Our blog features hot-off-the press Few for Change news, facts and figures about Comarca Ngöbe-Buglé and tips from our exploits in the DIY philanthropy world.
Health Care in the Comarca
Few for Change member Katie Clay discusses the state of health care in the Comarca Ngöbe-Buglé.
When I visited the Comarca Ngöbe-Buglé last summer, Few for Change Co-Director Gillian Locascio and I stopped by the health center so that she could look for a doctor she needed to see about some research she was doing. The doctor wasn’t there, but a nurse was, as were a waiting room full of women and children. My mom and I quickly used the bathroom, and also quickly discovered that there was no toilet paper or soap. This was considered a very nice facility, and one of the larger health centers. One of the great things about health care in the Comarca, however, is that it is all free of charge. This is huge for the many, many people who would be completely blocked from receiving services if they had to pay. Despite this, health status in indigenous regions of Panama is much lower than in Panama as a whole. For example, infant mortality is almost twice as high in indigenous regions than the national average. Average life expectancy is also significantly lower in indigenous regions (PAHO).1 (more…)
The School Fund – A new partner, a new platform
Back in May we announced via our Facebook page (like us!) the beginning of an exciting partnership between Few for Change and The School Fund. Now that we’ve been working with them for a few months, we’ve decided to tell you a little bit more about the organization here on our blog. Their innovative approach to person-to-person fundraising will allow Few for Change to reach more donors and more students and is a great example of do-it-yourself (DIY) philanthropy done right.
About the School Fund
It’s pretty awesome!
Few for Change + The School Fund = Awesome!
We at Few for Change are especially excited about our partnership with the School Fund because it provides our current supporters with an even more transparent and interactive connection with our scholars, while also expanding our reach through the School Fund’s broad network of partners and supporters. Our donors can now choose to sponsor a student directly through our page the School Fund site, or the give to our general fund, helping expand our scholarship fund and add new students to our program. To check out our page on the School Fund’s website or sponsor a student visit www.theschoolfund.org/fewforchange.
Muchas Gracias, Many Thanks
Today on the Few for Change Blog, we wanted to share with you some thank you letters that we received from our scholarship recipients. They have been translated from their original Spanish, but the students’ messages are equally conveyed. Filled with gratitude and determination, their words are inspiring and refreshing. We found that reading these stories was both rewarding and humbling, and has made the process of giving come full circle. We hope you enjoy these messages and thank you again for all your support.
Rubiela Carpintero -
Hello, I’m Rubiela Carpintero.
I’m writing to you from [Quebrada] Guabo. I am only in middle school and I am studying, and I am going to continue, for my future. I would like to be a knowledgeable person in order to teach and explain to other people that are uneducated.
I like to study a lot, but I don’t have a lot of money. But with what Few for Change gives me, I spend on copies for exams and for my school supplies. I am very thankful for what you have given me. My dream is to be a professional.
May God bless you.
Aquilino Andrades Santos -
My name is Aquilino Andrades Santos. I want to keep studying because, for me, studying is the most important thing for a student to do. We should try hard. As a student, I want to keep studying, but I have a problem which is that I don’t always have a way to get to school and when I do, it is thanks to the Few for Change scholarship. Because of that, I don’t want to stop studying, but sometimes my classes are very difficult because the teachers explain things very fast and sometimes they don’t explain how to do things well. Because of this, some students fail some of their classes.
I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to have this scholarship. It is the reason why I don’t want to lose my studies. Without education, we are nothing and can have nothing and I tell my classmates and friends that they should keep studying because they could also benefit from this program.
These are my thoughts.
Thank you very much.
Analida Esther Palacio -
My name is Analida Esther Palacio and I love to study and I want to prepare myself so that I can be a professional someday. I thank you for the help that you have given me to reach my goals.
My dream is that when I graduate I will be a teacher so I can educate children so that they can learn as well and so I can help my family. Thank you all for giving me this scholarship and I will try to get good grades, and one day be a teacher. When I finished sixth grade, my average was 48 (out of 50) and my mother loved that and she talked with my teacher and my teacher spoke with Few for Change and then your help came and I took advantage and studied hard.
