PBH / colombia (travelguide, pictures) / post

Columbiche, need your help

I was just thinking about this non-profit tutoring program that I will be starting in August and I wanted to get some feedback from you and paisa29 and others whose opinions I respect.

I have some (what I think are valid) concerns about getting more Colombian involvement in the project. I don´t want it to be another ¨white males coming to save Colombia¨ type of thing.

Of course, as with any non-profit endeavor, the biggest obstacles are fundraising and building awareness...when you think about it, how many well-known charities have been successfully started in the last two decades, the type of charity that would be instantly recognizable to at least 50% of Americans (I am thinking Habitat for Humanity, but that started in the late 70´s-early 80´s technically).

Do you have any good corporate or foundation contacts in Canada? I´ve noticed that quite a few German foundations invest money here in South America. Are there any Canadian foundations that look to fund programs and ideas outside of Canada?

By the way, are you Catholic, lol? There´s a foundation in Baltimore that gives money to organizations that are run by or have boards of directors made up primarily of Catholic women. I should be able to get $5,000 from them, but I will have to wait until next May to receive the money, unfortunately.

Also, if I am to ever successfully get a grant or funding from an NGO, USAID, Inter-American Development Bank, I need to have the right, politically connected Colombians involved. Any ideas of potential candidates, both inside and outside the country?

The parents of my best student are both Harvard-educated doctors, but they are both so busy...I want to get the type of people involved who not only look good on letterhead but actually have the time and willingness to contribute something valuable.

Also, just tutoring doesn´t seem to be catchy enough. While it´s certainly valuable, I think it would be much more meaningful to actually work in refugee camps with the displaced kids...as well as working with the street kids, if we can find places to donate the space, electricity, etc. I find myself looking at the pictures I took of kids in uniforms (of course, very common in Colombia) and they don´t LOOK poor and their classroom in some ways looks nicer than mine. I just remember the conditions and the needs in Barrio Nelson Mandela and similar places being much more dramatic, even though the kids in rural Circasia or Caicedonia or Calarca are just as poor as some of the displaced families.

By caulfield2 on Jun 14, 2006, 10:28 in Friendly Talkzone.

Albatross says on Jun 14, 2006, 12:07:

. You don't want it to be another "white males coming to save Colombia" type of thing... too late.

Anyway, Colombia doesn't need saving.

“Democracy - a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance." - H.L. Mencken

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Colombiche says on Jun 14, 2006, 12:46:

Actually Caulfield... I was born into a very Catholic home, but I consider myself an agnostic (I'm not quite an atheist yet LOL). I do however think World Vision is doing very good work in Colombia, I sponsor a couple of children in Santader de Quilichao through them.

Anyway, thanks for giving so much value to my opinions.

Let me get in contact with some people. I do know of a couple of distant relatvies in Colombia that work with streetchildren, I will try to get their info, one of them is in Bogota they refer to him papa Jaime (Jaime Eduardo Jaramillo), he has plucked many children from the streets and raised them to be successful adults. I think he has done great work.

I have a contact here who specializes in work for non-profit organizations, I will get in touch with him and pick his brain.

Once I get more info together, I will email you.

No me den trago extranjero, que es caro y no sabe a bueno.... (Rafael Godoy)

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caulfield2 says on Jun 14, 2006, 17:28:

Albatross, what have you contributed to the world that you consider to be of value? Just curious....

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adrimm says on Jun 14, 2006, 17:47:

Have you tried the St. Vincent de Paul Society? The international councils manage a number of programmes through local chapters in Colombia.

http://www.ozanet.org/

It's a bit beaurocratic, but definitely a recognizable organization.

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Albatross says on Jun 15, 2006, 04:54:

. Voting against Bush the last two elections...

And You ?

“Democracy - a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance." - H.L. Mencken

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caulfield2 says on Jun 15, 2006, 05:49:

Um...I have never voted for either Bush.

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Albatross says on Jun 15, 2006, 05:53:

. Also, chances are that I've put more money in the hands of the poor than you have... not that it does them any good.

The missionary desire of certain groups to raise the downtrodden out of their misery has seldom worked, if ever. The general effect is deepened misery and an increased dependency on outside aid. (Modern medicine, which cannot be praised highly enough, is the lone exception) There is also the fact that the culture of the weaker group is usually diminished or wiped out completely. This happen almost anytime a strong country interferes with one weaker. For examples, look everywhere from Angola to Zimbabwe. And how about the 100,000+ Iraq civilians dead because we wanted to "help" ?

The US has poured in over a billion dollars under plan Colombia, how has that helped the country ?

As far as teaching is concerned, what can a Colombian really learn from an American ? How to build a better Wal-Mart ? How to vote on American Idol ? Perhaps we can teach them a more efficient way to deforest the Amazon.

Perhaps, the best way for us to help the world is to leave it alone.

“Democracy - a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance." - H.L. Mencken

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paisa29 says on Jun 15, 2006, 08:56:

Thanks, I`ll email you soon.

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caulfield2 says on Jun 16, 2006, 12:01:

Okay, pick a philosophy here. You're against Bush, but you're also against government spending/programs/dependency, so that makes you, what, a civil libertarian? A member of the Reform Party?

And you're arguing that you have given more money based on what fact, that you've paid higher taxes, since you know me so well and what I have and haven't done...

Habitat for Humanity has done a good job of defeating the dependency rap because they are almost like a for profit entity, the only difference being they don't charge interest for their houses. You're against them too, because of their overtly Christian orientation?

I'm not going to argue that Plan Colombia has benefitted the average Colombian, although there's certainly the perception, at least, that the country is safer.....which leads to more tourism, more foreign investment, more jobs, more opportunities, which I can't helping seeing as a good thing, in general.

Then again, Bill Gates could give all of his money away and it wouldn't make a dent in the world for more than a week or so.

Do you like anything about the US? You sound like that LeStat Vampire guy who was caught trying to bomb buildings in Peru or Bolivia...really, you need to relax. Why don't you run for Congress or something if you feel so passionately about this? You sound like Michael Moore, without the sense of humor.

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corazon en colombia says on Jun 16, 2006, 14:57:

Albatross Not sure I understand your connection between US gov and Books and dreams. As I understood it, this was a program taught by Colombian tutors putting books in the hands of kids. Does it matter who's organizing it as long as it is helping kids get an education. I think that if we (everybody) had more education about history and past mistakes made, we could make this world a better place. Who knows maybe one of those kids will be a top medical researcher and find a cure for AIDS or cancer. Maybe one could be instrumental in helping bring peace to Colombia. Who cares if some of the money is from the states or if the coordinator is American. The goal is Colombian children getting access to education. Much different than handing over money directly to them, or trying to teach them to be like Americans. Plus, I think the idea is to get Colombian involvement so that they can be the ones involved with these kids, not a bunch of Americans...Could you clarify your criticism because I'm not sure how your examples are similar to this program?

Colombia = paradiso

Colombia = paradiso

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utopiacowboy says on Jun 16, 2006, 15:11:

I don't vote. It only encourages them. My wife doesn't vote either.

Disclaimer: any comment I make is inane and is not to be taken seriously, and is so patently ridiculous that no one should take it seriously, even as an insult.

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