jenns.world

The world has not run out of good people to help those in need, and this is evident in the way there are children charities unselfishly sharing time, skills and resources with the less fortunate. However, a good number of charities concentrate on donating food, medicines, clothes, or money. While these are viewed with gratitude, dole-outs have long been questioned as a strategy if the ultimate goal of the assistance is to empower the poor. For buildOn, true charity means breaking the vicious cycle of poverty; that is why it has focused on providing quality education for the youths regardless of gender. The organization does this through programs, such as Building Schools and its After School Service. A Vicious Cycle to Break It has become evident that parents who have not been educated are less likely to send their kids to school. This is not because they do not believe in education as a means to a better life; most of them see that education gives people the ability to obtain better e...

I was so nervous about my 4 hour layover in El Salvador than the entire week trek in Nicaragua to build a school . It was my first time traveling outside America aside from my drives from Seattle to Vancouver Canada or the ferry rides to Victoria B.C. and my one trip to Mexico over 10 years prior. This was going to be different, a trip into Nicaragua – Central America – into a place that isn’t Americanized for tourists. I didn’t know how much English they would know, or if they would even be accepting of this blonde American woman. At least in Nicaragua the rest of the group would be there in the same boat I was in with regards to the language barrier, but El Salvador I was on my own. Friends tried to ease my anxiety by saying things like “You’ll be int he airport, and most people speak English in airports.” or “Don’t worry, the signs will be in Spanish and English too. You will be fine.” So I eased myself into this with the sa...

As Sandra walked into the kitchen the morning of our last day on trek wearing her backpack strutting proudly that’s when it hit me. We weren’t there just to see how other people live, or to experience another country, but to build a school so that Sandra and Maria can get the education that most of us Americans take for granted. The Community of Las Mercedes The community we visited is roughly a 2 hour drive from Managua, Nicaragua and is nestled among the coffee plantation of Las Mercedes. The coffee grown there is sold to roasters and distributors around the world.  The community is made up mostly of the workers on the plantation and their families. In addition to the workers, a local farm and small coffee grower nestled within the larger plantation lives there along with his extended family. The farmer and his family welcomed most of our group into their homes while one of the workers provided food and shelter to my Husband and myself for the few nights we were there. The...