THANKSGIVING DINNER FOR 70 PLUS

As I mentioned earlier,  I am not much of a traditionalist, especially when it comes to Christmas or Thanksgiving. When I think of American TV shows, where the entire family gets together for these enormous meals, that have taken days and days of shopping and  preparations (not to mention the decorations). I have a feeling that several of those at the table for 20 can't even get along together. I figure, that’s not for me. Leave it up to our American friends, they are much better at this than I am.

So when we learn that we are going to prepare a Thanksgiving dinner for all the Project Amigo employees and their family, I am not that enthusiast, as a matter of fact, I am in fear. How on earth could anyone expect that three Gringos from Alberta would be able to prepare a turkey dinner for 70 plus Mexicans? 

My fear slowly diminishes, when I see 8 friends of Project Amigo from Oregon and Seattle arrive. Ah, here are the experts on turkey stuffings, baked ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potato caserole and pumpkin pie, they are here to help us.

 

After spending the entire morning shopping, they roll up their sleeves and get to work right a way, Chopping apples for Waldorf salad, peeling a thousand potatoes and prepare turkey stuffing. Some of the work is done the night before the big day and on Thursday, November 25, Thanksgiving day, they start bright and early, stuffing, stiring, peeling and chopping. It's a challenge finding enough ovens to cook the 6 turkeys and the two hams. Every house is being used, including our Casa Gatos.

Meanwhile the guys place a tarp over the patio and set the tables. What looked like a war zone at first, son looks like a nice dining area. The kitchen is cleaned up and the guests arrive. The appetizers, are being served by our young scholars.

We all quickly change into our orange "Turkey" shirts and set up the buffet line at the counter. After a short presentation by Beto, the meal is being served.

Even Ted indulges in some vanilla ice cream.

All guests leave with a full belly thanking us all personally for the fine meal. Quite a difference from their daily tacos. 

Finally the cooks have a chance to sit down and relax. I have no idea how they pulled it all off. All I did was peel and chop, they did most of the work. They were like professionals. As far as I am concerned they can do it again next year. My hat off for our American friends.


After the turkey dinner, some of us were rejuvenated again took a little nap and had enough energy to come with Ted and Susan to Colima for the Rotary meeting. These meetings start when "normal" people start looking for their pyamas. 

Attendance of this club of about 20 is approximately 12, plus several guests. Often spouses attend as they are a part of the club in their own way.


The meeting starts with the march of the flags followed by reading the minutes of the last meeting and several reports.
Although everyone is very friendly I miss my Stony Plain meeting entertaining, educational and lots of fun.
Here everyone brings their own bottle. Snacks of popcorn, fried pork skin and peanuts are being shared.

The club is involved in various projects, including Project Amigo, a very successful RYLA program and other youth related projects.  

We have a very active day behind us and are glad when we lay our heads on our pillow, looking forward to what the next day has to bring.

TIME FOR A BREAK

The peace and quiet has returned to Cofradia now the group of volunteers have left. We enjoy our day at Casa Gatos, even if it means having to cook our own meals again. At least we won't have to get up at the crack off dawn for the next week. 
We use the first day off to relax and catch up on e-mails. Ron and Vivien Grue from Camrose, Alberta arrive and spend some time with us. We make plans for the morning to go for a long walk to the restaurant down the road.


We leave at 11:00 am and as we walk by the sweat lodge in the hills, we have chance to see the natives at work preparing for a large ceremony this coming weekend. They explain how they make the little dome shaped "sauna" structure with mud and bamboo sticks. They then draw some beautiful designs onto the outside. An elder is busy constructing an altar from wood.
When we ask if it is alright to bring our next group of volunteers here, the response is very positive. They are most friendly and  invite us to take part in the event on Saturday. but we have other plans.

 

After a good hour and a half we reach the restaurant and wait for Ted who will meet us there for lunch. He offers us a ride back, but the country side is so beautiful, that we decide to walk back again, through the pastures and over the small dirt roads.

