February 22, 2010
Greetings to all of our friends and neighbors from Puerto Aventuras! The following is an update on our activities since we last wrote in December.
- Fundraising Success
- Camp Corazones Reunion and Art Workshop
- ¡Hermanitos! Holiday Party
- New Years Gifts and Piñatas
- Proyecto Mininvierno
- Fishing for the Wall
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Fundraising Success
During the month of December, Anat Kah was blessed with an outpouring of support from all over that helped us to reach our fundraising goals.
We were able to raise $7,650 USD through our “Friends of” fund at the International Community Foundation, which was matched by a gift of $15,300 in early January by a local supporter. We also raised $23,625 pesos locally, matched by a gift of $47,250 pesos, bringing our total amount raised to just under $30,000 USD!
This accomplishment not only means that we can expand our community programs and organize exciting events and activities over the next year, but that we can also start our community grant-making program, providing donations to local organizations and groups working to enhance the lives of residents of Puerto Aventuras.
Although we met our holiday fundraising goals, your gifts are still needed to guarantee that we can continue to work for the community well into the future.
So don’t wait, click the “give online” button at our website to support us today!
First Camp Corazones Reunion and Art Workshop
We held our first Camp Corazones art workshop on January 16th in the afternoon at Colegio Puerto Aventuras, with the help of local artist and art teacher, Suzana. More than 15 kids, counselors and local volunteers came to sing, dance, and paint and draw beautiful turtles together.
Adam Richard, a friend of Carrie’s Heart, took beautiful pictures of the workshop. Visit Carrie’s Heart’s flickr site under “Yucatan 2010.”
We look forward to another reunion with the Camp Corazones crew in March! Art supplies (paints, paint brushes, clay, jumbo chalk, etc.) make great donations, and volunteers are always welcome. Contact us to join the fun!
¡Hermanitos! Holiday Party
The holiday season kicked off with a celebration for the ¡Hermanitos! kids and their teen mentors at Colegio Puerto Aventuras. The school community spent the first part of December collecting food and gifts for the kids and their families. While the administration collected presents from school families for each child, each classroom collected a different food item (canned fruit, rice, etc.) from each student. Then, the high school students organized the food into sixteen gift boxes for their Hermanitos’ families.
The party took place one afternoon at the school, and the children and their mentors enjoyed games, Christmas stocking decorating, delicious tamales, a piñata, and even a visit from Santa Claus who gave each child their gift! We look forward to this semester with all of the ¡Hermanitos! on Tuesdays at 3:30 at the daycare center.
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New Years Gifts and Piñatas
 Next, in early January, we organized and distributed over 100 bags of nonperishable food, 250 gifts, and fresh fruit to local families in need, in coordination with the local family and children’s services agency. We also gave candy-stuffed piñatas to each classroom in the Poblado, giving teachers the chance to organize their own Three Kings’ Day celebrations with their students.
Special thanks to Anne and Ron Silver, Pauline and Hal Harper, Andy Pittman, Sherry Perry, Sally Allen, Lucia Perrotta, Lalo, Rose Ann and Jim Pastor, Debbie van der Haar, Gilda Peregrina, Christina Alexander and Marisa Orejas for their time and energy in stuffing piñatas, filling bags with food, organizing gifts and handing out oranges, gifts and food bags in the Poblado in the most efficient operation many of us had ever seen! Also, thank you to the Municipal DIF, the delegation of Puerto Aventuras, the Delegado of Puerto Aventuras, Antonio Mier Díaz, and Doris Jimenez, for all of their help with the distribution.
Proyecto Mininvierno
Maria, Jimena and Isabella are three local elementary school students who decided last summer that they wanted to help other kids who do not have all of the advantages that they have. So they decided to do something about it using their creative and artistic talents. They got together two Saturdays per month from August to December, making beautiful beaded necklaces, earrings and other handicrafts for their Proyecto Minivierno (Mini-Winter Project).
All of their hard work culminated in their extremely successful three-day sale at the Colegio Puerto Aventuras Holiday Bazaar in late November. Through the sale of their hand-made products, along with other small accessories donated by their mothers, the girls were able to raise $9,000 pesos! They decided to use that money to buy gifts for local children who perhaps did not receive any toys at Christmas or Three Kings Day.
In early January, the young ladies went shopping with their mothers, Debbie and Marisa, and bought over 80 toys, ranging from chess sets to basketballs, and from puzzles to Barbie dolls.
Once everything was organized, the girls came to the DIF with Anat Kah on January 12th and 13th and were in charge of giving presents to the children who came with their parents for New Years food packages. The girls worked carefully to make sure that each child received a gift that they might like, running back and forth between families and toys to choose the perfect match! The girls were thrilled with their success, and are already planning their next Proyecto Mininvierno.
Fishing for the Wall
Last June, the Dave Harris Memorial Cinco de Mayo Fishing Tournament gave Captain Rick’s Sport Fishing’s captains and mates the opportunity to give back to Puerto Aventuras. The captains and mates donated an extra hour of work for each of two days of the tournament in return for a gift to benefit their community. Then, Captain Rick’s matched that gift, which was invested in the construction of the telesecundaria wall! Six of Captain Rick’s boats participated, including the Obsession with Captain Robot, which won the tournament. Thank you to Captain Rick’s and their employees for giving their time and energy towards the building of the wall.
Telesecundaria Wall Update
A special thank you to Eduardo Solis Precariat and Aregados y Bloques Carmen S.A. de C.V. for their generous donation of over 2000 cement blocks for the building of the wall! Also, thank you to Materiales Tony construction supplies in Playa del Carmen for transporting all of the blocks from ABC to the school! Construction on phase two begins soon, and we will be sending out invitations for mural painting within the next month. Let us know if you will be in town over the next few months and don’t mind getting a little paint under your fingernails, and we’ll count you in!
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