June 2008 // More than a meal// Café Isabella’s open-aired feeding center is crowded and lively as mothers weave around children handing out vitamins, peeling eggs, wiping off milk mustaches and trying to keep a hold of the growing excitement. Today is a big day for Café Infantil (Project Bona Fide’s Children’s Nutritional Program), as a Bona Fide Fiesta is planned to celebrate the programs’ new home and Community Center. This is quite a different scene from the program’s inception two and half years ago when the children would sit quietly staring off, some with running noses and showing strong signs of malnutrition and vitamin deficiency. Today there is hustle, bustle, play, reading, laughter and happy mothers speaking of how grateful they are for the nutritional program they now run.
The newly-acquired Community Center is a rare, solidly built two-story house on ¾ of an acre smack in the center of Balgue, Café Infantil’s community. The program is growing out of its ‘britches’ and the 70+ children are ready to put their new energy into learning. The Center will also house a community library, an educational commercial kitchen, computer/learning center, hands-on nutritional gardening and open space for other community needs. The second story of the Center is being designed as a community library and learning center complete with computers and workshop space. Working with sister organization TALICA (Teaching and Learning Initiative for Central America), the Community Center is bringing in 3,500 books from Spain thanks to a sponsorship from La Caixa Volunteer Workers Association and reduced rates from UPS. A group of local women are organizing a co-op to construct a bread oven to introduce whole-wheat baked goods to the community and generate much needed income. The potential of the Center is limited only by imagination and funding.
As a small, grassroots organization in our seventh year we have proved our ability to make a immediate and lasting impact by providing over 21,000 trees and 150,000 seeds for improved nutrition, offered workshops to over 180 attendees representing 26 countries and started a School of Organic Agriculture and Fertility Practices. Be assured that your monetary support makes a direct difference in the lives of this community. Since Bona Fide is a 100 percent volunteer organization, writing a check is like providing a nutritious lunch to 70 children right in your kitchen. Thank you for your past and future support to sustain these vital programs and enable families like Rosita’s to think beyond their next meal. Please support our efforts by sending a contribution to:
Social and Environmental Entrepreneurs Please make your check payable to SEE with "Project Bona Fide" in the memo. OR making a contribution online at: www.saveourplanet.org |
Rosita, 34, single mother of two, brings her children to the feeding center
six days a week which allows her to go off for work with a smile, knowing her
children will have at least one solid meal that day. Rosita is trying to save
money to study nursing and has temporary work sorting coffee beans for $3 a
day plus a meal—the meal being a major part of her salary. Her hopes
of moving forward are hindered by the struggle to feed herself and her children
each day. The Community Center will help open the door by operating a co-op day
care and learning resources for both Rosita and her children.
The Center, bought with an $8,000 loan in February, is many steps and dollars away
from achieving its potential. A generous donation of $3,000 (Thanks Mary!) began our
2008 fundraising toward our goal of $18,000 to cover the Center’s loan and
program development. The first loving touches were given by West Vancouver
Secondary School’s Global Education program—a lively
group of 20 dedicated young adults who fundraised and traveled down to Balgue to
work side-by-side with the community, giving the Center its first splash of color
and renovation.