Voluntarios que han trabajado en nuestra organización....
Weebkee Rathjens, Alemania
I have been working with the „Fundación por la Madre“ for about 2 month in 2011. I came to Colombia and I wanted to collaborate by working in a foundation. After getting to know the work of the foundation, Mary and Vladimir and their children and the place they live and work, it was the best decision I could make: join their voluntary work. They welcomed me with an incredible warmth and you feel at home at once.
I mainly worked in two primary schools. One in Puerto Nuevo a village close by Guachaca and the other one in La Union, a one-room-school out in the nature surrounded by hills, palms, great trees, rivers. It was an incredible walk to get to this school and you got filled with energy from the nature that surrounded you. It was a great experience to get to know the school system in Colombia, to compare conditions, ways of pedagogic and to give the children an opportunity to learn English. The pupils were thankful and happy about learning English. Children with a big smile in their faces running up to you and asking: “¿Hoy tenemos clase de inglés?” - “Today there will be our English class?” One of the most inspiring experiences was to get to know the house of the foundation which I would call an opened house for everyone who needs help with …whatever. Pupils passing by and asking for help with their homework, neighbors who were interested in learning English or working with computers. Everyone is welcome. I was impressed by Mary`s and Vladimir`s way of giving everyone the opportunity to develop their own interests and potentials. Besides giving English classes I enjoyed it a lot living in an amazing landscape, enjoying to live concentrated on our basic needs without the influence of nowadays cities. And by working in a small village you get to know the people and they make you feel welcome and at home. I can highly recommend working with the “Fundación por la Madre” besides getting to know a part of Colombia and offering your time and motivation for a great idea you have time and to think about yourself and discuss about the world we live in. Wiebke Rathjens, 30 years Hamburgo, Germany Pre-school teacher Jessica Rucinque, Colombia
As a Visual Artist interested in artistic education, working as a volunteer with Fundación Por la Madre was a delightful experience. I had the opportunity to share my knowledge; children learnt about materials, colors, composition, the creative process but most important, they got tools for making their own world, for representing it and communicating the way they feel and think reality.As a Visual Artist interested in artistic
education, working as a volunteer with Fundación Por la Madre was a delightful
experience. I had the opportunity to share my knowledge; children learnt about
materials, colors, composition, the creative process but most important, they
got tools for making their own world, for representing it and communicating the
way they feel and think reality. With their volunteer program Fundación Por la Madre, gives the community the chance of approaching different fields of study that usually they are not able to access because there is not any support from the government, not even basic education for everyone.
The work Fundación por la Madre is developing in the Sierra Nevada with the different communities is titanic and is pretty impressive that they accomplish everything by their own means. There is so much to be done all over Colombia and they are absolutely compromised on seeing it be done at least on the region they are settled on. They know their community, they have an awesome relationship with everyone and they understand their needs, so their programs are always focused on filling hollows and helping people develop their own potentialities. Finally, I would like to say that I admire their tenacity. One needs lots of courage and guts to take "the bull by the horns" and not just complain about Colombian reality, but really DO something to change things for better futures. Jessica Rucinque Arbeláez - 27 years Bogotá, Colombia Visual Artist Ilenia Palmioli, Italia
My name is Ilenia palmioli, I am 26 years old and I am from Italy. I had a small but incredible experience as volunteer for the association Fundacion Por la Madre. They work with a serious and very human approach. The people they reach with their job find not only a professional support but also a friend. They really can do a lot for all the children and family living in the Sierra. To be volunteer and collaborate with them was a good experience.
Ilenia Palmioli Nardi, 26 years Italy Leah Song, USA
"Fundacion Por La Madre is an incredible Columbian run volunteer organization that is tacking unbelievable work with education, permaculture, solar power, youth empowerment through the arts, and general Colombian cultural pride across the Sierra Madre area of Northern Columbia. I cannot express enough how impressive the level of their work and dedication, the incredibly grassroots team, and the amount of grounds they are covering with such a small team. TRUELY a project of heart, Fundacion Por la madre will only continue to reach people exponentially.
