Child sponsorship update from Oruro, Bolivia

Update for child sponsor supporters from the SOS Children's Villages Oruro, Bolivia from Winter 2008.

Dear sponsor,

We send you a loving greeting; we feel happy to tell you about the most outstanding events of the children, youths and community’s life. Year 2008 has been kind of complicated, but those difficulties are lived every day within the organization with tranquility, prevision and a good integration and acceptation of the Community. Thanks to your support and trust, the Programmes of SOS Children Bolivia continue a stable development, which is a contribution in the life of 13.500 beneficiaries this year, from which, more than 1.400 live in a SOS Children’s Village.

We finish this year with 130 children in the Village because the situation of children who lost their families has increased. The social and economic uncertainty our country is going through is a factor that contributes to the increment of the abandon of children and adolescents. Our community is happy to welcome them and support them in the construction of their future.

Six siblings were welcomed to the family of Mother Marina and they are already used to their new family. The mother, with much love and patient, could heal their soul wounds, and friends and neighbors support the children’s stability by visiting them frequently. One youth from a family in the Village, Susana, is living with her biological sister, who providentially appeared in her life. Susana helps her in her restaurant during the afternoons, studies in the mornings and does her homework at nights.

The construction of two new houses is not over yet due to the increment in the prices of the construction material; however, they are looking for other alternatives for the houses to be open by the end of this year.

Aunts Arelly, Irma and Jessica have participated in the second level of Formation of Aunts at the Mothers’ School and they will finish an important part of their formation by the end of this year. Children and adolescents love them and look for their guidance.

The “Durango” Dance Workshop, directed by teacher Maria Antonia, had performance sin three local television channels where the children showed their skills and art, which are more recognised and requested every time. They have other performance in November and they are also getting ready to participate in the kermesse and the annual launching campaign of Christmas Cards 2008, which are activities of our community. Likewise, all the works the children did in the Expression and Creativeness Workshop will be exhibited. They used different recycling materials and techniques: ceramic, chalk casting, high-relief painting, paper maché, drawing and painting.

The indoor soccer team of the infantile category (14 years old) is among the six best teams of the championship organized by the association of this discipline. In every match, the children do their best to get good results and they are supported by their mothers and siblings. The girls’ basketball team participates in the three categories of the Infantile League of Basketball-Oruro. The results will be seen by the end of this year.

Children becoming independant at Oruro, Bolivia

Since May and so far, there were workshops of formation and theater performances about topics such as alcoholism, human rights, prevention and sexual abuse, whose work was complemented by the Foro Theater Cast. The “Los Mucus Ninjas” movie’s shooting already started and some participants of the theater cast of the Village are participating; this shooting will be over by the first days of November. On the annual cultural days, which are carried out in all the cities, the cast participated with the plays “Condor Mallku” and “Murga” (circus theatre).

The children and adolescents who have problems such as learning problems, lack of early stimulation and inappropriate behaviors, are being assisted by the psychologist of the program as well as by external professionals. We have a work plan for each one of them.

In September, along with the Environment Defense League, we could plant more than 100 trees in order to create larger green areas in our community and to contribute to the preservation of the environment. In this activity, the whole community participated and it was a nice day of combined work.

The adolescents of the Work of Youths in the Village Programme who attend the third level strengthened their formation with an Entrepreneurism course. The objective was to develop entrepreneur ideas and the entrepreneur spirit. The method used was the ludic one.

The collaborators in charge of the youths are now more involved in their job without taking the mothers’ protagonism away. Their job has been more personalised and integral as they support the youths in the academic, labor and personal fields. One very important task has been to strengthen the affective relationship with the biological families and village families.

Twelve youths started their technical careers. They study computing, car mechanics, English, music and executive secretariat. Other 21 youths continue studying their technical careers at a technical level (second and third year of their careers) in car mechanics, English, pastry, programming, executive secretariat, accounting and tailoring. The youths who finished their technical careers and started their university studies are Julian in Oil Engineering, Miriam in Sciences of Education, Zaida in Economic Sciences and Antonio in Computer Systems.

All the youths who are in the advising stage in order to become independent work although some of them don’t do it in the area they studied as they found better economic opportunities in other fields. Fourteen youths finished their technical career and some of them are studying at the university.

Seventeen micro-enterprises still continue their stabilization process. Some youths still have problems to fulfill the commitment they have to return the loan in the foreseen time; however, all of them, in some way, have improved their economical incomes and their living conditions as they became the owners of their business. The approach we give this help is family and the objective is to contribute to improve the life quality of the youths. Their mothers always encourage them to continue although the difficulties.

Working with children and communities at Oruro, Bolivia

In our community, we have solidary gestures, which are lived as blessings. This is the case of Ivoska, who traveled to Spain to work and gather some money for her brother’s surgery, Limberth. The kidney transplant was successful and now they both are getting better. Their mother traveled to Cochabamba City to support them in those difficult times; in some months, they will be back in their jobs. Ivoska liked Spain and she’s thinking of returning there to gather some more money to get her own house.

Regarding the Family Strengthening Programme in Oruro, it is assisting 790 children under 9, who participate in the 33 Community Centers and Houses. Four Pilot Houses are working in Challapata Community. Along with the health politics of the current government about “Zero Malnutrition”, the children are receiving nutritional supplements and they have an appropriate follow-up of the undernourished children.

In order to help to the family integration, we had communal weddings to formalise the wedding of nine couples in a legal way as they, because of different reasons, didn’t do it before. The relatives and children celebrated the event at the Program with much joy.

In order to strengthen the self-esteem feeling of the mother-woman, for the third year in a row, we had the Crowning of “Miss Mother”, where mothers from the 33 community houses and centers participated. Each community centre and house was represented by a mother who wear dress and one who wears typical skirts from our region, and they showed their beauty, typical gear and grace during the event. At the same time, their children felt proud, in some cases, and surprised in some others because of their mothers’ participation and their couples were there to support them.

The care of the woman’s health is also an important aspect for women as well as their couples to be aware of the importance of their sexual health care (father’s and mother’s), especially regarding sexual transmission diseases, HIV and Papanicolau controls to prevent uterine-cervical cancer. So far, 195 women already had this control and they themselves organised a fair of panel where they explained about what they learnt about those topics.

Dear sponsors, what would we do without you? We thank you very much for your great contribution to the children’s well-being at SOS Children’s Villages-Oruro’s programs. We hope this report fulfills your expectations and is a good way of sharing some of our community’s daily life. Our warmest hug,

Luís Tirado Rúa
Director SOS Children’s Villages Oruro