 We are getting used to having three hot meals a day and for the evening meal we indulge in some sinful deserts. Well, Joe and Ramiro do. Those two have a bad influence on each other; They  both have a serious sweet tooth.

Ramiro and I drive back to Roca Azul on Tuesday,  to spend a few days at the Motorhome.  The idea is to relax, but there is only so much sitting around one can do and after a few days on our own, we are happy that Ted is dropping Joe off for a visit over the weekend.


It's November 20; Dia de la Revolucion. We hear at the Rotary meeting in Jocotepec, that there will be a parade; Now, that's entertainment. Although I am not a big traditionalist, I love the way the Mexicans keep their traditions in so many different ways. Every single school in the city is present and donned in some kind of Revolutionary costume. Many have spent hours and days practicing their routine for this parade.
As we stand on the street corner, we watch the little kids in their outfits. Some with painted on mustaches, others with home made rifles.


It's difficult at times to take pictures. The mothers of the smallest ones walk along with the float fussing over their kids and feeding them snacks and drinks. They just can't leave those little ones alone.

The señoritas who traditionally road on horseback are now in the parade on quads. It sure is an odd sight.


 

 

Every group has something special to entertain us with. I particularly enjoy the young ladies who at every 100 meters or so, do a little dance routine, then, in a very synchronized method, reach in their basket and throw candy into the crowd. Seriously; No one is concerned about any safety hazard' It's harmless. I love it!!!   This is Mexico

 

 Of course a parade is not complete without the firetruck and the rescue team. A pretty good message comes across with a totalled car on a truckbed with two - just pretend -  dead bodies inside, who are being rescued out of the still burning car.

The firetruck in the parade is a donation of a Rotary Club in California, as the decal indicates.  
 
The festivities continue with entertainment on the malecon along the lake.  The police is stationed here in large numbers, but seem to be more occupied with stunts on their motorbikes then in catching the drug dealers, who I see exchanging white little plastic bags, right in front of my eyes.

  

One of the Rotary members has invited us to the wedding of his son, which takes place at 6:00 pm. It's quite a long ceremony with complete mass. There is standing room only and as I go outside for some fresh air, I see just as many people (especially the younger ones) outside on the plaza than inside the church.  Although we are invited to the reception, we decide to go home instead and play Rummikub.

Joe is all game when I suggest to get up in the morning before seven, to go for a walk and see the sun rise over the lake. If there is anything I will miss at Roca Azul it is the beautiful sunrise and the many birds. 

Monday morning we are up early again for the 3 hour drive back to Cofradia. We unpack everything and prepare lunch. Even the boys help. Tomorrow we'll be busy again with meetings and preparations for a special event.

THE POWERS OF LITERACY

33.4 % of the native population in Mexico are illiterate, which is the main reason for poverty in this area. Project Amigo is here to help change these numbers by delivering small libraries and books to schools in the rural areas and to the school at the migrant worker camp.

It wasn't until we visited one of the last schools this week that I realized what an effect our work has on the children. But first I will tell you about the daily activities with our first  group of volunteers who arrive on Saturday, November 6 to take part in this work week.

Most members of the Board of Directors have left, three stay behind to participate in the  Literacy week. We oversee the housekeepers who work hard to get all rooms ready for the next group, I deliver welcome packages to each of the rooms and make sure every room is clean and comfortable. 

Meanwhile a large tarp is place over the courtyard of the Hacienda and the boys (Beto, Joe and Ramiro) unload a truckload of books).

 
Our volunteers arrives after dark and are invited for cocktails at the Hacienda, followed by dinner. 

 Orientation and communication is a big part of the workweek, so ensure everyone knows what to expect; Meals, laundry service, don't drink the water, departure times, and the schedule for the morning. Once everyone has returned to their room for the night, we too can go to sleep.

Sunday start with a hearty breakfast, followed by a walking tour through the small village of Cofradia. Ted and Susan each take a small group; both do a great job telling our volunteers about the history of Project Amigo, the village and its people, the plants, trees and anything that may be of interest to our volunteers.

