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| Healthy Living |
Good Morning NCV family!
This month, in all three of our programs, we focused our activities and workshops on Nutrition and Health. This is one of the most important aspects of our ability to integrate children with special needs, and is also our focus for this month's newletter.
Peace and Blessings, |
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| Eating Well, Living Well |
Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food.
This quote, attributed to Hippocrates, sums up a principle that has been really been a part of humanity since our beginnings: eat well, live well.
Providing our children with a healthy diet is key to ensuring that their immune systems are strong, that they have the physical energy they need to perform the many activities they are involved in, and that their minds are sharp.
Our work, however, goes beyond just providing our children and teens with good nutrition; we are teaching them to take care of themselves, so that whether a child returns some day to live with his family, or ends up living on her own as an adult, all of our kids are able to care for their minds and bodies through the preparation of healthy food.
All month, our children learned about the important role that nutrition has in their lives, and the positive and negative impact that the food we eat can have on our minds and bodies. Our nutritional consultant, Carolina, also held a workshop with the staff and girls of Corazón del Pastor, and will be holding a similar talk with Pedacito de Cielo next week. We were so proud to listen to the presentation that our boys and girls arranged, demonstrating all they have been learning - great job kids!
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Marcos sharing about which vitamins come from different fruits and vegetables.
Mariela providing illustration for a talk on fast food.
This is the way we brush our teeth, brush our teeth...
Paulina serving up some tasty carrot salad.
Manolo helping fill out the food pyramid.
Tía Carolina shares with the staff and girls about the myths and truths of nutrition.
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| Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds |
While nutrition is crucial to strengthening our children's minds and bodies, and goes a long way to keeping their immune systems at optimal levels, many of our children come with special medical needs and require additional support.
One of the things that Niños con Valor has worked hard to do in developing our model of care, is to create homes capable of integrating children with special needs. Since 2008, we have been a reference center for children living with HIV, and are encouraged by the very positive feedback we have received from our children's specialist.
Regardless of the needs facing a child, it takes more than medical checkups and medicine to bring healing. It is crucial that staff understand the different conditions our boys and girls are living with, how to provide them with emotional support, and what to do in emergency situations. Our staff have been trained in all of these areas, and we are proud of the positive results we have seen over the years. Our children are not afraid of the challenges facing them, and know that they have a supporting family that is always there for them. |
We are working to boost little Claudia's immune system so she is able to receive a much needed heart surgery.
Fabian arrived in terrible physical condition, unable to walk; with love and therapy, he is now running and one of our healthiest little boys.
Zuleika is looking forward to a surgery that will help repair scarring on her chin.
One of our more recent success stories, Teresa suffered from chronic lung issues and before coming to live with us was in and out of hospital. In the year before she was adopted, her health improved signficantly.
The staff of our two homes looking on during a CPR demonstration.
An important part of physical health is staying active. Here some of our girls are enjoying swimming classes.
Another important part of keeping healthy, is keeping things clean!
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| New Legislation |
You may have noticed that the photos in this month's newsletter look a little different from in our past mailings. In compliance with Bolivian Law 548 Art. 441, which came into effect in July 2014, homes like ours are no longer able to post identifiable photos of our children online. The article aims to gaurantee the confidentiality of a child's image and story, and over the past month the social service agency has been requesting that we remove all such photos from our websites, newsletters and social networking pages.
Thus, from now on we are going to have to be creative! Despite this challenge in presenting our work visually, we hope you will continue to look for our updates, keeping our children and staff in your thoughts and prayers.
For anyone interested in reading the full text of the new law, it can be found on UNICEF's website here: Ley 548 - Código Niña, Niño y Adolescente |
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Vicepresident Garcia Linera presenting the new law to representatives of child workers and residential homes.
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| Sponsorship Spotlight |
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| Martina |
In December last year, Martina joined Corazón del Pastor, along with her sister, Paulina. Having escaped a dangerous home situation, they were so grateful to be welcomed into a home where they were accepted and loved, safe from further aggression, and able to return to school after nearly two years.
Martina is a shy, gentle 12-year-old, who looks for ways to help out around the house, and has easily made friends with other girls in the home. She is a dedicated student, and enjoys participating in the Sendero de Esperanza transition program.
As one of our new arrivals, Martina does not currently have any sponsors. If you would like to sponsor one of our children, please visit our sponsorship page to learn how you can do so!
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| Agustina |
Agustina, who is 10-years-old, is another recent addition to the Niños con Valor family. She joined us from La Paz five months ago, and has integrated well with her peers. Having not received sufficient support in the homes she lived in prior to coming to Corazón del Pastor, she is attending a private school where class sizes are smaller and where there are teachers who specialize in working with children who are behind and/or have learning challenges.
While she was very shy in her first days, Agustina has revealed herself to have an incredible sense of humor, and is always making the other girls and tías laugh.
As one of our new arrivals, Agustina does not currently have any sponsors. If you would like to sponsor one of our children, please visit our sponsorship page to learn how you can do so! |
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| 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. |
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| Our home that provides care for up to 24 girls who have been orphaned, abandoned or removed from high-risk situations. |
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| Our home that provides care for up to 14 boys who have been orphaned, abandoned or removed from high-risk situations. |
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| We also host volunteers, who fulfill important roles within our programs. Click here to learn more. |
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| Our transitional program, helping prepare teens for independent living once they leave our residential homes. |
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