Greetings from Cochabamba,

For us as a foundation, this month has truly been a testimony to the amazing partnerships and friendships we have formed around the world. Numerous groups and organizations, as well as individuals, lent a helping hand during this hectic month. And, because of all of you, our dreams continue to become a reality! We cannot adequately express our appreciation and gratitude to those who have supported and assisted us during this challenging, yet exciting, time.

With the help of two visiting teams from Canada, volunteer groups from Hospitals of Hope and Habitat for Humanity, Amizade and Colegio Tiquipaya (a local high school), we accomplished more than we ever thought possible. We also received generous donations from Orkney Helping Hands and First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue that assisted the One Child at a Time program. Finally, a big thank you to those of you who donated money to help renovate the new Pedacito de Cielo—it is a magnificent home for our boys!

The majority of August revolved around moving Pedacito de Cielo—painting, cleaning, and refurbishing the new house, as well as transitioning the three girls to live at Corazon del Pastor. Despite all the chaos, we had a wonderful month full of fond memories.

Peace and Love,

Banner Photo: The girls of Corazon del Pastor with the Commons Team from Hamilton, Canada.

The Commons

We were extraordinarily excited to welcome the Commons team to Cochabamba for the first time! They have been long time supporters of the foundation, and it was wonderful to have them visit and get to know the children. The girls were more than excited to have Tia Jeanette Eby, a former volunteer, return to Bolivia with the team! The team did wonderful activities with the kids, and beautified the garden at the new house!

Above Left: Tara helping Karina with her tie-dye shirt.
Above Right: Art time at Pedacito.

Above Left: Susan and Bemabe playing outside.
Above Right: Too cute—Craig and Miguel swapping accessories.

Above Left: Thumbs up, Matt and Karina!
Above Right: Michelle and Jeanette helping the girls make a piñata.

Above Left: Jeanette and Alarico touring the Cristo.
Above Right: The kids of Pedacito loved getting piggy back rides from Matt.

Above Left: The team gardening at the new home.
Above Right: Saying goodbye was difficult for both the team and the girls.

Above Left: The girls loved having Tia Jeanette (right) back in Bolivia.
Above Right: Come back soon, Commons Team!

Family Day!

At the beginning of the month, we hosted our first ever Family Day! We had a huge party that included a talent show, in which the little ones, the girls, the staff and volunteers, as well as the Commons Team prepared something to share! Following the singing and dancing, we had a fabulous dinner and an amazing dance party! Many thanks to Jose Jordan, one of our Bolivian board members, for lending his grilling skills to make the dinner one to remember.

The best part about family day was that many of the groups that helped and supported us this month were able to participate, including the Canadian Team and a group of volunteers from the Amizade program. The theme this year was every family is a world, and it really was a day to celebrate our special Ninos con Valor family from around the world!

Above Left: A group of tias did a wonderful job with the decorations and the theme—every family is a world.
Above Right: Tia Evelin helping the PdC kids with their dance.

Above Left: Victoria and Zaquiel waiting for their turn to come on.
Above Right: Zamora dancing away!

Above Left: A group of the older girls dancing the Tinku, a traditional dance from Potosi.
Above Right: Bryssa and Karina are so excited to dance!

Above Left: The middle-aged girls dancing the Kullawada, a folk dance from La Paz.
Above Right: Abigail, Ana, and Valeria enjoying the show.

Above Left: The Commons Team dancing their hearts out!
Above Right: The tias of Pedacito dancing a traditional Bolivian dance.

Elevation

Towards the end of the month, a youth group from Elevation Church in Waterloo, Canada came to spend time with our kids and help ready the new Pedacito. They did a fabulous job painting the classrooms and bedrooms, and cleaning and organizing the house on moving day! Without the help of this team, moving day would have been impossible! They also introduced all of us in Bolivia to Geocaching, a worldwide treasure hunt. Thanks for the fun adventures!

Above Left: Manolo getting some help from Laura.
Above Right: Karina hanging out with Curtis.

Above Left: Sara and Manolo enjoying outside play time!
Above Right: The girls listening attentively as Eli tells them about his family.

Above Left: The other Curtis making the patio safer at the new house!
Above Right: Sarah and Nathan painting one of the classrooms.

Above Left: So cute—Mateo and Nathan saying goodbye.
Above Right: Eli with Jhoselin, Johana, and Evelyn at the teams' goodbye lunch at Corazon.

Above Left: Hannah saying goodbye to Mateo.
Above Right: Eli putting the finishing touches on the new house!

Above Left: The team enjoying some fun moments with the girls.
Above Right: The team with the thank you gift from the foundation. Come back soon!

