2009

Fourth year 

I returned to South America in March and worked once more amongst the street children. I helped five days a week at the boy`s centre in town, taught English in both the boys and girl`s centres, and worked on the streets twice a week, talking to kids still living there to try and persuade them to come to Alalay.

Textile workshop so children make own school uniforms

  • Textile equipment and associated training was purchased, as the children are now going to make their own school uniforms, bedding, curtains and other items.
  • Three hundred egg-laying chickens were bought and houses built for them on-site. These chickens provide fresh eggs for all the children, and surplus eggs are sold for profit.
  • An existing on-site bakery was extended, so the children now learn how to make bread and other baked goods, and eat them!

Kits purchased for our Alalay football team

  • The ´Tahuichi´ local professional football academy agreed to give coaching to the kids at Alalay and we bought a number of football shirts, shorts, socks and boots. We unashamedly use this “bribery” to encourage the children off the streets and into Alalay!
  • A large amount of toothpaste and toothbrushes was donated by the Colgate Company, which was distributed amongst the street kids, and they were taught how to use it.
  • We began our English teaching programme for the street children.

We were able to fund this year’s projects with the generous support of: QEH Lower School students, 18th Bristol Cub Scouts, Salway Singers (Essex), Bristol Grammar School and the English Speaking Union (Bristol branch) alongside many individual donors.