Preparing Land To Plant

AFTER MAKING AWARE RESIDENTS of Camino Real avenue, house by house, about the need to plant trees to contribute to purify the air we breathe and thus to help to preserve the environment, the youth who are scholarship recipients of CHOI's educational programs Dollars For Scholars and Leaders For Tomorrow, were preparing the spots where trees are going to be planted by cleaning the area and making holes along the avenue.

They were also preparing fertilizer and then fertilized the soil in the holes. So everything is ready for them to plant trees on Sunday, September 06th, 2009. These young people were very willing and glad to be able to contrubute with community this way. On the other hand the mayoress of Chimbote city Mrs. Victoria Espinoza García, in behalf of municipality, committed to give away some of the trees that are needed.

The rest is going to be donated by Chimbote Rotary Club to beautify this avenue located among poor neighborhoods of Chimbote near fr. Jack Davis' parish. The mayoress also committed to put together and send public cleaning workers of Chimbote the day of the planting. Well, I must say that this was another more day of accomplished activity of Tree Planting Project. You were all doing a great job Guys!!

Click on the link to see more PICTURES. (Other activities)

Thoughts about Chimbote Mission Trip!!

IN MY PREVIOUS POST I have shared with you about Chimbote Mission Trip performed by sisters and brothers from Marietta and Atlanta - GA in the USA. Through this post I would like to share with you thoughts of some members of the team about their experiences as long as they were staying here in Chimbote.

Before you watch the video here are the names of team members: Forrest Cate, Brian McNair, Chuck Spivey, Dr. Gini Galvin, Dolores Wilkinsen, George Sherrer, Faith Robel, George Smith, Moc Ly, and Cecie Cate. My heartfelt thanks to all of you my dear American friends for leaving your country and your family for a while to be here in Chimbote to do a good work.

Mission Trip from Marietta-GA to Chimbote, Perú

THE LAST WEEK OF THE PAST JANUARY a Mission Team, comprised by 10 people among sisters and brothers from cities of Marietta and Atlanta - GA in the USA, came down here to Chimbote in Perú. They all belong to Marietta First United Methodist Church and were led by brothers Forrest Cate and Brian McNair. The team stayed in this city for about a week and during this time they were performing some activities in both spiritual and social area (with communities).

Among the activities they did were Vacation Bible School (VBS) for children in several neighborhoods such as: Villa María, Esperanza Alta, Pueblo Libre, etc. in which shared God's Word through Bible stories, dramas, crafts, songs, English classes, prayer, refreshments, cookies, etc. Also they were helping to keep building "Cristo Redentor" school (located in Primero de Mayo neighborhood in Nuevo Chimbote district) both financially and with their physical efforts.

Another goal of the Mission Team was to make contact with some leaders of Chimbote and Nuevo Chimbote cities to start sowing seeds of what is called ASSET-BASED COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT (ABCD) for Chimbote and Nuevo Chimbote, which is a strategy for sustainable community-driven development and that is concerned with how to link micro-assets to the macro-environment.

So, they were talking with the owner of a fish processing plant called "Estrella de David SAC" (and got to see steeps in processing to can filets). Then met with Mayor and Planning Director of Nuevo Chimbote to inquire on Social Programs of municipality. Also could meet with Chimbote Rotary Club leaders to get to know what the role is that it is playing in civil life in Chimbote and what problems are facing about.

It was held a meeting at Chimbote Chamber of Commerce with its leaders as well. On the other side, the mission team was proposed (by members of Rotary Club) to visit "Our Lady of Perpetual Help" parish and to meet its priest father Jack Davis (padre Juan) and his efforts to bring hope and dignity to the poor, living surrounding his parish, through his non-profit organization called "Los Amigos del Padre Juan."

At this point of the post we, the residents of Chimbote, want to thank all of the members of Marietta Mission Team for your special willing to work as catalysing elements for ABCD in Chimbote and Nuevo Chimbote. Many thanks also to Mission Team of United Methodist Church of Pender-VA in the USA who were here in Chimbote as well performing spiritual and social work. Click on the link to see more PICTURES (facebook album)

This is a video produced by Cecie Cate, brother Forrest cate's daughter on Chimbote Mission Trip. Enjoy it !!!