Lorena Carpintero -
I am thankful for the help that you have given me. Last year and this year I have begun my studies.
I am happy for this help, which for me is enough. I hope that, with God’s help, you will be able to continue supporting us.
Hello to everyone, even though I don’t know who you are, but I have faith that I will meet you someday. I promise you that I will keep going and with God’s help I will finish my studies.
Thank you very much and may God keep you safe.
Greetings to all. I am doing well in school.
Odilio Sire Palacio -
For the Organization Few for Change (in English)
I wish to congratulate this organization for demonstrating values and I have to say that I feel very happy and thankful for the help that you have given me. Thanks to Few for Change, I have been able to attend secondary school. I am proud of this organization and may God bless you.
Olivia Gonzalez -
I thank you for your support in the “Comarca” and I hope that you can continue supporting me because I want to keep studying because I want to be educated so that I can be someone.
Thank you for supporting me and my family and I hope that you will continue supporting me.
First Impressions of the Comarca
Few for Change member Katie Clay recently made her first visit to the Comarca Ngöbe-Bugle where she met up with Co-Director Gillian Locascio and witnessed firsthand the hardships facing the Ngöbe people as well as their remarkable spirit and determination.
As the only Few for Change member who had never been to the Comarca, I always felt like I was missing a crucial part of the experience. While my final research project in Panama focused on education and I am a firm believer in education as a method for fighting poverty, I still felt like I couldn’t quite relate to our scholars and to the Comarca in the same way that the rest of the organization could. I was inspired by what I had read in the students’ applications and was moved to help these young leaders receive an education, but I had no faces to put to the communities that I heard the rest of the Few for Change team talk about.
Arriving at the Comarca, not an easy task
When I found out I would be traveling to Panama on a family vacation this summer with my mom and brother, I decided I had to visit the Comarca. Few for Change Co-Director Gillian Locascio met us in San Felix and was our very gracious host for the day that we spent there, bringing us all the way into her community, Rincon. Rincon is a small community about an hour truck ride and then a two hour walk from Quebrada Guabo, the border town at the edge of the Comarca. Beginning with the transportation, the lack of infrastructure was one thing that really shocked me. I had heard about this in our team meetings, but I guess I had to see it for myself before I could fully understand. There are roads that run as far in as Rincon, but there are very few cars that pass that way, and there are many communities farther in that have even less transportation available. Health services also become more limited as you move inward, with some centrally located health centers and then smaller health posts that are generally staffed by one person that often lack even the simplest supplies. When I was in Rincon, the health station there had recently run out of bandaids.
Video – A Few Really Can Change the World
Check out our new video! Thanks to Becky Harnik and the rest of the Few for Change team for their hard work on this! Enjoy!
New Facebook Page. “Like” us!
Few for Change is now on Facebook! We’ve posted pictures from the Comarca and info about the group and will be using to keep our supporters updated on what we’re up to. Check out the page, “like” us, and tell your friends to like us too. We’ll love you forever.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Few-for-Change/195454530487898
Also, stay tuned for profiles of our eight Few for Change Scholars, coming soon!
Five Scholarships for 2011! Eight in All
We just received last minute donations from a couple of generous donors, allowing Few for Change to support two more students this year! That’s scholastic and basic needs support for five students for the next three years! We awarded the additional scholarships to Rubiela Carpintero and Karmen Rodriguez. See below for more information on them.
Thank you to all who donated and we hope you will continue to support our mission of raising scholarships for indigenous students in rural Panama.
Some information on Karmen and Rubiela (stay tuned for profiles and photos of all of our students coming soon!):
Karmen Gonzalez
Karmen is a determined young woman whose inspiration comes from her loving and supportive family. She understands that to succeed she must work hard, make sacrifices and steer clear of negative influences. At 15 years old, Karmen seems wise beyond her age and she understands the importance of perseverance and giving back to those who have supported her. ”I have sacrificed many things for my education,” she wrote, “and I work every day to get better.” Her parents have supported her with love and have dedicated “endless hours” to her education. She dreams of being able to make them proud by becoming an important figure in her community. Karmen enjoys studying English because she knows that it can “open doors” for her in the future.
