Education Bolivia Project #28318

Help Bolivian Children Living in Poverty

by Rosa Vera Fund, Inc.

Project Report | Dec 22, 2017
Upcoming Medical Trip-Christmas 2017

By Karen Melk | Board Chair

On Christmas Day, 2017 - a medical trip led by Drs. Darlene and Jonathan Melk will depart the United States for a site visit in Montero, Bolivia. The group also includes Dr. Krekamy Craig and board members Amy Sirot and Laura Sweet. The plan is to visit most of the patients through medical home visits, as well as spending time at La Escuelita, to see our school/therapy center "in action" - numerous children and their caregivers coming through the doors to receive physical and speech therapy, have a chance to meet with a special education teacher, and help prepare meals for children through our nutritional therapy program.

Over the past three months, the Rosa Vera Fund has focused on providing consistent, reliable and high-quality physical and speech therapies to our patients. We are continually amazed at the progress our children are making. Because the RVF commits to a child for the long-term, we are seeing the fruits of years of dedicated therapy. For example, Yoselin, when we first met her several years ago, couldn't walk, use her hands, or even sit alone. Over the years of steady therapeutic intervention, Yoselin has not only learned greater control of her arms and hands, but also has gained the strength to walk almost unassisted, with a walker. It is truly a thrill to see this young girl - who used to be kept hidden at home out of fear and shame - now accompany her parents on regular family outings: to church, to the grocery store, to a community event. Yoselin's quality of life has improved immeasurably.

All donations received through GlobalGiving are used to support the programs of La Escuelita. In the future, we hope to increase the number of malnourished children reached through our nutritional therapy program, and also increase the number of children we accept as long term patients into the fund.

In three weeks, I will post an update on the activities of this medical trip. In the meantime, feel free to check out our updates on Facebook. And, as always, thank you so very much for your support!

Links:

facebook updates

Permalink

Sep 22, 2017
Your donations are changing the world for these children!

By Karen Melk | Board Chair

Jose loves his speech therapy sessions!

Donations received through GlobalGiving are dedicated to furthering the work we do at "La Escuelita " - the Little School - which provides intensive speech and physical therapy, special education classes, and nutrition for the children of the Rosa Vera Fund. La Escuelita is busy all day and into the evening. Parents take part in our family support sessions, where they have a chance to meet other parents facing similar struggles with children suffering overwhelming health problems.

In the past, children needing speech or physical therapy needed to go to the nearest city offering such services, located 90 minutes away. Just for one session, parents would face carrying a disabled child several miles to the nearest bus station, take a long, crowded bus ride to the city, and then make their way to the actual clinic, where they might wait several hours for their child's turn. Then, they had to do the entire trip in reverse. Add in the cost of transportation, and it is clear that the challenges of doing this twice a week were almost insurmountable.

The Rosa Vera Fund has eliminated these barriers. Every day, including Sunday, a small van makes the rounds of the town, picking up children and their moms and bringing them directly to La Escuelita. Each child receives a nourishing, warm meal; for most of these kids, this is the only warm nutrition they will receive that day. Parents are closely involved in the therapy sessions, learning the skills to continue the techniques at home on a daily basis.

Children also have the opportunity to learn - to write, to read, to draw, to express themselves - through our special education classes. The simple joys of childhood, that so many of us take for granted - are available to the children in our programs.

Karla's mom brings her for speech therapy

Physical therapy helps Matias better use his hands

Links:

More pictures and patient stories on Facebook!

Permalink

‹ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

About Project Reports

Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.

If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can recieve an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.