University of Virginia Springbreakers build in Argentina

During the first week of March 2008, 11 Springbreakers from the University of Virginia, USA, descended on Buenos Aires and HelpArgentina to work with a member organization, Sagrada Familia (Sacred Family), to build "two new additions" to the small homes of two distinct families' in the greater Buenos Aires region.

Arriving in Argentina on a Friday, these eager college students participated in an orientation with HelpArgentina before heading the following Monday to begin work in a small, rural, and very low income neighborhood in Tigre, a community that attracts many tourists for its proximity to a delta of the river Parana.

The project was slow at the start, but as the week progressed, the students and a routine developed they got to know the community and the families whose homes they were renovating. I visited the group on their last day. To say the least it was a very inspiring day.

Arriving after about an hour and a half of commute, I reached the volunteers who were working laboriously on the two different projects. One of the projects was to build the basic structure of a separate "one room" home on the property of a big family of at least 8. By the end of the day, the skeleton of the home was completed, the floor boards were laid, and the roof and walls were constructed. (The final product was to be completed by Horacio Fish, the on-site leader and carpenter from Sagrada Familia).

The other project was an addition to the home of a single mom and her two young children. The group finished the general structure and laid the the floor boards as well as the sun went down that Friday afternoon. This addition would be a new kitchen for the family, a well-needed expansion to her humble home.

It was neat to hear about and see how the group came together over the course of the day and the week. It was evident that this was a great team-building experience for the group. Also, you could see a glimmer in their eyes as they interacted with the community and families. They joked, played with the local kids, and often engaged with other locals, who were curious about what was going on.

As the day came to an end, the group was treated to cookies, medialunas, and mate as well as a special performance by 4 local children (one whose home they had renovated) from the community in a show of thanks for their efforts throughout the week. These young kids, dressed in traditional garb from northern Argentina, danced a series of dances to the applause of the UVA group and the others who joined them from the surrounding neighborhood. After hugs and kisses and long good-byes, the group from the University of Virginia followed the dirt road out of the neighborhood, dirty and tired, but visibly grateful to have been able to provide a modest boost to these two local families.

Working with the group this day, it was wonderful for me to see how valuable this experience was for everyone. Though it may seem like just a little gesture to some, the efforts of this group, like so many other construction projects of this nature going on in the world; mean a lot more to those that it is helping than one may imagine. The smiles on the faces of these families, particularly the single mother of two, brought a tear to my eye. She thanked the group with hugs and kisses, and though she was quiet and very shy, you could see that this small act provided her with a well-needed boost to keep dreaming and fighting to provide a better life for her family.

Though successful in material terms for the end results that were fulfilled, clearly, the human dimension and inter-cultural exchange that ocurred reflected on a much deeper level the value of finding simple ways to support and empower others. Simple acts of kindness are all that is needed to make this world a better place.

New Addition to Crecer is finished!

As of a little over a week now, Crecer con Amor is using its new classroom for more than 30 little four and five year olds.

I know that Monica, the staff member who uses this new space, is extremely pleased with it. Its something she has been needing for at least a year now.

Crecer con Amor is now starting its second construction of what will be a second floor addition. It will be used for training courses, education, and other activities. As I mentioned before, a donation from Amine Darrous, the unlce of a former volunteer, is the reason this great project is happening. It is an exciting time at Crecer con Amor!

As this next project unfolds, I will keep you posted.

Peace.

New addition to Crecer con Amor in progress!

As I have mentioned before, HelpArgentina works with a model that encourages foreigners, ex-volunteers, Argentines living abroad, and many others; to become 'Social Ambassadors' for organizations in Argentina.

InsightArgentina, the volunteer program, has enjoyed great success since late 2006 working with ex-volunteers to raise money and awareness for their host organizations in Argentina. Further, HelpArgentina's Comunidad sin Fronteras (Community without Borders) works directly with all of these donors and Social Ambassadors abroad.

I introduced to all of you, Crecer con Amor, in my last blog. Jacqueline and her dedicated staff are working to make the community stronger by supporting young people between the ages of 1-13 in their lives and through education. They have received more than 30 volunteers from Insight since late 2006. Many of those same volunteers continue to be in close contact with the staff at Crecer.

