School tomorrow! La Bocana update 10 17 2021

Well, the world village came together to make it possible for Tidiana and Abraham's kids to be ready to go to school tomorrow for the first time in over a year. The tutors reported that all classes were starting up except for one, the teacher has Covid and will be out until Nov. 1.

My good supporter Ray sent me $200 to buy Christmas presents for the kids. I made an executive decision to make Xmas come early- October early. The kids need two pairs of shoes for school - sneakers for PE and black fancy shoes for the regular uniform.

I wrote to my Mom and asked if she could go tennis shoe shopping and she said yes!

It was really hard since I had been given the sizes in Mexican sizes and had to convert on the spot with Mom on the phone in the store...this is what it looked like in the store.











My Mom is so organized, she took stickies so we could see who we had bought sneakers for since even the little baby was to be included - the 3 youngest were walking around without shoes.









Mom went home and packed since Punta Abreojos Pablo said he would stop by to pick up the shoes and bring them down the next day.



So, under normal circumstances, there is time and grants to buy the 2 uniforms each kid needs but there is nothing now due to Covid so I gave the family funds to buy PE and regular uniforms for the 4 primary school kiddoes as well as the regular uniform shoes. Since Mom and Dad went to Vizcaino to buy everything with the kids, i went to the Primary school in their place to help out cleaning up the PE court and met up with the school principal to tell her we were getting the kids ready for school on Monday and I gave some donations of paper, folders and more.


The Prinicpal







One of the teachers with some students. There are so few and this makes me feel that it is safe for the kids.









Here we are cleaning up the PE court which indeed was FILTHY. So much pidgeon poop, ewwwwww.









I had heard that this PE teacher is not so kind to the poorer students. As he is actually a friend of ours, I took the opportunity to have a chat with him about how I wanted the Indian family kids to fit in and have friends and would he help me with this. He agreed. I told him that the boys are especially good at sports and that this was a chance to have them shine.

His wife is the school special kids teacher and I had the same conversation with her. She was very open and promised to talk to the school psychologist to come up with some talks and exercises.


I also told the Principal that one day I wanted to come and have a class talk with all the classes.


I cannot tell you how excited the kids were to get their shoes and show me their PE uniforms yesterday!! Tomorrow, I will be taking them to school for the first day of class and will take photos of them in their regular school uniforms.



Emmanuel







Jireth








Ismael









Isaac











My Mom also went to the Salvation Army and bought out their kid shoe stock. I think they are not taking in donations because she says she pretty much bought them out.

If you have a cell phone and can amplify this photo of the table, check out the little one near Tidiana! They went pitaya hunting and look at his face!! Too funny.








So, the parents came to me today and said that Emmanuel's teacher had written that he should continue with private classes. I wrote to him and asked why? He said that the kids would need to buy 2 masks for each day, antiseptic gel, sanitizing wipes to be ready. I told him that we had a list and that Emmanuel and his siblings were more than ready. I took a pic of the masks and TP which we had just bought. I honestly believe that he was discriminating against the kids and I was FURIOUS. We argued back and forth and I wrote to the Principal (which I hated to do on a Sunday but hellooooooo). She was on my side and said she would talk to the teacher.

I gave Emmanuel's teacher my cell phone number and made it clear that I would be supporting this kid until he finished high school, that he was very smart and to please not ask the parents for anything, that I was here for whatever school materials etc. were needed.


The essentials we bought today.







So, as it stands, Jireth will go to regular classes and have class every day with Sannia. Jireth was worried about school since she said her friends would make fun of her since she cannot read. I told her she could already read a little bit and that she would get better and better.


One of the teachers has Covid, so Isaac will continue individual tutoring until Nov when the teach hopes to be back.

The other two will continue with private class perhaps once or twice a week so that they can do anything computer related at that time.



I also saw Bertha this past week and gave her some left over meds we had from our dog Rex. She is doing fine and having a blast with her clay oven trying to understand its temperatures.















I got a message the other day from Alexis - graduated scholarship recipient who has been working at El Boleo in Tax Dept. for a couple years now - saying that his aunt, whom he lived with in Punta Abreojos while going to high school here in La Bocana, was gravely ill with cancer. I told him that I would happily pick him up at Campo Fisher (highway 1) if he wanted to visit her. He asked for and got a week off and yesterday, I picked him up. Les met up with us in Abre for Juanita's delicious breakfast. It was really good to have some one on one with Alexis who is just the greatest kid EVER. (I know, I know, I say that about all my students). He is mature and happy except that he wants a girlfriend. I suggested online dating!












Now, we all know that Halloween is coming up, that means Blanca is the candy lady! We must get over 50 costumed kids and I love to be generous since for some, it is the only day they will get a bag full of goodies!

MMc dropped off 3 bags at Canpo Fisher on Friday and I picked them when I went there for Alexis. The universe conspired to make this happen!!









It has been busy but I feel so accomplished. Kids 100% ready for school and excited about it. Bertha reconnected with a healthy life and a purpose. I have candy and bring it on Halloween!

I am eternally grateful to everyone who writes a kind word, brings our endless list of this that and the other, who helps me with the tutors and what a MOM I have!

I also had a bit of a brainstorm and already ran it by Alexis: each graduate will buy one pair of shoes every 6 months for Tidiana's kids! What a great way to help out their own community.

This morning!










We were the first in line to go to class today. It was quite a production: each student got their temp taken, then they had gel put on their hands, then they had to wash their hands and then an alcohol spray.

Jireth was asked to bring in a spray disinfectant for her clothes. We have her covered.



La Bocana is on a clean up the town boom, so Tidiana, the 3 oldest and I went to help out. I explained community service to the kids.



Here is the mess.









These kids are amazingly fast!








and here is the desert at it's finest.