Give at-risk Colombian children a safe home

Dear Globalgiving friends,

During 2015, 1.654 children and adolescents entered our Centers. Part of our strategy this year has been to provide activities through which they can see, feel and experience various trades and identify their talents and natural inclinations and tastes. Thus we can facilitate the development of an occupational diagnosis to enable professionals to help the children individually and prepare them so that in future they can realize their dreams and live a happy and successful life.

Cooking
A world of possibilities
Healthy eating largely defines the quality of life. Recently our young people have taken a special interest in cooking. In order to make cooking fun and to encourage them to develop a taste for fruit and vegetables in a fun way, 60 children and adolescents from our New Dawn Center took lessons in food preparation with two renowned Israeli chefs. The chefs were visiting Colombia for an annual food fair and kindly gave up their time to give the kids some valuable cooking lessons.

Carpentry
A useful art for life

For this activity Directors of the Foundation “Llenando Espacios”, experts in the art of woodworking, visited us and taught the children the art of cabinetmaking. Together they built 30 desks and 30 chairs for the classroom. As well as teaching the children an important trade the aim was also to make them appreciate the value of their own work and the importance of making your home an inspiring space.

University
A dream to achieve

Convinced that education is the engine for change, and with the support of our dear GlobalGiving donors, this year we offered 30 young people from our Saint Patrick Center technical and professional workshops and training in entrepreneurship and other skills to prepare them for the working world. This was the result:
In the academic year 2014 – 2015
11 of them graduated
5 studied at college
5 students studied at SENA Technical Institute.
7 found work as young employees in companies.

As we have already mentioned in other reports, the training given to children and adolescents whom we protect and nurture in our centers follows the principles of the SER Philosophy, which was elaborated by Jaime Jaramillo "Papa Jaime", our founder. He has dedicated many years of service to humanity, rescuing children from the sewers and streets, helping high-risk communities and bringing a message of peace and love to different countries across the world. Using this experience he has created the method BEING. A simple and innovative approach to the human heart that will achieve profound personal transformation, reflected in immediate, positive and lasting actions.

This philosophy is based on the "awakening of consciousness" of those involved in the programs. It encourages them to start to believe in themselves again and identify all those qualities, talents and gifts that make each of them special and different from the next person. The aim is for them to rediscover their lives and understand that the greatest wealth is in their hearts, namely inner peace, love and joy.