[News Boquete] Buenos Vecinos De Boquete Newsletter September 2024

Buenos Vecinos De Boquete Newsletter September 2024

View this email in your browser In This Issue: A Fond Farewell Client of the Month Didjano Food Start Update A Fond Farewell It is with sadness and gratitude that we say goodbye to super-volunteer Mary Nieves who has been a part of Buenos Vecinos de Boquete for four years.  Mary jumped "feet-first" into Buenos Vecinos. She was a faithful member on the packing line, helped get the Food Start project off the ground, transported food to clients, served as translator for many of our members who have not yet become fluent in Spanish, and was one of the first to offer her services in our Volunteer-Sharing program to our sister program FPI, the Handicap Foundation.  She helped them each week and was indispensable on Social Saturdays. Mary has also been very involved with Boquete Health and Hospice helping with the blood drives and is an all-round giving volunteer who has made a major contribution to the Boquete community. Nieves said she joined Buenos Vecinos because she was looking for a meaningful service organization she could fit into her schedule. As a member, she added, she met "beautiful, humble men and women." Nieves and her mom relocated to Boquete from Florida in 2020 because they wanted to live someplace less expensive and close to home.  But her mom found Boquete not to her liking, so they are both returning to their home of origin, which is Puerto Rico. "You have great goals for the group, and more volunteers will come to assist in the journey," Nieves said in parting. "Many blessings, and I hope to return someday." We at Buenos Vecinos Boquete hope she returns someday too! Client of the Month Eva DeGracia Gallardo, Mariano Montezuma, and Gerónimo Montezuma, Part 1 Usually we are not lucky enough to have a family talk directly to our newsletter readers. Gerónimo and his parents sat down and thought of what they would like us to know about them. Below are their words with Gerónimo speaking for the three of them. "Good morning to you all. Thank you for your interest in getting to know our family. We are very happy to get to know you as a family of good neighbors who support families that require help. It is very important for society that someone is interested in wanting to help others. We know that there are many families who love you very much because they feel that support and are happy to have a little something in their home. We congratulate all of you for that good gesture and it is a nice work team that you have. Currently the Montezuma family lives in Alto Boquete, in Los Rosales. Many years ago we lived on a coffee farm. Our education has been a little difficult since my parents never made good money to give us a good education. With what we have had, we have survived, despite the fact that employment in Boquete is a little difficult. Even today it is difficult to get a good job, seeing that the population of Boquete has grown in the last 15 years. Previously my brothers all worked. We earned very little but there was always some work and we could help others at home. Before the pandemic, we were left without work, in some cases because our contract ended and others because the project work had finished. During the pandemic, a large part of the population of Boquete lost their jobs due to the loss of the usual economy and businesses, and after that it has been a little difficult to get a good job again. Currently there are 14 children (ages 1-15) living with my parents. There are eight adults, three of whom work. The wages are low for two of the wage earners. The living conditions are a little difficult since those of us who work cannot cover expenses that we often need for the family in general. The children are in school, and everyone is being educated. As seniors, my parents currently have vision problems. My father must have an eye operation. My mother currently does not have good vision and neither of them is working because of their condition. We live in a house that the government provided called 'Roof of Hope.' We have power and running water. The house is shared by all of us, and there is not much space for everything. It is very small and the children do not have enough space to play. Food is currently difficult since food in the supermarket is too expensive." More about them in October's issue of our newsletter. Didjano One of the most expensive items we purchase for our families is KLIM, the fortified dried milk that the Panamanian government subsidizes. Many of our families have no electricity, let alone a refrigerator, so KLIM is perfect for their needs, as it can be made a glass at a time. It also has an airtight lid. We purchase the 360g can and every family gets at least one can; some families get two cans so we distribute approximately 200 cans a month. If you live in the Boquete area, please drop a can or two of KLIM off at the BVB table at the Thursday Boquete Community Market at the Amigos de Animales building. You can purchase the 360g can for less than $4.00 a can. Or, if you prefer, make a donation so we can purchase the very much needed cans of KLIM. For the families BVB serves, there is no holiday from food shortages nor is there a perk to schools being closed and workers having a day off because a day off is a day with no pay. Food Start Update We are still in need of clean, large, handled bottles for our Food Start program. Please bring your donations to our table at the Thursday Boquete Community Market located in the Amigos de Animales building. Buenos Vecinos exists to help people who are unable to meet their basic food needs. We have provided emergency food support on many occasions and have been successful in helping families through hard times. We will help them with food support until the working age adults in the family can find enough income to become self-sustaining. If you prefer to donate by cash or local check, please visit our table at the Boquete Community Market on Thursdays in the Amigos De Animales building, or contact Trish at BuenosVecinos79@gmail.com Be sure to check out our Website, Facebook and Instagram pages: Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/BuenosVecinosDeBoquete Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/buenosvecinosdeboquete/ Website: http://www.buenosvecinosdeboquete.com/ Our Friends and Sponsors Copyright (C) 2024 Buenos Vecinos de Boquete. All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe

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