Latest La Esperanza news

So you keep getting the idea of what everyday volunteer life is like, and what we do at La Esperanza, here's the latest weekly newsletter from Pauline.

Dear All,

The first of the primary school excursions was held on Friday with grade 2 from La Prusia and La Epifania visiting Posintepe for a picnic. It was a great success and the children really enjoyed it, and the teachers are following through with questions about their trip to help make it a learning experience too. For the monthly news we would like to continue with what we did this month, putting a link to an album of photos. So anyone with some good photos of the children's excursions please bring them into the office and put them on the computer (mainframe one), and this will be the photo link for next months news.

Planning to do it each month, we will do one in the coming months of each school, health, womens working groups etc. and probably it would be fun to do one of some of the photos from a volunteer party.

Elba Zamora now has a basketball hoop and backboard which Nick put up. We want to do the same for La Prusia - they have asked for a full scale basketball court though and the quote Agosto got was $8000 so we don't think it is on our priority list.

Next week excursions are on Monday, Grade 2, then Wednesday and Thursday, Grade 4 - so it will be a busy week.

Big party last night to farewell Annabel who is travelling on to Cuba. Just one new volunteer arriving this week, Charlie Rann from Australia.

We had a visit from a former volunteer who worked at Las Camelias, Lauren Bloch - she arranged with Laura to go and visit the childrenat the school while she was here which was fun for both her and the children. Friends of former volunteers Shane and Andrew also visited Granada, Daniel Colins and Sarah Jane Caldwell. They went on the tour to La Prusia, and then gave us $100 donation. Shane and Andrew had taught English in the schools.

We had a cash donation too from Andy Pinker, friend of Julia Penny, who gave us $20. We received paypal donations this week too, $100 from Phil Smy, brother of Iain who brought us the vitamin tablets, and $150 from Robert Keddy, another Canadian. Robert is processing Nicaraguan coffee in Canada, Casa Silas Coffee, and has offered to give us $1 from each kilo sold.

Another cleanup session was held at the Community Center on Saturday - and we are going to start painting soon. Would like photo's please of the clean up and of the painting, plus putting the new cupboard in for the library as all of this work to the community center is being funded by a village in UK called Adstock, they want to form a sister village relationship with La Prusia. Any ideas on how we can help make this work for the people of La Prusia would be appreciated.

Mark is back in town once again. He brought with him some photos we had ordered prints of and these will be made into blank greeting cards to sell in the office - to help pay for some of the office costs. If anyone has a couple of hours to spare next weekend we could do with your help in the office to put these together, make the envelopes etc.

Good to see Colin back this weekend.
Hope to see lots of you at the Isletas this afternoon,
Regards, Pauline.