This time of the year is a particularly dangerous one for street kids and the victims of abuse. It is one when tempations to take drugs are even higher, and there are more opportunities for robbery, or more money to be made through prostitution. This side is far removed from the traditional Christmas image, but at the same time, working directly with kids such as these at this time of year is exactly how I want to be spending my Christmas.
At Casa Alianza a lot of our kids have left for the Christmas period. Those who have families or homes have gone back there. There are, however, about 30 or so kids in our residential center who have no families or homes to go to, or it is not safe them to leave Casa Alianza (Izmael is one of these kids who simply has nowhere to go to that would be safe for him)
So I will be spending Christmas with these kids. If I'm honest, I'm doing it more for me then anything else, as the courage these kids show inspires me. At the same time these kids have spent their Christmases of years gone by on rubbish dumps, gutters or brothels. I hope that this year we can bring them a Christmas that gives them the minimum of what every child deserves: love, respect and understanding.
So I wanted to share this story mainly because these kids lack a lot of things, but through nearly all their lives they have been without these three values of love, respect and understanding. It is not possible for us all to donate physical stuff such as money to make a difference, nor is it possible for us all to give up our time and lives to do voluntary work, but it is always possible for us to provide love, respect and understanding for those who need it, be it in one's own home, community, country or wherever.
I will leave it there, but in case I don't write again before the 25th, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year, and for those who read this blog and write to me about it, I really do appreciate your support!
With love,
Simon
About Me
- Simon Walters
- My name is Simon Walters - I work for Casa Alianza Nicaragua. Casa Alianza Nicaragua is a non-profit NGO, working to protect, support and rehabilitate children living on streets, victims of abuse, violence, abandonment, commercial and sexual exploitation and human trafficking. I work as a specialist member of staff, coordinating healthy and sustainable activities for the kids in our protection, and on the international development side of things - working with all the Casa Alianza sites in Latin America. I hold a MA in International Law and Human Rights from the United Nations University for Peace, and a MA in History from the University of Edinburgh. I am very involved in the Model United Nations, and in 2009 served as the Founding Secretary General of Mostar International Model United Nations, in Bosnia and Herzegovina. I also have experience in English teaching, coaching public speaking and debating, acting and radio presenting.
Wednesday 22 December 2010
Saturday 18 December 2010
When it all makes sense
Firstly I am sorry I don't write on this blog as often as I would like to. I spend most of my working days confronted by so many situations and emotions of the kids and of my own, that it can sometimes be really difficult to untangle all of these different feelings and work out how to put them down in writing.
Last week, however, was one of those moments when everything I am doing out here seemed to make sense. We held, within Casa Alianza, the pre-Christmas graduation ceremony. All of the kids who had completed various courses (computing, bakery, jewlery making, mechanics etc) received their diplomas.
The 40 or so kids who received certificates were dressed up and proudly went up to the podium to receive their certificates.
Seeing as I spend time working on the streets of Managua, I know all too well the background of the kids resident at Casa Alianza. Many have lived in rubbish dumps and gutters, where addicted to drugs, they scrounged through thrown away garbage to see what they could find to eat. Failing this, most would then use robbery as the other main means of supporting themselves. There are other people, 12/13/14 years old who are the victims of abuse, commerical sexual exploitation and human trafficiking.
To see these kids who have come from such background receive certificates in new skills they have acheived so that they can leave Casa Alianza and work to build their lives a-new is a phenomenal thing to, and it is moments like this when the work we do really does make sense.
Casa Alianza also runs courses for the families of the children we work with, and these mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters were also presented with their diplomas.
You might remember Gloria from a previous entry. It was Gloria (who is still at Casa Alianza) that gave the vote of thanks. Her words had me fighting back the tears. She thanked everyone at Casa Alianza for helping her have another chance at life, when previously she had given up any aspiration and hope for her future.
here,
It is difficult to express all my emotions about this event on here, but I hope my emotions come through.
There are times when everything we do makes sense, and we can really see that through work, commitment, passion, respect and love we can make a difference, and, for want of a better expression, make this world a better place......This has been one of those moments.
Last week, however, was one of those moments when everything I am doing out here seemed to make sense. We held, within Casa Alianza, the pre-Christmas graduation ceremony. All of the kids who had completed various courses (computing, bakery, jewlery making, mechanics etc) received their diplomas.
The 40 or so kids who received certificates were dressed up and proudly went up to the podium to receive their certificates.
Seeing as I spend time working on the streets of Managua, I know all too well the background of the kids resident at Casa Alianza. Many have lived in rubbish dumps and gutters, where addicted to drugs, they scrounged through thrown away garbage to see what they could find to eat. Failing this, most would then use robbery as the other main means of supporting themselves. There are other people, 12/13/14 years old who are the victims of abuse, commerical sexual exploitation and human trafficiking.
