“Live with reverence for yourself and others.”

Today Juana and I were feeling the cumulative effects of the one and a half weeks of challenging and exhausting work at the Puericultorio Perez Aranibar. Even though there are only two of us it is clear that we are helping. The PPA has been short-staffed this week and two extra adults to help play with and care for the children does make a difference.

Today I continued my work with the siblings. Diana and Ruth were there although Nehista and Omar were able to go home this week. Diana (4) and Ruth (2) are wonderful, loving and independent sisters. It is difficult to get them to listen to me and I am often running after one or both, but knowing that I am enabling them to have this time together inspires me to keep going. Although the girls are mischievous, I know they really only get to be mischievous around me. To hear them giggle with happiness makes it more than worthwhile.

I also continued my work with the toddlers as well. The group I generally help with includes Jorge, Ruth, Guadalupe, and Talia. I am happy for the time I have to play with them and can see their faces light up when I say their name or push them in a car.

Juana has continued her work teaching English and working with the four year old girls. Juana spends a lot of time planning her teaching strategy in order to teach the girls as effectively as possible. Juana also spends a lot of time with the kinder girls and playing games, reading books and engaging in many activities.

Tonight Bill, Jean, Juana and Kari were taken to Barranco by Edith to say goodbye to Bill and Jean as they return to Wisconsin and had a good discussion of values in our society. It is clear that we all seek justice and fairness in our world. We have all furthered that goal with our service to the PPA.

Kari Zipko

“The art of happiness is to serve all.” - February 4th

The fellow who does things that count doesn't usually stop to count them.”

This day in Lima, Peru dawned bright, warm, and beautiful. After the usual bus ride to PPA, Kari and Juana began their morning activities. At the suggestion of Edith, our valued program leader, Juana used catalogs and other picture material donated by our hotel, Hostal Torreblanca, to entertain the four-year-olds, who cut and pasted and designed “posters” which they signed. Later Juana and an aide made a tricycle tour with six of the four-year-olds to that part of the PPA campus which is next to the ocean. The aide spoke English very well. When asked where she had studied English, she responded that she had been listening to songs sung in English all of her life. Aha!

In the afternoon Juana attempted to teach a few English words to a group of lively seven-year-olds. Most popular among the group were Spanish/English picture dictionaries. On this day the most motivated “estudiantes” seemed to prefer learning on their own as they dutifully read words and phrases out loud or copied them on the white board.

Kari continued her afternoon work with the challenging and out-of-control toddlers.

The two woman team reviewed their day's work over dinner at the hotel.

Juana Snook

Visiting home...

"The usual bus ride to the school (PPA), but today we take a van with a social worker on a follow-up visit to one of the parents whose children (2) are in PPA. The lady, Sabina, had temporarily lost custody of her children because of poor health. The trip to Carabayllo took over an hour through heavy traffic. Her home was in a very poor area of “Leantos” and primitive dwellings on a parched hillside. We met and spoke with Sabina who was thin and missing many teeth. She had a lung disease. Possibly T.B. Her age was only 38. She had 4 children and had lost one from a miscarriage recently. Her house was very primitive, but seemed clean.

We toured a soup kitchen for the neighborhood funded by a combination of apoyo social &
contrib from neighborhood residents.

A lthough obviously poor, neighborhood residents seemed clean, well dressed, and involved"

Bill Hoge