Chicos de la Calle

The Proyecto Salesiano "Chicos de la Calle" (Salesian Program for Street Children) is a prevention and intervention program for street children with a presence in cities throughout Ecuador. In Guayaquil and Duran, the program currently operates 3 shelters for boys who are at-risk or have been living on the streets, and 4 outreach and prevention centers for at-risk boys and girls from some of the area's most impoverished neighborhoods. In addition to economic hardship, many of the children who participate in the program have experienced abuse, abandonment, or neglect at home. Their neighborhoods are often home to high levels of drug abuse and gang activity. The program aims to get and keep kids off the streets and offer them social, educational, and spiritual alternatives.

The first RdC volunteers began working at the "Nuestros Hijos" shelter and vocational school in Duran in 2008. Currently, volunteer Beth Awalt (AJS) serves as an English teacher to the 8th and 9th grades and assists in the social work office. Volunteer Jessie Eisemann (AJS) teaches 7th grade English and accompanies boys in the vocational workshops. In addition, this year RdC volunteers have joined the teams at two of the prevention centers. Jenn Zocco (Mt. Sinai) works at the Casa Don Bosco center and Jeff Wallace (Mt. Sinai) works at the Bastion Popular center.

Beth:
Whether our days end with a jam session on the guitar, watching an intense soccer game or catching up inside the chapel, Jessie and I always leave Chicos with lots to share. "student thrust an iguana in my face today!" "dyed his hair blonde!" " actually let me use the drill machine!" " learned how to sand and lacquer!" " you see what the initials on his shirt stand for?" Usually, after we go through the funny stories, we start to reflect on what the boys have actually been teaching us. I´ll never forget sitting in the kitchen one day as a student asked me, "Señorita, what have you learned so far from us?"

The most inspirational lesson I´ve learned in Ecuador so far, particularly from the boys at Chicos, is the importance of accompaniment. One student asked me to accompany him to the office, so he could finally get the three notebooks he needs for class (he´s been without them for a few months now). Another student asked me to accompany him to visit his sister, whom he hasn´t seen in 9 months, to reconcile their relationship. Yet another student asked me to accompany him on a walk, as we chatted about his life at the shelter and at home. These moments of accompaniment come in all shapes and sizes, but I´m learning how important it is just to be present with someone. That companionship can be offered or asked for, in easy or difficult situations. But what this year, this placement, is continuing to teach me is that we really cannot learn how it feels to live in this shelter. But we can be present to the boys, listen to them, go with them when they need us. And that translates to all relationships, understanding how supportive my family and friends at home and here have been during this time, and constantly striving to accompany those I love in their struggles and joys. I may not be able to fix everything, or anything, but I can be a loving presence, and often that accompaniment is more than enough.

Jenn:
In additon to the shelters, Proyecto Salesiano Chicos de la Calle also has several after-school programs for kids in the surrounding neighborhoods. This year I am working with Casa Don Bosco´s refuerzo escolar (after school help). Every afternoon begins with a lunch, which for some of the kids may be the only meal they eat on some days. After lunch we have for homework and recess. The after school program seeks to reach the families and children with the most need. As such, part of my job has involved going into poor neighborhoods to publicize the program The reality for many of the kids is that if they are fortunate enough to go to school, therey may not be anyone at home who is able to help them with their homework. As volunteers and teachers, we try to be this consistent support for the children. The kids I work with range in age from 6 to 16 and come from varying levels of education. One day I could be helping a 15-year old learn to read while another day I might be teaching an 8-year old division. Though attendance depends on the week, there are a core group of about 30 kids that come regularly and I have enjoyed building relationships with all of them!

Jeff:
The Oratorio Diario in Bastion Popular run by Chicos de la Calle is comprised of different parts. There is a refuerzo where students aged 6-14 come for homework help, as well as a Patio where the students play soccer or other games. The educadores teach workshops for the students ranging from a bisuteria workshop, where students learn to make bracelets, to a music workshop, where students are taught about the basics of reading music and given music lessons, usually on the guitar. All of these parts become a safe haven for student to be off the street and have fun with other kids their age in a safe and loving environment. My role as an educatdor has been multi-faceted. I teach workshops in English and music and in an effort to keep the students interested in my English taller, I tried to have a soccer game with them in English by teaching them commands such as "Pass it"or "shoot it!" The members of the community who walked by probably did a double take, because the kids were yelling "Pass it!" or "shoot it!" all over the Patio, using the commands the entires half hour we played. It was a little success I took home with me that night. Overall, this worksite challenges me and helps me grow, but most importantly helps me become a more rounded and whole person who learns to love others as Christ does.