But beyond the close contact and strong relationships that has developed between volunteers and the Crecer staff, there is a visible 'giving' that has ocurred most recently through individual volunteer initiatives. Aware of the need at Crecer con Amor for a new classroom space, two of our past volunteers have made incredible contributions.

Charlotte Demole, from Switzerland, spent two months at Crecer in 2007 and returned home to raise enough funds to help the organization begin the construction of the new 'classroom.' (Pictured above) Particularly, this new classroom will house the currently 'overcrowded' group of 4 and 5 year olds, who have been lacking space since late 2006. Excited and very grateful, the staff of Crecer is preparing for this important change and allow them to respond effectively to the increasing needs in the local neighborhood.

Another exceptional volunteer, Tammy Chen and her uncle, Amine Darrous, have also contributed to the above construction, but more importantly, they have donated the funds necessary to construct a 'second floor' to the Crecer building. This new space will be built during 2008 and will provide a new space for the many adolescents and adults in the community who would benefit from job training workshops as well as other educational activities.

I do not have photos yet of this second floor project as it has not started yet. But when it does, I will share them with you.

In conclusion, I would like to thank both Charlotte, Amine, and Tammy for their truly inspiring initiatives to support this wonderful community center. Like many others, they are true Social Ambassadors for Crecer con Amor and their impact will be felt into the future.

More updates coming. Peace.

Crecer con Amor (To Grow with Love)

Though the name may sound corny to some when translated into English, it is certain that Argentina needs more organizations like Crecer con Amor! If each organization put forth the love and caring that this little youth-based community center does on a daily basis, Argentina would be transformed overnight.

This small organization has a tremendous story. It has been built up from scratch by one Argentine woman, Jacqueline Marquez, against all odds, but with the support of many others since the economic crisis in Argentina in 2001-2.

Today, January 29, 2008, I went out to Crecer con Amor with a future volunteer from Estonia. Yep, you heard right, Estonia. Awesome.

Listening to Jacqueline speak about Crecer and its transformation never gets old. From her tiny office, tucked away in a small corner of La Loma, outside Buenos Aires city, she speaks fluidly, passionately, and with a sparkle in her eye (Photo: Jacqueline with volunteer, Matt Bennett).

If I were to describe Jacqueline, the following words would come to mind: courageous, determined, disciplined, un-wavering, compassionate, loving, caring, selfless, and one-of-a-kind.

As Jacqueline speaks about the unfolding turn of events that gave life to her special place for young people in La Loma, you cannot help but feel inspired. Her story and the story of her organization and its people show us that anything is possible when you lead with good intentions and compassion for others, and trust in the perfection of things.

Currently, more than 150 young people from the ages of 1-13 frequent Crecer con Amor each day to participate in a variety of educational activities. Crecer can best be described as both a before-school and an after-school program (some children attend school in the mornings, some in the afternoon), but it is much more than that. Crecer provides a fundamental safe space and supportive role for its young people. Love, mutual respect, and the education of basic human values are at the heart of Crecer's mission.

In a neighborhood where drug use and juvenile criminality is prevalent and where families have often been torn apart by unemployment or social crisis, Crecer is a breath of fresh air that brings hope for the future to this community's youngest members. Crecer con Amor is changing the lives of these kids each day and you can see it on their faces.

Not surprisingly, our volunteer program has been constantly inspired working with Jacqueline and everyone at Crecer. More than 40 volunteers from 14 different countries have volunteered in La Loma since 2006. Many notable things have happened. I will tell you about them as we go. Peace.

I'm back

I have returned to Buenos Aires after 5 weeks in the United States visiting my family. I wish everyone the best in 2008.

I started this blog in late 2007 with the prodding of others around me and my own interest. It hopes to touch on the many experiences, stories, and activities of our volunteers in Argentine ngos through my eyes.

Up until now, we have heard about my background and reasons for being in Argentina, Nahuel and his inspirational journey to Turkey, and I wrote about my trip to one of our grass-roots organizations, Alimentar Ensenando.

