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Greetings from Cochabamba,

Happy New Year! Here in Bolivia we can't believe that we are already one month into 2013, and that just a week from now, twenty-nine of our boys and girls will be heading back to school.

Since our last update, so much has happened. We have had nearly two months of vacations, celebrated Christmas both in Cochabamba and in Mizque, had a staff change, volunteer visit, a new arrival in PDC, and a staff wedding. We are so excited to share with you photos, stories, and most importantly our thanks for continuing to be a part of our extended family in 2013.

Peace and Love,

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Paty's Wedding

In our last newsletter, we shared some beautiful photos of a wedding our girls were a part of at their church. This time around, we are excited to announce the marriage of Tía Paty and her husband Edison. Paty asked that the ceremony be held in her second home—Corazón del Pastor—and we were all so grateful to be a part of this special day.

For those of you who don't know Paty, she has been with us for five years now, and heads up the educational component of the home. She is an important part of the home, a much-loved member of the family, and we are so happy for her! It has been encouraging for our girls, especially our teens who are very interested in boys these days, to witness this relationship grow over the years in a healthy way.

Photo Gallery:

Paty Image 1     Paty Image 2

Above Left: Paty and Edison listening to the message, prior to signing the marriage certificate.
Above Right: Edison placing the ring on Paty.

Paty Image 3     Paty Image 4

Above Left: The happy newlyweds - congratulations!
Above Right: Paty walking down the aisle with her father.

Paty Image 5

Above: Mariela and Tía Andrea giving hugs to the bride and groom following the ceremony.

Christmas 2012

Hands down, the most anticipated event of vacations for our boys and girls is Christmas. It is a magical time of year, when we celebrate the birth of Christ, the family we are a part of, and are able to share gifts with one another to show how much we appreciate being a part of each others' lives.

This year, both homes prepared some theater and song, a neighbor lent us a sheep, and we shared an incredible meal with the kids, staff, volunteers and board members. It was a first Christmas with NCV for several of our kids: Alvaro, Eneas, Alejo, Diego, and Abran. It was fun to see their faces light up!

A huge thanks to Canadian churches Elevation, Living Waters, and The Commons for raising the funds for this year's gifts and stocking stuffers, and thanks to Keep Calling here in Bolivia for covering the costs of our Christmas lunch.

Here are some photos and videos taken by the girls and volunteers... Enjoy!

Photo Gallery:

Christmas Image 1     Christmas Image 2

Above Left: The girls of CDP acting out the nativity.
Above Right: A group of surly looking shepherd boys.

Christmas Image 3     Christmas Image 4

Above Left: Bryssa, Mariela and Karina ready to dance and sing.
Above Right: Our Christmas tree, decorated with care by our girls.

Christmas Image 5     Christmas Image 6

Above Left: The neighbor loaned us a lamb, but she wasn't too happy about joining us inside :)
Above Right: Diego, showing off his goatee.

Christmas Image 7     Christmas Image 8

Above Left: Joel hanging out with a very intelligent looking Mateo.
Above Right: Cathy, spending some time with Alarico.

Christmas Image 9     Christmas Image 10

Above Left: Bernardo helping Victoria with one of her presents.
Above Right: Mariela, excited about her stuffed toy.

Christmas Image 11     Christmas Image 12

Above Left: Nice shoes Cedro!
Above Right: Our newest boy, Abran, getting some help from Carolina.

Christmas Image 13     Christmas Image 14

Above Left: Bryssa can't even believe it!
Above Right: Karina showing some nice knit slippers sent from her sponsor in Canada.

Christmas Image 15     Christmas Image 16

Above Left: Alejo, content with the wrapping paper :)
Above Right: Diego was excited to spend his first Christmas with his NCV family.

Christmas Image 17     Christmas Image 18

Above Left: Bemabe's Christmas letter to Santa - how did he know how to draw a snowman?
Above Right: Lucas' letter - he asked for fruit, cookies and... a BUTTERFLY!!!

Video Gallery:

Christmas Video 1     Christmas Video 2

Above Left: Bryssa, Mariela and Karina dance a modern Christmas dance.
Above Right: While Jhoselin, Johana, Evelyn and Vanesa go more traditional.