Jessie:
Working at Chicos is easily the most life giving part of my day---my role is to serve as a mentor in the tallers, and then twice a week I teach english to two classes for forty minutes. This job is seemingly simple. I technically do not actually do anything. I serve as a listening ear and have the opportunity to share my life while learning abut the lives of these incredible boys. All of them have gone through struggles that I will most likely never encounter in my lifetime and their stories, struggles and realities are unreal...yet the insane amount of resilience that they show is so moving. This job has showed me the true power of love---these boys often dont understand the concept of being cared for...and so often do not realize their own worth---but I have seen the effect of simply loving them, and being there with them. They have really warmed up to me and I have seen improvements in their outlooks. I can only hope that we can keep moving forward in these relationships and that they can continue to see that they are people of dignity and worth, and that people do love them. My time spent at the shelter and being with the boys there made me realize something---I may not be able to change the world--in that sense I can only be part of the process---but I do have the ability to change the world of one person, simply by loving.

Viva Ecuador

During the past couple of years, I have had the opportunity to speak about Rostro and my experience in Ecuador to parish audiences in Chicago through the Missionary Cooperative Plan (MCP). I know that most people reading this can appreciate the life changing impact that our time in Ecuador played (and continues to play) in our lives. Being back in the U.S., I sometimes struggle to maintain a deep “connectedness” with Ecuador and our friends there. Introducing Rostro’s mission and representing our wonderfully dynamic group through the MCP program has helped keep Ecuador and our mission front of mind and heart. It has forced me to further reflect on the things that made my experience there so great, and it has challenged me to continue striving to live our lifelong vocation to “be the faces of Christ”. It was difficult for me to pick one personal experience to convey during my limited minutes with these parishes. What I finally settled on was the raw, genuine, intense, both human and divine, connectedness I experienced with fellow volunteers and our brothers and sisters in Ecuador- and what I continue to experience when I truly commit myself to furthering Rostro’s mission here. Rostro has set my heart, soul, and mind on fire. I know it has done the same for so many others. We have a beautiful message to share, and I’m grateful for the open hearts that have received it and been moved to contribute both financial resources and prayers to help us continue our mission! Viva Ecuador, y viva la misión de Rostro de Cristo!

First Day on the Job

For those of you that aren´t aware, Thursday was a crazy day. In the morning, Megan(my boss) left for a long awaited vacation to California. Now, because of my job as logistics coordinator, I was left as ´el jefe´ of the other volunteers. That day, as you may have heard, there was an attempt at a coup. The whole country´s police force decided to go on strike because of an issue of how they were going to be recieving bonuses. This escalated into the police trying to take the president out of power and having him being trapped inside of a hospital surrounded by thousands of angry police officers. That morning i had taken Christina to the doctors office beause she was really sick(we just found out that it is typhoid(am I secretly on Oregon Trail?)) Christina had been sent home with an IV and I was also in charge of helping her and making sure tht she got her meds(they taught me how to give her meds with a serynge through her IV).So, it was about 1030 in the morning when I decided that we needed to get everyone back home or at least know that they were safe and I had to call everyone to tell them that all afterschool programs were closed until further notice. The entire country was without police and because the military is currently undergoing a retooling, no one was in charge. There were people burning tires and edifaces of the president all over, people were looting, the bridges and highways are closed due to police blocking them with protesting and burning tires, the busses aren´t safe to go on and I have poor Christina hookednup to an IV.