Yes, Your Personal Assets Count !

"...IN OUR IMAGE, IN OUR LIKENESS..." That is a scripture from the Bible in the book of Genesis 1:26. This statement contains a great truth in itself. It basically means that every human being has been equipped with gifts, abilities and skills (we may call them personal assets or resources) and dreams to pursue given by God so that can be used for his/her benefit and the surroundings to which he/she belongs, it means ... communities. So I believe that everyone has God-given talents and gifts.

Also as human beings we are all a combination of talents and inabilities, virtues and defects, strengths and weaknesses but it is wiser to focus on our strengths than our wicknesses. Unfortunatelly there are people that are not even aware that they have talents and strengths. Some of them did not have the chance to discover and develop their personal assets throughout their lifetime.

It is strange but also real that a great part of people only focus on their negative traits rather than their positive ones which in most cases come from their chilhood as a bad habit in thinking learned in their families which reinforced them as they were growing up. Knowing this it is very wise in order to think in appropiate strategies to discover, sthengthen and canalize these personal assets to put them in service of development.

Here in Chimbote some of the young people I talked to told me that they would like some leaders to help them in finding and mobilize their gifts and talents. Personally I believe that, in the beginning of a Asset-Based Community Development process, it is correct to discover untapped human potencial. Looking around here in my town Chimbote I see that there are a lot of untapped human potencial waiting for the chance to make it flow.

New Communities,... More Challenges !!

GOING SOUTH OF CHIMBOTE CITY it is located Nuevo Chimbote city which was established as a new district some years ago. But along with the city also was and still is increasing its population as well. So, where urban area ends right there starts forming several new neighborhoods. It used to be large areas of uninhabited land before but as time went by those places were invaded for a lot of invasors located Nuevo Chimbote south and parallel to Panamericana Highway that takes to Lima - capital city.

Most of these neighborhoods are made up by couples with children who have no house to live, people coming from Highland to find jobs at Coast, etc. There were 150,000 people in Nuevo Chimbote 3 years ago, today are 300,000 and most of them are immigrants. This situation brings some problems for them in health, employment, education, pollution, culture, etc. Now there are around 80 suburbs.

Municipality has almost no resources to develop social programs that are needed and unemployment is one of the major problems. All of efforts that it is doing are limited and can accomplish more by partnering. For example, social programs such as health are not intensive. Most of time whenever the poor require care, families must raise money and others go to mayor for help but most don't.

Other problems appear like water supply (80% don't have access to clean drinking water), sanitation and utilities like electricity and sewer. The Government is sending money for social programs but are competing against other areas of Perú for priorities are communities that are in worse shape.

Caring The Environment

HERE IN CHIMBOTE THERE ARE several pollution sources affecting physical health of residents specially of those living in neighborhoods surrounding those sources. Among them we have pollution from fishing factories, steel industry, garbage, industrial waste products, etc. That's why it is neccesary to know what community members can do to face this unpleasant fact which is affecting health of the residents, specially of those more vulnerable: The children.

For this reason and trying to contribute for the environment conservation and residents' health, beneficiaries students young people from CHOI's educational programs "Dollars for Scholarships" and "Leaders for Tomorrow" (who are already studying a career some time ago) were performing an awareness campaign on the need of collaborating in environmental care by keeping public cleanliness (avoiding throwing away garbage on streets) and planting trees and so contributing for the beautification of community.

They chose "Camino Real" avenue to fulfill this project so, on Sunday July 26, 2009 in the morning this youth group were sharing about with residents, house by house and asked them permission to plant a tree in front of their house in a close future. This campaign was carried out under this motto: "Let's plant a tree, let's save a life." This is a community project scholars carry out as part of their social responsability.

Click on the link to see more PICTURES. (Other activities)