Leah Song New Orleans, USA www.RisingAppalachia.com |
Charles Larratt-Smith, Canada
Ten years ago, the coastal department of Magdalena was a virtual warzone with various paramilitary factions engaged in an extremely violent battle for control of the highly coveted region. Sadly, the principle victims of this brutal conflict were the local inhabitants, many of whom had already been displaced by violence in other parts of the country. Fortunately the security situation here has improved over the past five years and today there is an unprecedented semblance of calm and normalcy in the rural enclaves of the region.
However, the unquestionable improvement in security in Magdalena contrasts sharply with the lack of improvement in the material living conditions of the region´s inhabitants. The local population continues to exist in extreme poverty and many amenities such as clean water, electricity, basic healthcare, and any form of education remain beyond the reach of most individuals in the community. As it has become abundantly clear that the local authorities are not interested, or capable in addressing these pressing social problems, the need for outside assistance is greater than ever. The only grassroots non-profit organization that is actively engaged in the rural communities of this part of Magdalena is Fundación Por La Madre. Focusing primarily on educational initiatives in the severely undersupported and overwhelmed local school system, the organization has augmented these institutions with volunteer instructors in a wide array of subjects, thus enhancing the quality of the education in the process. Fundación Por La Madre also has established local workshops in topics such as ESL for any and all interested local parties to attend, not to mention environmental initiatives (plant nurseries, replanting campaigns, waste disposal, etc.) to conserve and protect the local ecosystem of the communities which it serves. Quite simply, the organization fulfills many local responsibilities that the state neglects to do. I had the privilege of working with Vladimir and Mary, the foundation´s directors, this past summer for some eight weeks in the Guachaca municipality and I can personally attest to their level of involvement not only in the community at large, but in the individual lives of its men, women, and children as well. I still actively support their efforts in any way that I can and I hope to one day soon return to help them in their endeavors on the coast of Magdalena. Charles Larratt-Smith Toronto, Canada Guest Professor, Modern Languages, Universidad de Los Andes, Mérida, Venezuela Tilo Schmidt, Alemania
In February 2011, i have been volunteering for the Fundacion Por La Madre in Guachaca. Due to the lack of trained teachers, educational opportunities in the region are limited. In some places not even a functioning school for basic education exists. Fundacion Por la Madre was established to tackle this problem with the help of volunteers. The program includes possibilities to life and work in rural communities in and around the mountains of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. Volunteers will usually stay in local villages and give lessons in common school subjects such as math, orthography, language teaching et cetera.
My work at school in Guachaca included English lessions as well as assistance in organisational tasks. Since I haven't had any experience in teaching so far, except for private tutoring, this was the first time I had the chance in teaching a class in English. Nevertheless i felt a bit uncertain about the general interest in foreign languages - only few people in rural Colombia do speak English. To my surprise, lessons were attended not only by local kids, but also by their parents who appeared to be similarly avid students. Classes took place on nearly all working days over a period of three weeks. Certainly such time is not long enough to acquire more than the most basic English skills, therefor many more lessons and volunteers would be needed. Due to the dedicated work of the founders Mary and Vladimir, i am confident and hopeful that Foundation Por La Madre will continue to grow and succeed. Thanks to the astonishing enthusiasm plus the good humor of my students, working in Guachasa has been a truly rewarding experience for me personally. Thus i´m looking forward to return and continue voluntary service in 2013. Tilo Schmidt Berlin, Germany Luisa Bustos, Australia
I met Mary and Vladimir in Sept/Oct 2010 whilst travelling in Colombia and specifically Guachaca where they were running the volunteer organisation Fundacion Por la Madre, bring education opportunities to children living the coastal communities around Guachaca and the indigenous communities in the Sierra.
I helped out with some teaching english in one of the schools they have been working in. The work that Fundacion Por La Madre has been doing in this area of Colombia is really amazing and inspiring. They have such respect for the local communities, the indigenous people, the environment and their country. They are such giving people and strive to do good for communities in need of assistance. I would be very confident in recommending their work to others and other organisations looking to fund foundations. Luisa Bustos Sydney, Australia 35 years old. |
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