So I called everyone to stay put at their work sites in Guayaquil until we figured out a plan. Wellington(one of the guards) and I drove over to the Chicos de la Calle shelter(a shelter and school for streeg kids ) and picked up Jessie and Beth. Along with them we had a truck bed full of 12 kids that needed a ride into central Duran because the busses were too dangerous. We got them back home and I called Jeff in Monte Sinai and asked him to pick up all of his housemates from work and take them home immediately. Then, after figuring out where everyone was and that everyone was safe at their worksites or at hiome it was time to find a way to get people home, which is hard when you are in the middle of a Coup and are frantically trying to pull every Spanish vocab word you can remember out of your head. I starded recieving phone calls from Helen at the Rostro de Cristo office in the US to get updates on the day. It took until 5pm until we had figured out how to get Tierney, Tasha, Brendan, and Jon home. They all worked in the middle of Guayaquil and were pretty much trapped by protests and closed bridges. We sent Wellington and another guard to go get them. They took the long way around the bridges, which took about two and a half hours both ways. Eventually we got everyone home, made grilled cheese sandwiches, watched Good Will Hunting, and passed out.

The attempted coup is now over. Police are back on duty, but it still isnt safe to go out by myself. The hospital just opened up a couple of hours ago. Christina is still really sick, but is off here IV(which I had to remove without any instruction on how to do so). Things are slowly getting back to normal and we should all be resuming work on Monday. Megan is returning on Thursday and our next retreat group just cancelled(I think that parents were all freaking out). I´m sorry I still havn´t gotten pictures up. I felt like this was a little more interesting to write about.

Orientation Comes to a Close

So our two week Ecuador orientation is coming to a close and I´m getting ready to start the real thing. We spent the first week with last year´s volunteers getting to know our neighbors, learning the bus routes, and visiting possible work sites. We gave last year´s volunteers a sad sendoff at the end of the week and made a trip to the beach for some much needed rest and relaxation. We visited a few more worksites at the beginning of this week and also had an all day scavenger hunt all over the city of Guayaquil in order to get to know the city better and practice the bus routes. We were split into groups of four and had to travel to different parts of the city and outlaying areas and take a crazy picture at each of the locations. We definitely provided some entertainment to the Ecuadorians who laughed as a bunch of gringos created a human pyramid on the sidewalk. They were all very eager to help us find where we were going...even when we didn´t ask for help.

We spent yesterday and today deciding on where we would like to work this year. I decided on Damien House for my morning job and Semillas de Mostaza (mustard seeds) for my afternoon job. Damien House http://www.thedamienhouse.org/ is a non-profit clinic for people with Hanson´s disease (formerly known as leprosy) run by Sister Annie, a lively nun from Brooklyn, New York. The clinic serves both live-in patients and outpatients. My main tasks throughout the year will be helping Sister Annie run the foundation, translating for visiting medical staff, giving tours to visiting student groups, and keeping the patients company. Semillas is an after-school program run by our foundation which provides homework help, fun activities, educational talks, a banana, a piece of bread, and a vitamin to the kids in our neighborhood. I will be running it along with 2 other volunteers and an Ecuadorian staff member who is about our same age. Attendance can vary from 40 kids to 115 per day, so it will probably get pretty crazy.

A few other tidbits- I was awoken this morning when my bed was shaken by an earthquake. That was pretty crazy considering it was the first earthquake I´ve ever felt. The epicenter was far away and there was no damage anywhere near where we are, but it was enough to send everyone running out into the kitchen in bewilderment. Also, I will finally be moving into my house this weekend after almost a month of living out of a suitcase. Up to this point we have all been living together in one of the retreat houses, where student groups stay when they are visiting. It will be nice to finally get settled, especially since I will be starting work on Monday. A few days ago we recieved a somber reminder of where we are living, as we were startled by the terrifying screams of a women in a domestic dispute and the loud cries of her children. (we found out later that no one was seriously hurt.) So the first few weeks on the equator have been quite an adventure. I will update you all the next chance I get.

Trembling out of Bed

Trembling out of Bed
I experienced my first earthquake this morning! That goodness Jenn and Marita woke me up, or I would have snored straight through it. We must be pretty far from the epicenter because it was just a minute of minor shaking. What a way to start the day! Aaron and Jeff made us girls (who tend to take advantage of every moment of shut-eye) eggs and toast this morning. We are enjoying our first day off today - the Duran volunteers are discerning their job placements as a group today. We Monte Sinai volunteers got to listen in on the discernment process last night. They have to work out as a group of 11 who will work at each site for the mornings, then divide into three afterschool programs, designating the directors and logistics coordinators. Diffucult task. Needless to say, I am delighted to be sitting in the Cyber right now.

