Amazon Pueblo Fall 2021 Newsletter
While slowed during 2021 because of the pandemic, our mission
to support the education of indigenous students in the Amazon goes forward!
In this update we briefly review was has happened since the
summer and touch on our plans for the future.
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| Our director taking notes in the village of La Libertad |
Education for the Amazon
Fighting Corruption
When our program director arrived in the village of La
Libertad in July he was told that the village students from grades seven to
twelve were not going to a regional school in Macedonia, were not being visited
by teachers, and had not received any study guides for the past six months.
The students and parents were told that there was no gasoline
available to visit La Libertad or to provide any services. However, the director of the Macedonian
school and the teachers were passing the village bi-weekly while they were
traveling to the city of Leticia. They
also were continuing to receive their salary.
The director of Amazon Pueblo investigated this problem,
spoke with the Secretary of Education in Leticia, who stated that gasoline had
been provided during the time our students had no educational services. With the help of Amazon Pueblo, the community
of La Libertad submitted a formal inquiry with the Education Secretary. Two weeks after this the educational services
were restarted in Macedonia. A formal
investigation is now underway into what happened to the gasoline and why the
students were not receiving services.
While we are thankful that things have improved, it is of
utmost importance that the villagers understand their rights, how to fight
corruption and to avoid being taken advantage of. With proper education, the students will gain
this knowledge.
Scholarship
Program
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| School shopping in Leticia |
The student program had a difficult time this year, due to the pandemic. While the younger students had in-person school in La Libertad, it was only for three days per week. Due to corruption problems, the older students had no educational services.
Additionally, it was very difficult to find all of the
students who were in the program during the previous year. Eight students from 2020 did not continue to
receive scholarships. They were replaced
with eight new students.
Four of our older students left the program, not wanting to continue
studying in 2022. They, and many others,
left to work in the coca cultivation fields in Peru. We believe the lack of school (and their need
to have money for their families due to the collapse of tourism) directly
contributed to their decision to leave La Libertad.
In all, we gave out 35 scholarships for 2021. This was the most we have ever provided. It is hoped that all students will be back in
school full-time after the new year.
Health Center
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| The village chief and secretary planning in Leticia |
Overall, through the health center we will achieve the
following five things:
- Provide
a place for the students and their families to receive basic health care.
- Provide
a place for medication to be stored.
- Provide
training to specific members of the community to treat illness and injury.
- Provide
a secure place for health and community records to be stored.
- Provide
an office and dormitory for visiting health care providers.
Logistics and Support
Building
Repairs
Without constant vigilance, the harsh climatic conditions of
the jungle quickly damage our structures and materials.
During the past fall, we repaired and maintained our buildings in La Libertad, including:
- Repairing the stairs to the second story building
- Repairing the rotted wall and installing waterproofing
by our main water tank
- Updating parts of the electrical system
- Fixing leaking roofs
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| The repairs by our 2000 liter tank |
Solar Panel
One of the most time-consuming tasks of our work was installing a 530-watt
solar panel and wiring the kitchen. It
works, but a safe system to switch between village power (available for six
hours per day) and our solar system must be installed. Additionally, three more buildings need to be
wired during the winter. We are
installing an electrical grounding system and electrical conduits, which make
the job a bit more complicated, but very secure. Our hope is to one day be completely reliant
on solar energy for all of our electrical needs, including refrigeration!
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| Solar panel equipment |
Aluminum Boat
At last, we have a small, six-meter aluminum boat exclusively for
the project’s use. This is lighter, uses
less gasoline, is faster, and more stable in the water than our old wooden
boat. It also does not need to be
replaced every three years due to rot.
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| The first time our boat sees water |
Motor Repairs
Our motor is over three years old and was bought used. However, it is still running well. We maintain it regularly, change the
transmission fluid, and have installed an additional inline fuel filter to help
us use the frequently contaminated gasoline found in Leticia. With continued care, we hope it will last for
at least the next year.
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| Motor repairs in Leticia |
Cell phone signal amplifier
The community of La Libertad has been without reliable cell
phone coverage for the past two years. Before
that, we had had a cell phone signal amplifier, but that was struck by lightning
during a particularly intense thunderstorm.
After many shipping problems, we expect to receive a new amplifier in
December. Our new installation will
include a heavy-duty lightning rod. When
we can connect easily with the outside world, the opportunities for business,
safety, and health should be increased.
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| Cell phone signal amplifier |
Fundraising
Craft Fair
We attended the first craft fair since the pandemic started. It was moderately well-attended. In all, we made about $550 in profit. The majority of our sales were from emerald jewelry, but we did sell some handcrafts from the village.
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| Holiday Craft Fair at the Augusta Civic Center |
Emeralds for the Amazon
We are expanding our emerald jewelry offerings to
high-quality emerald and gold. The
pictures do not show the beauty, brilliance, and remarkable color of these
gems. The ring was appraised by Chamber’s
Jewelers in Thomaston, Maine at $8,550. The
earrings were appraised at $2,750. Below
each image are links to our YouTube page which shows 360-degree videos of the
jewelry. All profits from our jewelry
sales go towards the project.
360-degree video of the earrings
Giving Tuesday
On giving Tuesday (November 30) we started our fundraising efforts for next year.
Sponsor a
Student
To continue or to start sponsoring the education of a student
please visit our Facebook fundraising page or our Chuffed donation portal. A donation of $120 will support one student
for a year. Donations of less than $120
will help to support the logistics of the scholarship program.
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| Scholarship students on their way to school |
Build a Health Care Center
By far, our most challenging effort is in building a much-needed health care center to support our students and their families in the
village. In the image below, the boy is
suffering from skin and intestinal parasites.
At night the pain is particularly bad.
He frequently woke up crying. One
week after treatment with $1 of ivermectin drops he had remarkable improvement. He had been suffering for months. At the time the picture was taken he was 13
months old. He weighed 12 pounds.
To help us build the health center please visit our Facebookfundraising page or our Chuffed donation portal. We want to build the foundation, walls, and roof this winter. Little by little, we hope to continue improving the center until it can meet the basic health care needs of all the students and their families.
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| Jason |
Thank you for reading about our project. Happy Holidays!
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