Fundraiser Saturday December 13th 3pm to 7pm Wakefield QC

Our Guatemala handicrafts will be available for sale in Wakefield at the second annual Wakefield Outdoor Christmas Market  in the parking lot of the Alpengruss,  Saturday,December 13 from 3 to 7 p.m. Come to visit a variety of outdoor vendors, go for a sleigh ride or enjoy a hot drink around  a blazing bonfire complete with great music. Here is a fun venue to pick up some special last minute gifts. See you there.

Guatemala Daycare Project renamed Saludos Ninos!

Guatemala Daycare Project has been renamed "Saludos Ninos! early learning  centres in a move to concentrate on  child  development,  nutrition and education within the daycare centers.    
Join us for our annual Christmas sale of Guatemalan crafts at the Chelsea Elementary School on Saturday December 6th 9am to 3.30pm.
Come out and do your Christmas shopping and help out the early learning centers at the same time.
There is a wide range of Guatemalan crafts from jewellery to Christmas tree ornaments to cards.

Guatamala Daycare Project renamed Saludos Ninos!

Guatemala Daycare Project has been renamed "Saludos Ninos! early learning  centres in a move to concentrate on  child  development,  nutrition and education within the daycare centers.    
Join us for our annual Christmas sale of Guatemalan crafts at the Chelsea Elementary School on Saturday December 6th 9am to 3.30pm.
Come out and do your Christmas shopping and help out the early learning centers at the same time.
There is a wide range of Guatemalan crafts from jewellery to Christmas tree ornaments to cards.

Summer Program Photo Update

Photo Gallery by QuickGallery.com

New Jewelry for Sale

Photo Gallery by QuickGallery.com

This year, Sheila brought some of the new jewelry being made in the Panyebar community to sell at craft shows in the Ottawa area. Here it a sneak peek. The earrings are made from corn, garbanzo and coffee beans, watermelon pits and pine needles and rolled paper and beads. Give something a little different to your friends this year and help support these hard working Mayan women and their Centre at the same time.

Many colorful handicrafts, including these earrings will be on sale at the  Chartwell Retirement Residences Christmas Bazaar , Saturday, November 8th. The event happens at 170 McKibben Drive, Kanata and runs from 9 to 2. 

Hope to see you there!

Panyebar receiving the backpacks from the high school students

 Here are the pictures of the kids at Panyebar receiving the backpacks from the high school students.

WOW, a special thank you to the students of LASO from Piedmont High School for sending the beautiful colored backpacks full of school supplies to Panyebar. Here are the kids , so excited to receive this wonderful gift.

A terrific initiative from caring high school students, coupled with the help of Miracles in Action who facilitated the shipment and our friend Bonnie who delivered the packs to Panyebar.

Photo Gallery by QuickGallery.com

Panyebar receiving the backpacks from the high school students

  Here are the pictures of the kids at Panyebar receiving the backpacks from the high school students.

WOW, a special thank you to the students of LASO from Piedmont High School for sending the beautiful colored backpacks full of school supplies to Panyebar. Here are the kids , so excited to receive this wonderful gift.

A terrific initiative from caring high school students, coupled with the help of Miracles in Action who facilitated the shipment and our friend Bonnie who delivered the packs to Panyebar.

May 2014 update

We would like to thank all of our sponsors and donors for their generous support this year. Special Thanks to;
Peggy Brewin Preschool who partnered with our project for the first time. Besides a cash donation; their young students lovingly  prepared  special art projects and sent sticker packs, hair supplies and shoesto the Mayan children.

Wakefield Elementary School for their continued cash Christmas sale donation plus new student  initiatives - the design of greeting cards, bookmarks and comic books which were sold to provide additional funds.

Heritage College   For their volunteer outreach  team of 31 people who visited Guatemala including students, educators and health care professionals. This group delivered the most successful teacher workshop to date to 61 participants featuring  local teachers from nine different regions.
The Heritage students prepared school kits and medical information to promote healthy living and donated shoes, eye glasses, tooth brushes, first aid supplies and medicine when they visited the various centres.    

All of our incredible Donors who continue to support our program year after year. Many thanks for giving us the means to accomplish  our goal of improving the lives of the Mayan children in our program.   

 Incredible year of change for Guatemala Daycare Project.
For years we have been working under the umbrella organization "Infantiles SOS" in Guatemala who was responsible for payment of rent, food and salaries. Suddenly, in December 2013, InfantilesSOS left several regions of Guatemala, resulting in the closure of many daycare centres, including ours.
We had a very busy winter in Guatemala and reinvented our program to continue providing educational and health support for Mayan children in the Lake Atitlan region. As you can imagine, without the umbrella organization in place, the expenses were daunting; however we have been able to reopen Panyebar our largest and longest running centre.

We are making positive changes to move forward.
1. Our name is transitioning to  Saludos Ninos - a Spanish name indicating a greeting and wellness.
In order for a child to learn  proper nutrition is imperative, our oganization will focus on nutrition and early learning.

2.  A board of directors is being created to involve people who are already interested in this project.They are determined to work together to secure and administer funds for Panyebar not as a daycare but rather an early learning and nutritional centre.

3 To make this a sustainable project for the future we are working with the mothers and teachers at Panyebar to produce marketable products such as jewelery to support their reopened centre.

4 We have partnered with a U.S. charity "Miracles in Action" who are updating the menus to provide quality nutrition. and have kindly agreed to handle U.S. donations for tax purposes.  

Future fundraisers are in the works, we will keep posted. Your continued support is appreciated.   

This is a fund raiser for the Guatemala Daycare Project

Celebrating Community 2014

Hosted by Peggy Brewin Cooperative Preschool

Peggy Brewin Cooperative Preschool is hosting its annual fundraising auction this Sunday (April 27) at the Wakefield Community Centre. $10 entry gets you lots of yummy local eats, entry to win 2 fabulous local getaways and the chance to bid on some great auction items. See the program guide for a preview of some of the items up for grabs. http://www.silentauctionpro.com/onlineprogramguide.php?group=448&event=659 We hope that you can make it. Kindly, Jennifer Bardell

Marie and Brian's visit March 10 to 15th 2014 pictures by Neill Taniguchi -visiting Canadian friends.

First meal in the new classroom

Now the blender is run by foot power

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Kids love seeing themselves on visitors' tablets. 

                                                                                                        

 

Playstructure removed from Palestine                                                  

                                                              

                    Brian explains how the move will take place.

 

        Notice hydro lines                                  

  Unloading

 

New shelving installed to serve as

a boundary between two classes in the biggest building.

  New shelving in the kitchen

Waiting to begin art project at San Juan centre. 

Alfredo hard at work on his painting.

Bubble paintings -nice when dry but messy to do.

The kids worked hard on their pictures. 

 

                                       Marie helps the very young with their bubble pictures.

Heritage College visit February 23rd to March 5th 2014

   Laura from Heritage surrounded as she
tries to give out shoes to kids at
Punyebar.



Heritage students seated in front of the Guatemalan
teachers at the workshop in Panajachel




Trying out the maze made of recycled materials.
This year's theme was using recycled products to
make classroom supplies.

Paty watches as teachers try out

the fishing game.

        Workshop participants enjoy snack.

                                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                 

Working with one of the storyboards

in the teacher package that was prepared by Heritage College.

This workshop is a great day of fun for Mayan

teachers and the Heritage students.

 Lunch time-and time to visit and share.

Following the workshop, it is back to the learning centres

where the children get to try out the new activities.