| Country / Region: | Chile |
|---|---|
| Project Summary: | Recreo is dedicated to helping break the cycle of poverty that takes place when classrooms are overcrowded and teachers are overwhelmed. |
Partner Overview
The City of Temuco, located in central Chile is home to over 300,000 people. While Temuco is a modern city, it suffers from the same problems as all other large urban areas. It is in the impoverished areas that abuse, absence, alcohol and drug abuse are common in many homes as kids drop out of school early and perpetuate the cycle.
Children who have dropped out of school in Temuco need to change their perspectives on education and how to provide hope for their future. The whole community must support values that give hope, so relationships with teachers, parents, and caregivers are necessary for change.
“Recreo” is a combination of the Spanish words for “recreate” and “recreation”. A local church has been working in this poverty stricken area for over twenty years. Recreo is dedicated to helping break the cycle of poverty that takes place when classrooms are overcrowded and teachers are overwhelmed. Ricardo Morales is the leader with the vision and passion for the forgotten in this area. He trains and encourages the volunteers that work with the kids. The program operates on Mondays and Thursdays after school and Saturday mornings during the school year and holds periodic workshops to integrate the children and their parents into the process and vision of the church for the neighborhood.
The community around Recreo benefits first as the children are fed and given an environment to learn in, and second, as volunteers from the church spend time giving love and encouragement to kids without hope.
Funding for this project provides operational support for the teaching volunteers, the feeding center and to support Ricardo Morales growth as he provides leadership to Recreo and to surrounding communities.
