Happy Birthday

Maritza and Yolanda got special English training

A chocolate birthday treat

My 62^nd birthday was wonderful. It started a day early when I visited the PC Center in Lima and was surprised by the staff with a cake and song. On the day itself, we made good progress on playgrounds, collected some more fire-hose from the Bomberos. I presented them with a pin from a brigade in Lima and one from my old fire brigade in Big Sur, CA. Then, I was treated to a fancy ice cream sundae by Angel, lunch with other local friends and dinner at Ingrid’s house in Cerro Alegre. Ingrid is one of the new PCVs, who lives nearby and also has a March 1^st birthday. Between us, we had 126 years, so candles were ruled out due to potential fire risk. And all day long, FB greetings and phone calls from staff and other PCVs. I went to bed feeling very happy and loved and blessed.

On other fronts, I’ve found a wonderful pre-fab building for the planned museum for Cerro de Oro. It will be 6m x 12m of nice wood tongue and groove with red ceramic roof – for (get this) about US$1540, delivered and erected. We’ll still have to do all the internal plumbing and electric, but that’s where my Contractor skills will come in handy.

I got two local English teachers into the US Embassy training program. The Embassy does a lot of outreach around the country. This will be a great opportunity for them to improve their English teaching methods. For some reason Peruvians are wild to learn English, which is a much more difficult language than Spanish.

And I got to spend some time with the new group of Water & Sanitation PCVs, teaching them about water treatment and latrine options. As a group, they are more mature and serious than my WatSan group and a real delight to see their enthusiasm. Also, a wonderful chance to visit with some of the training staff, who helped prepare us so well for service.

Playground Smiles

A nice tribute to the US donors who funded the project

Popular playground - full of smiles

It is graet to have a community partner like ANGEL !!

As RCMP Sgt. Preston used to say to his faithful lead dog “King, this case is closed”. The playgrounds are done, but their effects will be felt for a long time to come. They are truly a gift that “keeps on giving”. Tucked just behind the Muni, we have created a little kid’s paradise out of a dirty, vacant courtyard. 4 swings, 2 see-saws, jungle gym, slide, tire mountain and tire tree provide healthy play for 100’s of kids in the urban area. A soft sand base, shade cover and gorgeous wall murals, reminding of healthy habits complete the site. The murals are the work of Samuel Lucho, a local lad who made fantastic art, using only spray cans on a rough brick wall. He made a special surprise mural thanking all of you wonderful folks who gave so generously to make this park possible. The second park location has 4 swings, 2 jungle gyms, tire tree and tire mountain, though the location did not allow shade cover or murals. The fire hose contributed by the Bomberos works better than I had hoped. And the number of kiddles that swarm the playgrounds every day exceeds our wildest expectations. So much so that the Mayor – who’s office overlooks the park – has decided to copy the plan in other locations. I add my Thanks to those of the Muni and kids !!

Photos of the whole playground building process – start to finish - with labels, are found at :

https://picasaweb.google.com/114324927553623472875/Playgrounds?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCODbrI670fTI2AE&feat=directlink