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Greetings from Cochabamba,

Every May, we get to celebrate Día de la Madre (Mother's Day) here in Bolivia. We say "get to", because to us it is an honor to work with an incredible staff of women who, beyond being talented childcare workers, truly provide the nurturing role of a mother for our 34 children. What does it mean to be a mother to children that are neither biologically nor legally yours, yet have no one else to call "mom"? In this newsletter, we hope to not only share updates on the month's events, but also illustrate what an incredible job our 18 "moms" do every day.

Peace and Love,

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Banner Photo: Some girls from CDP Skyping with Tía Megan, who is currently in California.

Mother's Day Event

With the exception of one tía who was traveling, all of our tías were present as we set aside some special time to celebrate the important role of substitute mother that they play in the lives of our children. The afternoon was filled with laughter while we enjoyed the delicious desserts and snacks provided by Tía Carolina. There was some healthy competition between the two homes as we played some of the games they had requested from a few years back. We also did a white elephant type gift exchange which has become somewhat of a tradition for our Mother's Day celebration. It always starts out relaxed and easy, but inevitably at the end, there are a few gifts that everyone wants, so it really gets interesting!

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Above Left: The ladies digging into Carolina's amazing selection of food.
Above Right: This cotton ball game was requested from games we've played in the past. Here Rossmery is trying to win for Team PDC.

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Above Left: Carolina gets creative (we'll not go as far as to call it cheating;) in making sure those cotton balls reach their destination.
Above Right: Tania trying to guess who her teammate is by only using serving spoons.

Interspersed throughout our time together, we reminisced over funny things the kids have said or done throughout the year, much like any other family get together. All in all, it was a great time to come together and share amongst the tías, but also to show in very tangible ways how much they are valued and appreciated for their dedication and sacrifice in order to create safe, nurturing, loving homes for our children.

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Above Left: Rossmery doing the same as Tania, but with ladles.
Above Right: The Tías sharing a rare moment of relaxing and chatting without any children around.

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Above: Team Pedacito de Cielo cheering on Clare.

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Before our Mother's Day Tea, Lourdes left a card with Paola to read to all the tías at CDP, being too embarrassed to read it aloud herself. Sometimes we wonder if what we're doing makes a difference in the long run--are the little things that we deal with every day really all that important? In her letter, Lourdes thanked the tías for those seemingly little things, for making nutritious food and teaching her how to cook; for making her do her homework (even when she didn't want to); for teaching her how to take care of herself.

It's one thing to receive the accolades of the administration for your hard work and dedication; it's a whole other experience when one of the more aloof teenagers opens up and shows gratitude and appreciation for the daily investments being made into her life. You could see the smiles and pride that the tías felt while her letter was being read. That little show of thankfulness was definitely better than any of the gifts they received that day.

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Above Left: Sofia playing the mom in a skit that her class put together for the Mother's Day event at school.
Above Right: Sofia about to dance in one of the many folkloric dances presented that day.

This month we also celebrated Evelyn's 11th birthday. She was able to spend the day with her family out in the country where she had a great time. Then she and her sister came back to the home where we celebrated with more cake! It was definitely a full-of-fun day for Evelyn :)

We also saw the return of Luz to our home. She had gone to live with her cousin, where seemed to be doing quite well, until she arrived on our doorstep last week, obviously not in good shape. While we investigate the situation and figure out with her what the best situation will be, she has been making a good transition back into the home. Even she noticed that things had changed while she was gone, and the house is much more structured and organized, so she's adjusting to having more rules and responsibilities. She should be starting a new school next week, which should help her feel more integrated into the home.

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Above: Luz (left) with long-time friends Olivia and Valeria.

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Our tías at PDC carry a heavy responsibility as they are raising our kids during their most vulnerable and formative years. While many of our children come to us with already traumatic and difficult pasts, we have the opportunity to intervene and repair much of the damage that has been done. In addition to the high level of attention that 14 children ages 5 and under require, half of the children have serious health conditions, which means that the Tías are constantly trying to keep everyone healthy, as a seemingly common cold can easily turn into something much more serious.

They also have the awesome blessing to be the ones that are there for all the firsts- the first tooth, first word, first step, first day at school. Every day these women willingly step into the role of mother for 14 young lives, no matter what the day holds for them- the fun, the gross, the challenging or the exciting. For all that they do, we are truly thankful that we know our children are growing up with women who love and care for them very much.

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Above Left: Marcos waiting his turn at his school's Field Day.
Above Right: Miguel competing for his class.

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Above Left: The three school kiddos waiting for the bus.
Above Right: Guillermo and Tía Clare checking out some new clothes.

We celebrated Lucas' 3rd birthday on the 30th; this year was the first year that he really was into what was going on and loved every minute of being celebrated. In addition to the usual house crew, his father and various family members were able to attend, which made this day even more special for Lucas.