The New PDC House

August 16th was the day we moved into the new house! It was crazy and hectic, but the kids seemed right at home once they arrived. We are so pleased with the new house—it looks completely different than the pictures we sent out in July! And, the boys are definitely enjoying the extra space to play and run around.

A huge thanks to our other teams that helped clean, paint and prepare the yard!

Above: A group from Amizade, a global learning organization, helped paint bedrooms, the kitchen and clean up the yard.

Above: Our team of medical and nursing students from Hospitals of Hope who readied the doctor's consult and entryway.

There is still some organization that needs to be done, but we wanted to share pictures of the house with you!

Above Left: Welcome to the new location of Pedacito de Cielo!
Above Right: The playroom is a comfortable space for the boys to play, read, and watch movies.

Above Left: One of our Bolivian board members painted beautiful trees in the dining room.
Above Right: The kitchen needed the most restoration, but looks fabulous now!

Above Left: The children receive one-on-one attention here in the psychologist's office.
Above Right: The first bedroom has an airplane theme.

Above Left: How fun! The second bedroom is like a jungle with birds, elephants, and monkeys.
Above Right: The biggest bedroom is decorated with houses and trees.

Above Left: Tia Evelin's classroom for the older kids has been transformed into a serene area with rolling hills and a stone archway.
Above Right: Thanks to the Elevation Team, Tia Faella's classroom is a calm environment with cute butterflies and ladybugs.

Above Left: This bathroom needed the bathtub reinstalled and some tile work, but it looks great!
Above Right: The front yard, thanks to the Commons Team, looks fabulous! The grass is growing and the boys are definitely enjoying the extra yard space.

Above Left: Lucas tending to the plants the Commons Team planted for us.
Above Right: Mateo loves helping the plants grow; watering the plants and grass has become a morning ritual at Pedacito.

August proved to be an incredible month for the OAT program! We began with a trip to Mizque with the Commons Team. The first day we visited Pantipama, a rural community that we have worked with for quite some time. With a very generous donation from Orkney Helping Hands, we were able to fund renovations on the two classrooms, including new roofs and walls, paint, and shelving units. While half of the team painted the classrooms, the others played games and got to know the children of Pantipampa.

Above Left: Tia Maritza, Craig, and Tara painting one of the classrooms in Pantipampa.
Above Right: Parachute games with the kids—they had a blast!

After painting and games, the community put together a program of dances and songs to celebrate August 6th, Bolivia's independence day. Those in attendance marched around the soccer field with Bolivian flags, and then presented traditional dances and the national anthem. After the celebration, the children received new blankets, which were also donated by Orkney Helping Hands.

Above Left: A group of girls watching the groups painting.
Above Right: The community members getting ready for the parade.

Above Left: One of the leaders of the parade waiting patiently.
Above Right: The children lining up to collect their blankets.

Above Left: The kids of Pantipampa are amazingly beautiful!
Above Right: Our send-off with white confetti, a symbol of peace and harmony.

The following day we hosted a solar oven training for 9 daycares in surrounding communities. The solar ovens were donated by First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue as part of their Christmas 2010 alternative gift catalogue. Tia Maritza and Lupe, a representative from CEDESOL and Sobre la Roca, explained how to use the ovens and shared recipes with the teachers of the daycares. After watching the food cook and a question and answer period, we all shared the food that was prepared. It was so delightful to see how excited the teachers were about the new ovens, and many of them were already talking about experimenting with recipes once they returned to their communities.

Above Left: The Commons team chopping vegetables for the solar oven workshop.
Above Right: Tyson and of the daycare teachers preparing cakes to be baked.

Above Left: Tia Maritza explaining the specifics of the solar oven to the teachers.
Above Right: The daycare teachers were excited about how well the food cooked in the ovens!

Above Left: Everyone was excited about lunch. The food was delicious!
Above Right: The educators with Tia Maritza after the workshop.

Also, this month, Adiel celebrated his 7th birthday and his older brother turned 14. The foundation is committed to celebrating birthdays and other festivities with the OAT families because, with very tight, limited budgets, it is extremely difficult for the families to cover the cost of a party. The Elevation Team was in Bolivia to help celebrate the two birthdays, as well as an outing to the movies with the children of the OAT families!

We hope you have enjoyed the photos and stories this month! Each month, we are so glad to share with all of you what is going on here in Bolivia, especially when we have teams and a big move!

Thank you again to all those who have supported us, and who continue to help make our dreams a reality. We continue to carry out our mission here in Bolivia because of you. We truly value the partnerships and friendships we have created, and look forward to sharing our future with you!

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