Update March 15th 2018 life in Panyebar

The pictures on this post were supplied by Natalie who is visiting from France with her family to help out at at the daycare. 

Mayan fabrics for sale at the market

Young man with horse

Shopping at the market in Santa Clara

Sheila buying local crafts from Panyebar for fundraiser resale in Canada 

 Sheila and the teachers reviewing student medical files for upcoming Doctor visit

 Sheila and Juan (I think that's his name) - Visit to the private school in Panyebar

Kids at work - love the way the sun is shining through on this student's hair!

Panyebar Streetscape - Rosario & beautiful flowers

View of the town and Colegio Bethel private school

 The front facade of the Colegio Bethel private school in Panyebar

Kids in action on the recently repaired play structure

 Panyebar streetscape - Rosario & Brian heading home for the day

School yard at Panyebar public school

 View over the village of Panyebar, nestled in the hills

Cute kids @ play @ Saludos Ninos

 Market day in Santa Clara - view from above

Sheila & Brian deep in conversation with the teachers

 Portrait of some cute girls @ Saludos Ninos

Creative kids at Saludos Ninos with their 'goggles'

 Cute boys @ Saludos Niños

Progress on new classroom construction - it's coming along!

 Construction workers at work

Chicken bus travelling through Santa Clara

 Buddies at school @ Saludos Ninos

Beautifully decorated classroom - Saludos Niños

 Brian hard at work with the kids

Beautiful girls in the yard at the Panyebar public school - excited to have their photo taken

 Snack time at the Panyebar Public School

March 15th update.

Hello everyone-

Please check out the blog and facebook postings. We are very busy down here.

Natalie, our vounteer from the Wakefield area, is taking beautiful pictures which Brian Evenchick is posting to the blog.

      A  big medical clinic is happening tomorrow! We have 4 doctors and several volunteers. The supplies are being

cataloged this afternoon. The forms are copied and ready to be filled in. I even found pictures of a doctor and

photographer for the kids to colour while they await their examination.

     The door and window are being delivered on Tuesday for installation in the new class. The ceramic is ordered as are 10 new water filters for new,families anxious to have their own filter. Profiles are being compiled for,individual

familes and each of ourmteachers' families so that our donors and followers will soon be able to know more about

the incredible "family " of folks that actually enable Saludos Ninos to run so efficiently.

Visitors who stopped in earlier this week were very impressed with our little project. The kids were so friendly and

settled, the food delicious and the teachers so caring and pleasant with everyone. That's what we like to hear and

we are so proud of everyone here. Please check out our postings and encourage friends and neigbours to have a look, too. It takes a village to raise a child and we can always use help to keep rolling along. The more people who know about us, the better.

     Sunday, is Panyebar fiesta day. Our kids will parade wearing their magnifient "tipica" clothing. Afterwards, the teachers are preparing a special lunch for us. Our teachers are also hard at work to finish jewelry and Christmas

ornaments for us to bring back for sale in Canada. This,year we have some brand new SaludosNinos bracelets.

We will produce our first SaludosNinos calendar for sale this year, too with more pictures of the community of

Panyebar and of course many fabulous pictures of our students.

     Thanks to all of you who follow our efforts on various media. You are the reason our project is so successful.

Best wishes to everyone, and to tjose of you living in the Wakefield/Ottawa area, there will be a terrific musical

fundraiser hosted at,Mill Street,in Chelsea on April 28th. Details will be posted on the web and facebook, soon.

Next week, we will give an update on our medical clinic. Best wishes to all of you.  Sheila and Brian

March 9th 2018 update

Today we had a great day. Mateo and Anne-Marie arranged for 2 families travelling from France with their 5 young children to visit our centre and run activities for the students. They made simple kites and did face painting which everyone loved. 

 Construction on thee new classroom was begun at the beginning of the week, so Brian went to check that everything was going well and we paid the 2 workers for this week's work. Mateo and his friends helped repair the kitchen window screen and the door frame, plus all the men were able to make new stairs up to the climber and repair and replace the roof.

     The teachers were given new "running" shoes to help them keep up with the children and give them  more comfort standing most of each day on hard ceramic floors. A busy but very productive day.

Our kids were thrilled to entertain visiting children. Mateo's little Salome looked right at home and comfortable in Lucy's class, singing action so gs and playing with so many kids about her size.

     I will send out pictures over the next few days to be posted to the blog, fzcebook and the SaludosNinos facebook page. Please take a look and get your friends to check us out, too. This afternoon, we meet with Dr. Israel in San Juan

in hopes of setting up a medical clinic in about a week's time and we are meeting with Rosario and Delores early

next week to determi e what is necessary to do re: water filters.

Face painting run by our volunteers and their children and the climber /slide repaired with new stairs and stronger supports now sporting the roof once more. Lots of happy kids today.

One volunteer drew a picture of her motorhome and described to our classes that she and her family are travelling from place to place and living in this small van. Something our kids found very interesting.

Salome looking right at home in Lucy's class.

    Take care and thank uou for your continued interest and support.

March 1st 2018 update New shoes arrive

New shoes arrive

Boys showing off new shoes

Girls working on smiling

Doll slings and baby wraps. Like teacher, like student. Thanks, Kim for making this little girl very happy.

Swing set continues to get lots of use

Mateo, Brian and a helper planning for the new classroom build to start next week.

Rosario and volunteer, Natalie sorted the goods shipped down through SUDEN to be given out at SaludosNinos!

February 28th 2018 update

• We visited the centre again today to unpack and organize all the shoes and clothes sent down from the Wakefield area. Shoes were given out to those needing them and warm sweaters, too were given to kids who did not have any. The shipment of backpacks arrived from Pakenham Elementary School and were given out to the older children who attend elementary school part of each day.Lots of smiles  here today.

       A volunteer from the Wakefield area is here with me and she is taking lots of good quality photos which I will send through to you once she sends them to me. She lives over

  near San Marcos  but we will see her again on Friday when she will have had a chance to

  forward some photos to me.

       Mateo and Brian measured and started purchases of materials necessary for construction of the new classroom, slated to begin next week. So, we are in full swing  down here.  

Kids once more enjoy the climber and slide now that it has been repaired and installed in a better location at SaludosNinos!

Friends of SaludosNinos! enjoy lunch at the centre. MM good food.

This shows all the switchbacks on the mountain road we take from( the right) San Juan La Laguna up to Santa Clara on the left which is just one leg of the journey to SaludosNinos! project in Panyebar.Incredible!!

February 19th 2018 update

Today at SaludosNinos, the older kids who go off to elementary school every morning received backpacks. Thank you to Pakenham Elementary for your donation!!

Several teachers and Mateo and Anne-Marie visited our house in San Juan following a workshop on Abuse

February 11th 2018 update

New supplies means fun learning for our teachers and students.

Sheila and Suzanne at SUDEN unpacking the barrels of shoes, clothing, books , backpacks eyeglasses and toys shipped from Canada to SaludosNinos! Next they get moved from Panajachel across Lago Atitlan and up the mountain to SaludosNinos! Thank you to all who help make this a reality.

Sorting through goods for SaludosNinos sent down by Suden