and error.

The village is home to 74 children and adolescents. The youngest have done very well and with only two exceptions passed to the next grade. The teenager’s performance was not quite as encouraging, though all in all they too did well. Two children with different capacities attend a special school; one boy is learning carpentry and 2 girls are at the University in Montevideo. And Ingrid, having finished her Coiffure and Marketing courses while working in a beauty parlor, intends to open her own next year with the help of a former sponsor. Luis and Victor living in the Youth Facility are both working and becoming quite adept at organising their expenses according to their income.

As half the village’s population consists of teenagers, we held workshops for the mothers, focusing on adolescence-related topics (imposing limits, dealing with aggressiveness) and meetings with the youngsters, approaching subjects as handling of conflictive situations and sexuality. Many attend a youth group at a nearby church, where they touch on issues like social behavior, team spirit and solidarity, participating in meetings, events and summer camp.

Supporting children and communities at Salto, Uruguay

We continue giving financial aid to 10 children whom it was possible to reunite with their birth families and organized visits and reunions with those of several others to strengthen the family ties. We’re also networking with other NGO, analyzing social policies and seeking new alternatives and cooperate closely with the State Welfare for Children, the Courts and other local institutions. The Social Centre, which received a most favorable evaluation by the EU, stressing the results as optimal, and two Community Centres in needy neighborhoods aim at strengthening families to prevent child abandonment. We provide education, recreative activities, meals, health and odontological care to 361 children and reach 329 adults, empowering women through courses in dressmaking, bakery, knitting, and coiffure, imparting practical training and the fundaments for operating a small business.

Six micro-loans already enabled 6 of them to improve their families’ living conditions. Jointly with the Municipality we held seminaries on sexuality, nutrition, self-esteem, addictions, etc. and are carrying out different projects with other public and private institutions. 38 families participated in the Family Orchards, improving the quality of their food and their income selling the surplus produce; another 8 families at risk participated in the project Harvesting Dreams, tilling 3 hectares of the village’s orchard, put at their disposal together with a loan from the Ministry of Agriculture to improve their living conditions. We also help a group of families from a Housing Development Project, whom the Municipality promised land and drainage, while searching a partner to finance the rest. The families contribute their labor, building their own homes with mutual help.

At this point we’d like to express to you our sincere thanks for the trust you are placing in us and our work here, as well as for your constant and generous support. In the name of the children and the staff in the village, we wish you a Merry Christmas, much happiness and all the best for the New Year!

Milton Moreira, Village Director & Andrea Heimann, Sponsorship Coordinator