I hope that you will read these previous blogs and acquaint yourselves with our volunteers, organizations, and HelpArgentina.

Thus, on to 2008!!

International Volunteer Day, December 5th

Last week on December 5th, the world celebrated International Volunteer Day. I wanted to take this opportunity, though late, to thank all of the volunteers here in Argentina as well as the volunteers worldwide for their dedication and commitment!

Some people take volunteering for granted and some people see it as nothing more than a "good" experience. Volunteering is and can be a lot more than that. To volunteer is to step outside ourselves and to be concerned for the lives of others. I hope that each one of you considers becoming a volunteer one day.

Why take the bus in Buenos Aires?

As a volunteer coodinator, I love riding the bus in Buenos Aires. I have spent hours and hours on the bus. But it was not always that way.

When I first arrived in Argentina in 2003, I rode the subway. Buenos Aires has 5 different subway lines that I know of and one is currently being constructed. The subway is not that complicated, it pretty much runs in straight, parallel lines, from south to north and vice versa, designated with the letters A-D and there are colors too.

Riding the subway, though easy to navigate for the non-Spanish speaking foreigner, is like riding to work in a night club, but nobody is dancing. Each person is pressed up against one another, whether they like it or not; there is sweat dripping down the forehead of some over-weight fat guy (no offense to overweight people, I respect their struggles); someone is always checking someone else out or avoiding eye contact; and there is always that annoying person or group-train of people pushing their way through the crowd en route to get another drink at the bar, or in this case, to dis-embark.

In the summertime, riding the subway is worse. Multiple the above night-club metaphor by 30, and you might have a glimpse as to what I am talking about. For these reasons and more, I stopped riding the subway. I found the bus system. It is however important to mention that subway Line A is worth riding. Constructed in the early 20th century, it is one of oldest lines in the region. This first subway line ran from the Congress building along Avenida de Mayo to Plaza de Mayo. The train cars are old-school. Wooden benches, old lights, and ancient circular hand rings hang from the ceiling. If you go to the front of the car, you may be able to see the train tracks up ahead as you ride, as well as, the passengers waiting at the next stop. Its like being in another place, another time.

There are thousands of bus lines in the city. Every street and avenue has one and contrary to the subway lines, it is rather complicated to navigate. I learned to ride the buses because I often accompany foreign volunteers to their host organizations in obscure neighborhoods of the capital or the province of Buenos Aires. There are a number of things that make riding the bus in Buenos Aires worth-while, challenging, educational, and just plain entertaining. In true David Letterman style, but probably less humorous, here are the top ten things I have noticed while riding the bus in Buenos Aires:

10. That passengers who say 'setenta y cinco' really mean 'ochenta' and those that say 'ochenta' really mean more than that.

Note: These are the prices in Argentine cents that it costs to ride the bus in the capital. The prices are either 75 or 80 as I understand it, unless you are leaving the capital (many buses do), where it could be 1.25 or 1.75 or something over 1 peso. 75 Argentine cents is if you are going 20.1 blocks where 80 Argentine cents is when you are traveling between 20.1 and 101.25 blocks. I do not know how the bus drivers decipher these distances or how the passenger calculates them, but I think both processes are way over my head. Finally, I have to admit that one day I said 'setenta y cinco' (75) and I actually got off after 30.5 blocks. Fortunately, the bus driver did not notice.

9. That it is possible to get the "black lung" from inhaling the bus fumes that permeate the physical space of the bus and if you sit in the back seat directly over the wheel for long enough, your butt with reach above normal temperatures that require you to stand up immediately.

8. That if you sit upfront and pay close attention to the bus driver, you will notice that he often weaves in and out of oncoming traffic, taxis, other buses, the elderly and small children.

Note: Bus drivers have a handy knack for avoiding other objects in their immediate environment by a matter of centimeters. These 'happy go-lucky' Argentine bus drivers drive worse than in Massachusetts (Massachusetts is a state in the north-east of the USA and has characteristically crazy drivers normally denoted by the name "Mass-holes").