Christmas Video 3

Above: Check out Alejo as Baby Jesus - he gets that bouncy chair a-going!

Maxam

Every year, Maxam-Fanexa, a local military company here in Cochabamba, hosts different events for our children. Each child has a sponsor from within the company, and it has been exciting to watch these relationships grow. For Christmas this year, both homes were invited to a party, and sponsors purchased a special gift for each child. It was great to see the smiles on their faces - both the kids and the grownups!

This is something we are working on in Bolivia, to expand our national support base, and thus encourage long-term sustainability of our programs. Since our services are not "project" based, but lifelong investments in children, having support here and abroad helps guarantee that our children will continue to receive the excellent care we have been giving them.

Photo Gallery

Maxam Image 1     Maxam Image 2

Maxam Image 3     Maxam Image 4

Maxam Image 5     Maxam Image 6

Maxam Image 7     Maxam Image 8

Maxam Image 9     Maxam Image 10

Above: Photos of some of the children with their sponsors from Maxam, and some of the clowning around they got up to :)

ONE banner

Mizque is so fun! Seriously, just ask any of the teams and volunteers that have been able to join us on these trips. What we do on these trips varies, but there is something incredible about getting up into communities where, despite their economic poverty, are rich in values and culture. For us, these trips are best when they include the children from our homes.

Three weeks ago, we travelled for 4 days and 3 nights, with 15 of our girls, volunteers Jeanette, Cathy and Bill, as well as several staff members. As we have done each year since Christmas 2007, we brought breakfast, toys and baskets of non-perishables to children and families in need. The communities we visited are the three pilot communities we are working with for an integrated program we are going to be unrolling over the next several years: Pantipampa, Kuri and Uchama. This program will empower communities to improve the education and health services available to their families.

Of course, with 15 girls from CDP, the trip was bound to be anything but serious. We shared games with the children in the communities, played late night cacho (Bolivian Yahtzee), and spent a lot of time in the Mizque River. Here are some photos of our time:

Photo Gallery

Mizque Image 1     Mizque Image 2

Above Left: A set of family "baskets" ready to head out to one of the communities.
Above Right: Our preferred mode of travel - dump truck!

Mizque Image 3     Mizque Image 4

Above Left: Jeanette, Bill and Tyson joined the boys of Kuri for some good ol' dodgeball.
Above Right: Some more dodgeball up in Pantipampa.

Mizque Image 5     Mizque Image 6

Above Left:Tug of war - who's gonna win?!
Above Right: Our girls taught the kids some great jumprope games.

Mizque Image 7     Mizque Image 8

Above Left: The kids of Kuri were crazy competetive in the sack race.
Above Right: Soccer... of course!

Mizque Image 9     Mizque Image 10

Above Left: And Mariela takes the lead!
Above Right: Elena and a donkey.

Mizque Image 11     Mizque Image 12

Above Left: The donkey was a huge hit in Kuri.
Above Right: Yippee!

Mizque Image 13     Mizque Image 14

Above Left: In all three communities we cooked up some buñuelos and api.
Above Right: And it was much enjoyed :)

Mizque Image 15     Mizque Image 16

Above Left: A few girls braving a photo.
Above Right: Doesn't that look tastey!

Mizque Image 17     Mizque Image 18

Above Left: Of course, we brought our parachute - always a hit on these trips.
Above Right: Lourdes, drawing a heart on a little boy's hand, so he doesn't try for repeats :)

Mizque Image 19     Mizque Image 20

Above Left: Jhoselin, Adriana and Johana helping with the family baskets.
Above Right: Lourdes also made sure the mom's didn't come for seconds.

Mizque Image 21     Mizque Image 22

Above Left: Lining up for breakfast in Pantipampa.
Above Right: A group of our girls sang some Christmas carols.

Mizque Image 23     Mizque Image 24

Above Left: Just ridiculously cute!
Above Right: On the return trip from Uchama, we had a nice picnic along the roadside.

Mizque Image 25     Mizque Image 26

Above Left: Evelyn and Tía Lucia.
Above Right: Tía Celia striking a pose.