To see these kids who have come from such background receive certificates in new skills they have acheived so that they can leave Casa Alianza and work to build their lives a-new is a phenomenal thing to, and it is moments like this when the work we do really does make sense.
Casa Alianza also runs courses for the families of the children we work with, and these mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters were also presented with their diplomas.
You might remember Gloria from a previous entry. It was Gloria (who is still at Casa Alianza) that gave the vote of thanks. Her words had me fighting back the tears. She thanked everyone at Casa Alianza for helping her have another chance at life, when previously she had given up any aspiration and hope for her future.
here,
It is difficult to express all my emotions about this event on here, but I hope my emotions come through.
There are times when everything we do makes sense, and we can really see that through work, commitment, passion, respect and love we can make a difference, and, for want of a better expression, make this world a better place......This has been one of those moments.
Wednesday 8 December 2010
He jumped over the wall.......Danilo's story
When kids come to Casa Alianza, they need to follow certain rules. First and foremost, they can't use drugs, smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol or have sexual relations with other members of the residential center.
For teenagers coming from a background where an excess of all of the above things was the norm, this can prove especially tough. It is bad enough to think the sort of life a 14 year old has lived whereby drug addiction and promiscuous sexual behaviour was regular (especially when thinking of the numerous health concerns this arises), but then imagining the pain a young person must go through when trying to get away from these addictions.
At Casa Alianza the door is always open, and the kids that come can leave at anytime. But if they leave through the front door, then they have to receive the signed support of their Support Officer, and they have to follow a monitoring procedure and come back to particiapte in various activities every so often.
For some kids however, it is just to much, and, under the pain of trying to rid themselves of all their various addictions, they choose the quickest and simplest way out, and climb over the wall.
Danilo (once again not his real name) had been at Casa Alianza for about 2 weeks. He is 14 years old, although his aged face told a different story. I had been monitoring him closely, as he was clearly finding it extremely difficult to try and live a normal life away from the drugs. He was usually either extremely restless, or collapsed in a heap somewhere around the building. He was often withdrawn and shy, although equally often agressive and moody.
On Monday I was outside playing baseball with some of the kids (for my friends from the UK, I still think baseball is a terrible sport), and I saw the withered figure of Danilo carrying nothing more than a small and broken rucksack clamber down from the Casa Alianza wall and make his way on the street.
The streets of Managua are some of the unsafest in the world. Seeing this troubled kid give up on his recovery process and decide to take up life again on these same streets was really very very tough.
He walked off down the road heading to one of Managua's most dangerous neigbourhoods, (well one of many), I try not to think what will be facing him, and hope that maybe he will make the decision to come back.
I wanted to share this story, because in this story there is not, as yet, a happy ending, and sadly it is very much a reality. So by sharing it, I wanted to share the sad momets with this type of work, just as much as the good moments.
In the interests of fairness, I will try and have a happier story for my next update.
For teenagers coming from a background where an excess of all of the above things was the norm, this can prove especially tough. It is bad enough to think the sort of life a 14 year old has lived whereby drug addiction and promiscuous sexual behaviour was regular (especially when thinking of the numerous health concerns this arises), but then imagining the pain a young person must go through when trying to get away from these addictions.
At Casa Alianza the door is always open, and the kids that come can leave at anytime. But if they leave through the front door, then they have to receive the signed support of their Support Officer, and they have to follow a monitoring procedure and come back to particiapte in various activities every so often.
For some kids however, it is just to much, and, under the pain of trying to rid themselves of all their various addictions, they choose the quickest and simplest way out, and climb over the wall.
Danilo (once again not his real name) had been at Casa Alianza for about 2 weeks. He is 14 years old, although his aged face told a different story. I had been monitoring him closely, as he was clearly finding it extremely difficult to try and live a normal life away from the drugs. He was usually either extremely restless, or collapsed in a heap somewhere around the building. He was often withdrawn and shy, although equally often agressive and moody.
On Monday I was outside playing baseball with some of the kids (for my friends from the UK, I still think baseball is a terrible sport), and I saw the withered figure of Danilo carrying nothing more than a small and broken rucksack clamber down from the Casa Alianza wall and make his way on the street.
The streets of Managua are some of the unsafest in the world. Seeing this troubled kid give up on his recovery process and decide to take up life again on these same streets was really very very tough.
He walked off down the road heading to one of Managua's most dangerous neigbourhoods, (well one of many), I try not to think what will be facing him, and hope that maybe he will make the decision to come back.
I wanted to share this story, because in this story there is not, as yet, a happy ending, and sadly it is very much a reality. So by sharing it, I wanted to share the sad momets with this type of work, just as much as the good moments.
In the interests of fairness, I will try and have a happier story for my next update.
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