7. That at least 25% of the bus drivers sport 'Diego Maradona' haircuts and even look like him too.
Note: I swear that I have seen Diego on bus lines 103, 118, 162, 60, 15, and 59.

6. That it requires precise 'timing' and 'agility' and a little bit of 'luck,' to board any bus in the city where the bus driver is 'angry.' They rarely stop long enough for you to get on, therefore, you must time your jump, checking the wind with your pointer finger, and hope for the best.

Note: I have a record of 52-64 on the busline 103. For those aspiring mathematicians, I have fallen off the bus 12 times since 2006. Also, in fairness, most bus drivers do stop for older men and woman and pregant mothers, and children with handicaps.

5. That some buses have 'seats' of varying sizes from front to back. You have seats on a flat plain, seats on a man-made mountain, small seats and big seats, seats for midgets and other small people, and seats that were taken from the best national bus services in Buenos Aires who travel throughout the country. From a distance, the combination of the above-mentioned characteristics resemble an abstract painting from the 20th century.

4. That when you fall asleep on the bus (for those that are good sleepers), you will most likely wake up in La Boca.

Note: Everybody, minus my HelpArgentina co-worker who once woke up two hours outside the city in his childhood neighborhood, have always told me stories of falling asleep while riding to work or to a party and waking up in La Boca. I am sure that the cities buses do not all terminate in la Boca, but these stories make me wonder. La Boca is a well-known lower-working class neighborhood known to foreigners for its insecurity, its lively markets, art, and colorful buildings.

3. That most bus drivers in Buenos Aires have ineffective 'right legs and feet' due to a well-known nervous twitch caused by more than 12 hour a day shifts with below average salaries. Actually, bus drivers do not work twelve hour days, but there is a 'right leg deficiency,' trust me. These deficiencies cause the constant "starting and stopping" of every ride in the city.

Note: there have been no smooth rides here since the beginning of democracy in 1983. This is not a reference to the effects of democracy on the right legs of bus drivers over 35, it is purely a comment on how long this bus-ride insanity has been going on in Argentina.

2. That Buenos Aires buses, like the subway described earlier, can be like a night club on wheels.

Note: each bus driver or group of drivers on some bus lines have decorated, pimped out, and styled their buses, mostly toward the front where they spend their days. Disco balls, bright lights, stuffed animals dangling from the ceiling, and occasionally signs with phrases like "Miguel's bus since the 80's" animate your bus ride. These 'colectivos' are artistic expressions of disgruntled bus drivers just having a great time while 'on the road.' I think it is entertaining and adds yet one more reason to ride or not the bus each day.

1. That the bus lines in Buenos Aires are the hub for the cities informal market of local vendors, sellers, and common people needing to make ends-meat.

Note: each bus ride in the city is blessed with someone trying to sell you something. I actually enjoy these people and welcome what they are selling. Three years ago, the informal market existed of random people with half-baked schemes who were selling half-eaten candies, small items, and undecipherable things.

Today, these people and others have advanced presentations that are scripted, well-thought out, and that make you want to buy what they are selling. Well, sometimes. The point is that today it is impressive to see the salesman-like qualities that have developed in some. You can find anything from Cd's to flash-lights, movies, wallets, and common kitchen knives on the bus ride home from work.

Some final comments about Number 1 above:

-These bus-ride vendors and the diversions they may represent are forbidden or more uncommon in other parts of the world. For me, the relationship between bus-drivers and vendors is like an act of solidarity. Solidarity for their current situation and a spirit of cooperation to make a better life for themselves. Yes, I have seen some bus drivers ask for a small fee, but generally, it seems to be good will.

-I also recognize that that it may be desirable to bring these vendors or sellers into the formal economy, put those skills to test in local businesses or in sales, and that some of them may even be just plain lazy; but nevertheless, if they can work, make some money to support themselves, and improve their quality of life, for now, I am all for it. Plus, I just got the new Bruce Willis flick for 3 pesos and it actually works!

As you can see, being a volunteer coordinator in Buenos Aires has its perks. I highly recommend riding the bus, with supervision, upon visiting this great city.