Mizque Image 27     Mizque Image 28

Above Left: Paty, Ana and Celia hanging in the dump truck - oh yeah!
Above Right: The ride was bumpy fun!

Mizque Image 29     Mizque Image 30

Above: Vanesa and Johana posing by some sunflowers in Uchama.

Mizque Image 31     Mizque Image 32

Above Left: Jackie and a sunflower.
Above Right: Ana and Jeanette sitting by the Mizque river.

Mizque Image 33     Mizque Image 34

Above Left: The girls built a dam so they could have a swimming area, as the water was still low.
Above Right: Even with low water levels, that didn't stop our girls!

Mizque Image 35     Mizque Image 36

Above Left: Celia, Jackie and Lucia dipping their feet.
Above Right: Elena and Sofi, enjoying some respite from the sun.

CDP banner

While these have been our big events, our girls have also been busy with extra curricular activities and just having fun around the house. We also had a staff change, as we mentioned above. Tía Lilian let us know at the end of 2012 that she would be moving on to other things, so we are in the process of looking for a new night caregiver. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we try to find the perfect person for the job.

Photo Gallery

CDP Image 1     CDP Image 2

Above Left: Alandra, distracted by the camera during soccer practice.
Above Right: Victoria, checking Raeka's hair for lice, and being silly at the same time.

CDP Image 3     CDP Image 4

Above Left: Lucia and Olivia hanging out during snack at the home.
Above Right: Celia and Zamora, still in their pjs :)

CDP Image 5     CDP Image 6

Above Left: Playing outside on a lazy vacation morning.
Above Right: Skyping with some former volunteers.

CDP Image 7     CDP Image 8

Above Left: Kattia taking a picture of Jeanette taking a picture of Kattia taking a...
Above Right: Mariela and Raeka getting their silly on.

CDP Image 9     CDP Image 11

Above Left: Some spontaneous dancing
Above Right: Jeanette, with Abigail and Zamora - we loved having her back!

CDP Image 12

Above: Snack time - check Zamora's look... stay away from her yogurt!

PDC banner

So, hands down the biggest news we've got for you in this update, even moreso than all the events shared above, is the arrival of our little Abran. He is just shy of two-years-old, and came to us from the province of Tarija. He arrived a very serious boy, severely malnourished, and despite his age was unable to walk or hold himself up. In the couple of months he has been with us, he has made amazing progress, and is now smiling a lot, and trying hard to catch up with the rest of the boys.

The rest of the boys have been having a great vacation. This was the first year they were able to get involved in extra-curricular activities, and all but our smallest joined a soccer club and absolutely loved it. Here are some of our favorite pics from their vacations :)

Photo Gallery

PDC Image 1     PDC Image 2

Above Left: Bemabe with older sister Bryssa, enjoying an orange break at soccer practice.
Above Right: Yeah, Lucas may need to grow into his jersey...

PDC Image 3     PDC Image 4

Above Left: These boys play some serious soccer!
Above Right: Eneas, waiting for the pass.

PDC Image 5     PDC Image 6

Above Left: Zaquiel takes a shot!
Above Right: Not sure, but Manolo is having fun :)

PDC Image 7     PDC Image 8

Above Left: Lucas and Zaquiel, lovin' those oranges.
Above Right: Bemabe with one of his other sisters, Alandra.

PDC Image 9     PDC Image 10

Above Left: Playing at the home.
Above Right: Manolo, showing recently arrived Abran the ropes.

PDC Image 11     PDC Image 12

Above Left: Bryssa with Alarico and Mateo at the home.
Above Right: Mateo, enthusiastic about his puzzle.

PDC Image 13     PDC Image 14

Above Left: Manolo cosy and warm in his new tuque.
Above Right: And.... presenting our little Abran!

We hope you enjoyed reading these updates and looking through the photos - we sure enjoyed taking them and celebrating the times they capture. Until next month...

Peace and Love From the Children, 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 Laurel Fortin
23515 NE Novelty Hill Rd SteB221-#301
Redmond WA 98053

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 home that provides care for up to 12 boys 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

23515 NE Novelty Hill Rd SteB221-#301
Redmond, WA   98053
USA
www.ninosconvalor.org | info@ninosconvalor.org
Questions? +1 425-891-6237

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