Rubiela Carpintero
Rubiela’s story is both heartbreaking and inspirational. Her father left when she was young, leaving her mother to support a large family by herself. Rather than let her father’s absence stand in her way, Rubiela uses it as her motivation. ”I want to study to show him that I can go on with the help of my mother and my God,” she wrote in her essay. Her humility, honesty and determination shone through strongly in her application, especially when she wrote, “I am a brave student even though I am not the most intelligent.” Rubiela dreams of becoming an educated professional so that she can help her family and her community. Speaking of family, Rubiela is also the sister of Lorena Carpintero, one our first Few for Change scholars.
We are inspired by Karmen, Rubiela and all of our scholars and we will continue working to provide opportunities for students like them. Please stay in touch and continue your support.
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2011 Few for Change Scholarships Awarded!
Few for Change’s 2011 Scholarships Have Been Awarded!
We are pleased to announce that this weekend, Few for Change’s administrative committee chose the next three recipients of the Few for Change scholarship! We received 9 applications this year (more than twice that of last year!) and all of them were wonderful. It was a difficult process to narrow the field from 9 to the final 3, but we feel great about our new class of scholars. Congratulations to Olivia Gonzalez, Odilio Sire Palacio, and Analida Esther Palacios Gonzalez; our Few for Change scholars 2011!
Here’s some information about them! We’ll send more information (and photos!) in the coming months.
Analida Gonzalez
Analida is an outstanding student with dreams of becoming a teacher one day. She is 12 years old and lives with her mother in Quebrada Guabo, the same community that the original founders of Few for Change visited while studying in Panama. Analida has fantastic grades, writes clearly and her determination and spirit shone through clearly throughout her application. Her teacher described her as “respectful…responsible and intelligent…and not afraid to answer or ask questions in class.” She is motivated by the absence of her father, who lives and works away from his family. ”I don’t live with my father,” Analida wrote in her essay, “but that is not a barrier for me.” (more…)
Season’s Greetings from Few for Change!
Dear Supporter,
We hope that this letter finds you happy and healthy. As the seasons change and the holidays approach, it’s nice to take stock of our blessings and give thanks for what we have: warm homes, plenty of food, and access to the resources provided by modern society. These things may seem basic, but just a few hours away by plane is a much starker reality: the one that we experienced in the indigenous Ngobe-Bugle community of rural Panama.
This group of people takes great pride in their rich culture, and has maintained a simple, traditional life by living in remote, mountainous terrain for hundreds of years. However, as the population booms and resources dwindle, modern amenities such as sanitation, healthcare and education become more relevant. But the isolation of the Ngobe-Bugle community acts as a barrier to the modern age and to conquering poverty. To get to school, children must either walk long distances or pay for a bus. With the added expense of paying tuition, this is beyond the means of many families.
After witnessing these challenges, we gathered together to change things when we returned from Panama. As the group Few for Change, we are dedicated to raising funds to make education a reality for disadvantaged Ngobe-Bugle children. We know that we are amidst tough economic times, but the good news is that for each $350 we raise, we can fund a scholarship for another child for an entire year. This means that your donations go a long way to helping a child realize his or her dreams for a better life.
Our goal for the season is $1100, or to help three more children attend school next year, and we hope that you’ll consider joining us in this effort. Please visit our donation site today! Your donation is tax deductible and will go directly to helping a student continue his or her education. As always, we appreciate your time and your support, however you show it.
Best wishes for a happy and peaceful holiday season,
The Members of FewForChange
Application Cycle Two, New Donation Site
Hello! We have just switched to a new donation site through WorldLearning.
As we are now directly connected to WorldLearning, they have begun their own alumni reciprocity site that will better accommodate our needs as a small non-profit! Thank you, World Learning! Our FewForChange members are continuing to collect donations and we are only $1200 from our goal for this year!
We are aiming to send three more students to school for another three years. Perhaps we will be able to send four. Check out our new site by clicking the Donate button on the right hand side and we hope that you will continue to help us acheive our goals!
