On Tuesday, March 30, my dad and I had the pleasure of touring two of Alma’s projects outside of Cusco. We were greeted (nice and early!) in the morning by Ian, Alma’s program director, who drove us out to the first project on an incredibly breathtaking drive through the mountains. We were both thoroughly impressed […]
In Bolivia, it is a tradition to celebrate carnivals with dances and balloons. Tilata families and most of the families of the Sariry Foundation, usually perform “ch’alla” which is a ritual to thank the Pachamama (Mother Earth) for material goods such as house, car, furniture and etc. The goods are decorated with streamers and balloons […]
A couple of weeks ago I got the type of call that I love to get. One of our students from the Patabamba Academy Project was accepted to a government scholarship program called “Beca 18” that will cover 100% of his expenses to study Civil Engineering at the Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola in Lima! […]
Edgar is a 3rd grade boy who comes from a poor family. Both of his parents are illiterate. His father, by false accusation, spent three years in prison leaving his wife and 5 children without any support. As a result of the family issues Edgar’s performance in school has dropped significantly. Despite all difficulties, the mother did her best to […]
Last month the first two participants, Karina and Esmeralda, in our Alma Alumni project moved into their new home in Cusco. The Alma Alumni project is a brand new initiative where we support some of the best students who have passed through our projects over the years and are now continuing their higher education studies […]
When I was young, we got presents for Christmas and our birthdays, plus a new outfit for Easter. My parents didn’t buy us toys or gifts throughout the year, so it was a big deal when those special occasions rolled around. Today, however, as much as I try not to, I often find myself buying […]
The new school year has just begun and Alma has been out in the field attending many parents’ assemblies to get our projects ready for 2015! Some of the communities are the same as last year, but there are many new projects in new communities almost ready to begin as well. One of the new […]
On a recent trip to Cusco, I had the privilege of accompanying Ian McGroarty and his assistant Octavio on his visits to two of the Alma Foundation projects. We visited the Colcha and the Cochirhuay communities and Ian spoke with the teachers and students about the projects for this year. It was very evident by […]
Our program director in Peru, Ian McGroarty, was visiting his family a few weeks ago in the United States and came up to Toronto for 24 hours to attend our Board of Directors strategy session. We used his visit as an excuse to have an informal party for volunteers here so that they could hear […]
I recently had the chance to escape the rain in Cusco and head out to the Amazon rainforest to take the early steps of getting to know different communities, talk to them about the barriers they face to high quality education, and hear their ideas for possible solutions. It is always a great experience getting […]
As we head towards the end of the Peruvian school year, it is time for us to close out our projects for 2014 in order to evaluate implementation and impact and to also make changes/ improvements for the projects that will continue into 2015. However, it is also the time of year that we begin […]
I rarely drive to a community alone. If I am heading somewhere with a road that leads to it, I almost always end up picking up people needing a ride up to their community. Yesterday, when I was driving back from Patacancha, one of those people I picked up happened to be Maria Teresa. Maria […]
Ver abajo texto original en Español. I just returned from two weeks criss-crossing Peru and Bolivia, visiting 12 of our projects. The physical strain of nine flights, one 14 hour bus ride, close to 100 hours driving up and down mountain “roads” going from the heat and humidity of the jungle one day to below zero […]
Ver abajo texto original en Español. At Sariry Foundation boys and girls from 3 to 6 years old participate in the activities that develop their fine motor skills. The motor skills refer to the body movements that require precision and elevated level of coordination. The activities done with passion, enthusiasm, attention and concentration are as […]
In several areas of the centre of La Paz in Bolivia one can find boys and men shining shoes on the roadside, usually in groups of 2-4. They almost always wear woollen masks over their faces that gives them a frightening appearance. One of the first times a masked shoe shine boy confronted Ian in […]
Kiya Survivors is one of Alma’s partner projects. We recently received updates on several of Kiya’s beneficiaries, read below to hear their stories. Amilcar is a 14-year-old boy who comes from the community of Misminay (about 10 kilometers from Maras). Amilcar has a problem with his legs and he cannot walk. He had an operation before, […]
It is always worth repeating, the key to Alma projects is community involvement. We work in partnership with the community members where we implement our projects ranging from the initial planning stages to the eventual handing over of the project to the community. One aspect of the Andean culture which helps to make this possible is the […]
En Fundación Sariry, niño/as de 3 a 6 años participan de la pequeña biblioteca que es exclusivamente para la edad de ellos, aprenden a leer e interpretar los textos desde su imaginación, fantasía y su creatividad. En su proceso de aprendizaje, en el desarrollo de sus capacidades socio cognitivas, junto a la educadora, también participan […]
Peru’s First Lady, Nadine Heredia, recently visited our Patacancha Trout Farm project and was impressed with what she saw! Mrs. Heredia commented that the project, which incorporates nutritious school lunches supplied by the school in a sustainable manner while monitoring the nutritional levels and academic performance of the students, is an impressive innovation that the national government is […]
The Inca Empire knew about the vast amounts of silver reserves in the mountain named Potosí but never touched it. Inca Huayna Capac was told by a foreboding voice to not mine the mountain, and he heeded the warning. The Spanish, however, had other plans – bringing about one of the deadliest and cruellest chapters of the […]