Thank you for your enthusiastic response to our book drive! My father, Bob Reynolds, visited us for a week earlier this month and brought with him a suitcase full of your contributions. We have been introducing the books little by little to keep them in good condition, as there are now 40+ youth who come to read, draw, and write, and it can be difficult to make sure the books are treated with care. If you bought books through our online wishlist, please send us an e-mail so we can thank you and put your name on our list of supporters!
During his time here, Bob worked with us to plan and deliver classes, refine project ideas, improve organization methods, and generally reflect on the program from a fresh perspective, not to mention the hundreds of photos he took of the Podcasts for Peace house, participants, and neighborhood (see the GALLERY page). He gave hands-on photography and videography workshops to build skills that the younger participants practiced in their Fotocuentos, orPhoto Stories (see the PODCASTS page to watch them, Spanish only), and the older group used in their ongoing Mensaje a Enacal, or Message to Enacal. This latter video project was developed in response to the participants’ frustration with having running water only during the night, and is directed at Managua’s water provider, Enacal, to highlight the concerns and desires of the youth and local residents they interviewed about the issue.
During his time here, Bob worked with us to plan and deliver classes, refine project ideas, improve organization methods, and generally reflect on the program from a fresh perspective, not to mention the hundreds of photos he took of the Podcasts for Peace house, participants, and neighborhood (see the GALLERY page). He gave hands-on photography and videography workshops to build skills that the younger participants practiced in their Fotocuentos, orPhoto Stories (see the PODCASTS page to watch them, Spanish only), and the older group used in their ongoing Mensaje a Enacal, or Message to Enacal. This latter video project was developed in response to the participants’ frustration with having running water only during the night, and is directed at Managua’s water provider, Enacal, to highlight the concerns and desires of the youth and local residents they interviewed about the issue.
On the PARTICIPANTS page, you can now listen to many of their personal introductions; the younger participants recorded a typical sound from their neighborhood and described how it related to them, and the older participants discussed how they wanted to make change in their neighborhood and recorded appropriate sounds to match their narrations. Both groups mixed the sounds into their narrations using the program Audacity.
We need help translating these introductions and other Podcasts and then applying subtitles to the video projects. If you would like to help out, please send us an e-mail at [email protected].
Speaking of help, we held a meeting with the parents of the Radio and Digital Arts participants to give the community a better idea of the sort of work the youth do in Podcasts for Peace and how it will benefit them, as well as to solicit support. Since that meeting, parents have contributed to the program by supervising the Homework and Reading hours, buying food and supplies at the market, and juicing fruit for the frescos we serve before each class. We held a similar meeting with the parents of the children who attend the Homework and Reading hour, and now have a parent who comes every night to supervise and facilitate activities for the younger group while Mika and I work with the older youth.
Local volunteers—mostly friends of Yamileth—continue to contribute to Podcasts for Peace. Elvin Murillo repainted the logo, this time in color and with crisper lettering, and Juan Carlos Rojas paved the space around it to prevent mud from splattering the wall when it rains. Madeline Mendoza joined Zamir Rivera to team-teach the English classes. Juinmar Hernandez, Elvin Murillo, and Lester Rodriguez paved a section of the main activity space, the entryway, and the whole side room, allowing us to separate young children from adolescents during the Homework and Reading Hours. Juinmar also installed three additional fluorescent lamps in the two main rooms, a much needed improvement to the two main activity spaces.
We need help translating these introductions and other Podcasts and then applying subtitles to the video projects. If you would like to help out, please send us an e-mail at [email protected].
Speaking of help, we held a meeting with the parents of the Radio and Digital Arts participants to give the community a better idea of the sort of work the youth do in Podcasts for Peace and how it will benefit them, as well as to solicit support. Since that meeting, parents have contributed to the program by supervising the Homework and Reading hours, buying food and supplies at the market, and juicing fruit for the frescos we serve before each class. We held a similar meeting with the parents of the children who attend the Homework and Reading hour, and now have a parent who comes every night to supervise and facilitate activities for the younger group while Mika and I work with the older youth.
Local volunteers—mostly friends of Yamileth—continue to contribute to Podcasts for Peace. Elvin Murillo repainted the logo, this time in color and with crisper lettering, and Juan Carlos Rojas paved the space around it to prevent mud from splattering the wall when it rains. Madeline Mendoza joined Zamir Rivera to team-teach the English classes. Juinmar Hernandez, Elvin Murillo, and Lester Rodriguez paved a section of the main activity space, the entryway, and the whole side room, allowing us to separate young children from adolescents during the Homework and Reading Hours. Juinmar also installed three additional fluorescent lamps in the two main rooms, a much needed improvement to the two main activity spaces.
Our next goals with the Radio and Digital Arts classes are to start digital storytelling projects with the younger group and to finish the Message to Enacal project with the older group. We would also love to have someone help us with the translation and subtitling of the participants’ work, so please send us an e-mail if you are interested!
Saludos,
James and Mika
Saludos,
James and Mika
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