The last few days, we have been exploring the different work sites. My lucky housemates got to accompany me (aka translate for me) two 3 hour long orientations for Hogar de Cristo. Needless to say, we now know a lot about this organization. It looks like I am going to be running the EKG clinic for the time being. (Not nearly as grandiose as it sounds). I had one 5 minute run-through on how to run a test on a machine with make-shift suction cups that are haphazardly taped on. My ´clinic´ is in the back of a classroom, behind an office divider. What have I gotten myself into this time...haha. I am also in charge of organizing a variety of ¨projects¨ throughout the year. The education department sends representatives to schools to identify families and kids who are struggling. If there are medical issues at home, I get to join the team to visit the home and develop a case, explaining the situation, and present it to Hogar de Cristo in hopes of getting free health care in the area, food baskets, etc. This will definitely be the hardest, but BEST part of my job. Most kids who perform poorly in school or stop attending school do so in order to work (often selling water, candy, or newspapers in the streets). Women are often left home to raise kids, while men are either working or out of the picture. Even if the man is working, the money often times does not come home. The situations get even tougher when there are developmental disabilities, infectious and cronic diseases, etc. Lack of sanitation, dirty water, and low nutrition cause many of these problems. The new clinic at my work place will hopefully be finished in two months. (In Ecua time, it could be another 6 months). However, they are interviewing doctors next week - so the situation looks promising! The will have ginecology, emergency room, minor surgury, dentistry, and general medicine services. My supervisor (Veronica) wants to train me in some surrounding clinincs to get a feel for the environment before our clinic starts up. Veronic and Dolores are in charge of me for the year. They are incredibly warm and friendly and super patient with my Spanish. It is going to be a phenomenal experience, no matter what I end up doing.

My four housemmates have sweet placements as well. I think I mentioned that Marita with be working with the San Felipe school right down the street from us. Jenn will be working with the Casa Don Bosco -- a street kids program in Guayquil. She will be organizing after school programs, doing some social work, and possbily teaching a few classes. Jeff will also be working with street kids, similar to Jenn´s placement. He is a phenomenal guitar player, so has much to offer in those respects. Aaron is working at a small medical clinic called Sonrisa Naranja (Orange smiles). Two Dutch doctors started this clinic two years ago. As they bring stories home from their placements, I will be sure to share them with you!

We only have four days left of orientation. Two days ago, we had the big bus quiz. It was a 10 hour scavenger hunt through Guayaquil and Duran. Megan (our in-country coordinator) was waiting in the middle with pizza and cake (Tres Leches!!). We ended at Las Peñas, a lighthouse downtown, which looks over the entire city. The day wore all of us out. But gave us a much needed tour of the city.

This was a short update, but I will have more coming soon.

Thanks for reading

Darkness Has Not Overcome

A trip to Ecuador,
south of the United States;
11 students, 3 staff,
1 God ready to fill our plates.

We hopped on a plane,
dreaming what God had for us as we roam;
Secretly wondering, ‘How we could survive a week,
without our cell phone?’

Touching down in Duran’s sticky hot mess,
The bugs make our group squeal;
We ride home in silence, taking it all in,
not sure how we should all feel.

Shacks with no floor, kids with torn soccer balls,
a muddy and unpaved street;
Intense poverty, like nothing I’ve seen,
leaves me squirming in my seat.

While hearing strange noises,
I lay thinking in my bed;
How would people here receive us,
silly fears dance in my head.

Yet, our neighbors welcome us in
with words from God above;
We lounge in their hammocks, play games,
and receive this rich love.

How could our new friends, choose to lavish us Gringos,
they live with so much less;
Where do they find their smiles of joy,
what gives them reason to radically bless?

As we dig deeper we unveil the source of their joy,
comes not from anything we see;
Rather they are dependant for provision from above
and through God’s community.

They live tightly knit with family,
defying U.S. laws of ‘personal space’
For they are stronger together,
a picture of God’s sovereign grace.

Our group marvels as we find God
alive in our hood;
However, the full picture
would soon seem much less good.

