Caja del Saber Integral
During my time at UPLAM in Honduras, I met Genry, a third-grade boy in our AfterSchool Program. Genry had attention problems, struggled with reading and writing, and was often frustrated that he couldn't do homework and school assignments. At one point his teachers wrote him off as a "lost cause" and stopped helping him. Despite Genry’s single mom doing everything she could for him, their family often lacked basic resources. Genry told me that he was bullied at school. Anytime Genry had to do reading or writing homework, his face would change instantly. On the verge of tears, he’d say that he just couldn't do it. I wanted to be that person who could help him. I paid attention to Genry, and realized that his problem wasn’t his attitude; it was that he couldn't see well. We got Genry hooked up with some glasses. The change in Genry was immediate. His teachers saw his progress and believed in him again. His family began to see a different child. But the most important thing was that Genry began to believe in himself; he understood that he was not the problem and that he just needed a little help to see with different eyes.
In Genry, as in other children from camp, I see the children of my community, the Bosa San Bernardino neighborhood in Bogotá, Colombia. At their young age, kids don’t always understand their own needs, they are vulnerable, and they do not know how to manage their free time adequately. For this reason, I want to help my community. After graduating with a degree in social work, working with teenagers from my high school, and helping lead a teen soccer school for more than 8 years, I had the opportunity to join Foundation Caja de Esperanza, which has provided social services to children, adolescents, families, and young women since 2016. Our foundation exists because we see children like Genry all the time, who need attention and someone walking by their side. We want to help them see their world with new eyes full of hope, so that they, their families and the community can see Jesus reflected in every area of their lives.
As we grow as a foundation, we see the need to respond to other problems such as school failure and dropout, the inappropriate use of free time, and the violation of the rights of children and adolescents. For this reason, we want to implement a new AfterSchool Program called Caja del Saber Integral, where our vision is to see children and adolescents growing fully and integrally into their maximum potential. Our mission and hope is that we can provide a safe space, where through creativity and recreation, we contribute to the integral development of the kids of Bosa San Bernardino. As with Genry, we don’t want to just look at outward behavior, but instead, rooted in love and care, help meet real needs of our kids so that they flourish in all areas of life.
One of the strategies we will implement within the program is to focus on learning through play, sports, creativity, and outdoor experiences. I have witnessed firsthand the power that physical activity has as an integral tool of ministry, and I want to pass that experience on to the children of my community. We will provide times of wellness, tutoring, mentoring, and social-emotional learning. We will seek to respond with empathy, listening to children and teens, seeking to understand their story and providing space for transformation, identifying opportunities for growth and integral formation. Like Genry, our hope is that the very young people we work with see their future from another perspective: through the eyes of God.
If you are interested in knowing more, please contact Laura at laura@urbanpromiselatinamerica.org
We look forward to hearing from you!
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