The house search continues... we have visited several homes, some with potential, but not one yet that meets all of our needs and remains within our budget. We have about 6 weeks to secure a new home for PDC, so please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we continue to look for the right place.

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Late last month we made a second trip out to Quillacollo to help out communities that were affected by the severe flooding at the end of the rainy season. This time we were loaded up with donations from the students at the Maryknoll Language Institute as well as from our girls and staff.

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Above: A group shot of the girls and Tías along with some of the people to whom we gave out clothes and supplies.

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Above Left: Sofia and Tía Paola getting things set up to give out.
Above Right: Some of the women of the community waiting to receive the donations.

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Above Left: Tías Marisol and Clare keeping the littler ones occupied.
Above Right: Tía Celia guiding Jhoselin, Evelyn and Cynthia as to how to give out the clothes and not have absolute chaos.

It was a wonderful sight to see our Tías setting the example for our girls as we organized the dry goods and gave out all the clothes to these families who lost so much. Our older girls have become quite adept at managing large crowds of people from our times spent in the Mizque area, and the little ones are learning quickly. It was a great experience all around, and is a very tangible way that the girls are fulfilling part of our mission that they pay forward the blessings that they've received from others, to those who are also in need.

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Above Left: Tía Sonia helping give out the clothes fairly.
Above Right: Tía Clare having fun with our youngest one at CDP, Zamora.

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Above Left: Abigail helping Tía Paola distribute dried goods.
Above Right: Sofia and Tía Celia enjoying a surprisingly calm moment while distributing clothes.

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Above: After we had given out the supplies and clothes to the community members, all the girls and Tías were feeling the same thing, and we went back to give what we had left, including some extra blankets, to this man who we'd met earlier, who can't walk. We were told that other community members would make sure he got his share, but when we went back, they hadn't given it to him (yet, hopefully). It was encouraging to see how the girls especially wanted to make sure that the most vulnerable in the community were cared for justly.

In the Bigger Picture...

This past month we had a Sponsorship Drive to help raise awareness of the needs of our children and obtain more sponsors for our children. If you'd like to check it out visit our Sponsorship Gallery. Our sponsorship program is a bit different than the traditional model in that we seek out a 'sponsorship family' for each child so that when their 'family' is complete, the costs for caring for that individual child are completely covered.

We're so grateful to our new sponsors for investing in our children, and we look forward to the relationship that they will develop. One of the goals that we were hoping to meet was for every one of the children living in our homes to have at least one sponsor. We are currently in need of two more sponsors to meet this goal. Would you consider sponsoring Bryssa or Bemabe?

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Above Left: She is the oldest of a sibling group of five who lives between our two homes and has loved living at CDP from the moment she arrived. She currently the only one at CDP that doesn't have at least one sponsor.
Above Right: He is one of the younger brothers of Bryssa living at PDC and has made so much progress is his development. Like his sister, he is the only child at PDC that is without a sponsor.

May also brought the re-launching of the Bolivian Board of Directors, and it was very exciting to have an influx of new members who have a heart and vision for the work that's being done here at NCV. We'll be sure to add a picture to next month's newsletter with a formal introduction of the Board :)

We are so grateful for our tías, and that each year around this time we are able to stop and celebrate the important role the play in our organization.

Each time you decide to send a donation, pray for our work, create awareness about our services, you are enabling this incredible women to make a difference in the lives of our children.

Love and Peace from the kids, the staff, and the volunteers of Niños con Valor!

pencil  Check out our Blog!

Keep up to date with what is happening in NCV on our blog. You can also catch up on previous newsletters here. Enjoy!

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If you are in the US, you can either send a check made out to "Ninos con Valor" to the address below, or use our Groundspring online donation page.

Niños con Valor
c/o Karen Mitchell
PO Box 223
New Hampton NH 03256

For instructions on donating outside of the US, please visit our donations page.

pray  Pray!

We know that God loves kids too, so please keep us in your prayers, using these updates as a bit of a guide on what is happening, or by writing us here. We send out weekly prayer requests to those who join our prayermail list. We really appreciate the support!

 

  Learn More about our Projects

All of our programs seek to provide holistic care, as well as integrate children and families living with various physical and mental health issues, including HIV/AIDS.

CDP

Our home that provides care for up to 24 girls who have been orphaned, abandoned or removed from high-risk situations.

PDC

Our baby home for up to 12 children, and daycare for up to 12 more, who have been orphaned, abandoned or removed from high-risk situations.

ONE

Our program working with families and communities to strengthen community care of children and to prevent family disintegration.

NCV Newsletter

PO Box 223, New Hampton, NH, USA
www.ninosconvalor.org | info@ninosconvalor.org
Questions? +1 603-707-0201

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