One child in particular
made our reflection headline news;
For he had spent the afternoon with us,
while wearing two left shoes.

Another stands out
in the way he looked at our faces;
“I want to play soccer,” he says,
“but I’ve got no laces.”

Corrupt government structures,
with mayors that have great greed;
That promise clean water, install pipes,
yet fail to succeed.

This leaves all the poorest people
on the streets at 5 in the A.M.;
Screaming ‘AGUA, AGUA,’
praying the truck will stop for them.

It’s a paradoxical tension
that we are all trying to fight;
We experience the darkest mess,
yet we see God’s light.

People with Hanson’s disease,
alone and rejected by all of society;
Yet there’s a sister with compassion,
who creates a warm space to heal their anxiety.

Boys wandering the streets
begging and sniffing glue;
A rich community and shelter,
a place to start their lives anew.

A woman living by drugs and standing water,
her husband drunk and long departed;
A warm welcome, fresh fruit, hospitality,
and a powerful new connection is started.

Kids wearing donated clothing,
looking tattered and torn;
Yet their simple smiles of joy,
seem to overcome all that we mourn.

We ask God together,
‘how is this possible… how could you allow this?’
These people are amazing
and need not be dismissed?

Jesus you heal lepers,
God sends his people to restore;
Now we see this clear suffering,
and we ask ‘HOW MUCH MORE?’

It takes great faith
to look in the face of intense grief;
And proclaim, ‘We believe you are good God,
help our unbelief.’

This pain we found in Duran,
struck a chord deeply in each hearts;
Now we return home,
hoping we will do our parts.

Living in the United States,
this trip is challenging our story;
Calling us to turn our lives
from striving for our own glory.

Our lives are geared towards doing,
our self worth wrapped in a to-do list;
Yet it seems God wants relationship
to be the reason we exist.

How will we respond to God
after He has expanded our world view?
Will we shrink back to former selves
or seek the face of Christ at A.U.?

Guaderia

In the soft morning sunlight the Arbolito guarderia seems to shine with excitement and wonder. The children rounding the corner with their parents catch a glimpse of their magical oasis and grow in excitement knowing that once they cross the purple threshold they enter into their very own special place. A place where the children are cared for on an individual basis, where they are given nutritious food and snack, where they have access to an education as well as a healthy environment in which to grow, and most importantly where they are treated with love and respect. At times I too have to stop myself and think “wow, this guarderia really is top of the line.” So for those of you who worked at the guarderia, or passed by it every day, or maybe knew a child who went there, know that it still is a peaceful, loving and positive place in the Arbolito community.

Now although I say that the guarderia is a peaceful place I would like to stress that I do not mean that one will find themselves at peace while inside the walls of the guarderia. In fact it's quite the opposite and rightfully so since 60 children, ranging from ages 2-4, will leave you drained of everything you have both mentally and physically. There is never a dull moment, and you can never let your guard down at the guarderia. Just the other day I was helping Diana, the maternal teacher, cut out classroom decorations while the children played with play dough. As we were working we heard a loud crashing noise from the bathrooms. We both stopped what we were doing and looked around the classroom to see if it was one of our “ositos” could have been making the noise. Within an instant Diana jumped up from her chair and ran to the bathroom.

Seconds later I heard Diana scream, “Eric, no!” When I ran to see what had happened I found Diana standing in the last stall with tiny 2 year old Eric. She had him by the hands with a shocked looked on her face, Eric had a mischievous grin. Diana looked at me and then pointed to the toilet. When I popped my head in I saw that the heavy porcelain toilet bowl lid had been cracked straight down the middle. Apparently Eric was lifting and then dropping the lid as hard as he could until it broke. Luckily nothing happened to Eric but now the guarderia is down one toilet and all the teachers are unsure of what to do with the “terremoto” that is Eric. The latest idea was to put a short leash on him and have him always connected to Diana, but that didn't seem to go over to well with some of the teachers.

The story of Eric is just one of many from my morning job at the guarderia. It seems as if every day the children are perfecting their mischievousness and shenanigans. If anything gets me out of bed in the morning it’s the knowledge that I will most likely come home with another endearing story about the chaos that is the guarderia.