 

we're ready to get to work; 5200 books need to get sorted by grade; inventory checked, labels applied, indicating which Rotary club donated the books  and finally the books are packed into boxes destined for various schools.

One of the many highlights of the day is our daily cocktail hour during which we chat with fellow volunteers. Ramiro and Joe are in charge of setting up the bar every day and putting our some snacks. While I tend to the needs of the volunteers, who my need something or make arrangements with staff for the next day's activities, or supplies that may need to be purchased.

Susan presents the Orientation Power Point. This is especially interesting for first time participants as they learn about the history of Project Amigo, and it's success stories and the area of Colima we are in. including the nearby  volcano.

By Monday everyone has gotten to know each other and on the bus there is a lot of chatting going on. Every workweek is a nice combination of work, fellowship and cultural experiences and today we will get a taste of all of the above. Today, our group not only gets to see Queseria Migrant work camp, they also visit Casa Rotaria as well as Colonia Rotaria, a small neighbourhood in Colima, where several years ago Project Amigo built a number of homes for low income families, with funding from various Rotary Clubs in Alberta, Canada.

I decide to stay at the Hacienda to prepare or the activities of the afternoon. After lunch we go through all the suitcases our volunteers have brought. They are filled with donations, such as clothing, school supplies, vitamins, backpacks and toys.

Everything gets sorted and some items are stored. From our inventory of clothing we select enough pieces of boys and girls clothes for a small school of 22 students which we will visit tomorrow to deliver books.

For the evening the Amigo Bus drives the group of volunteers to various homes of Rotarians from the Colima Club; a little awkward for those who may not speak Spanish, but a great opportunity to see how a Mexican family lives. Each group of 2 or 3 has at least one person who speaks Spanish and helps keep the conversation going.

Tuesday, November 9 

Before we drive towards our first school to deliver books we stop for a tour at the organic banana plantation. These plantations employ mainly migrant workers from the southern states and are big supporters of scholarships for the children of the workers. There is a good relationship between Project Amigo and the plantations management.

We watch the entire process from the cutting of the banana tree to cutting the "hands" of the banana trunk, measuring for size, sorting, washing and packing the trucks with bananas destined for the US and Japan. Our guide explains that the plantation management has applied for its certificate for Fair Trade.

 

The village of Tecuanillo is right along the coast. This is where the tiny school with 22 students is located. All the kids wear uniforms and are well disciplined. We make a short presentation and present them with their supplemental library. We do some activities with them and show a map of Mexico and the US, asking them to located and colour certain places. They can hardly wait to pick their favorite book and demonstrate their reading skills with the volunteers. Meanwhile we lay out the used clothes in the class room and allow each child to pick out two pieces. Although the selection for boys clothes is limited, it takes the girls much longer to make their choice.

Diego drives us to Las Hamacas  for lunch; a wonderful place right along the beach. where the best shrimp of the area are served. Since all volunteers were very cooperative keeping us on schedule we have enough time for a stroll along the beach.

 

There's one more school on the agenda before we make the long trip back to the Hacienda.

today before we make the long trip back to the Hacienda.

Wednesday, November 10

More schools and meet more kids, eager to learn. At every school we visit, we make a difference in the lives of the children. Not only by providing them with books, but also by spending a little bit of time with them and show them that we care. They cheer when we arrive and yell and wave when we leave. They all promise to read more.

 

 Thursday, November 11

It's the school in Suchitlan where I see the big difference, when we deliver a brand new library. We read and play with the kids of which several are waiting to meet their sponsors who are amongst us.

Ramiro and I meet our sponsored child for the first time. His name is Francisco and he is in grade five. He is from a very poor family. We do a little exercise with him and ask him to write his name on the sheet. He needs to check his name tag in order get it right. I am surprised to hear that he does not read books at home. His reading skills are that of a grade one student. How can this happen, he seems very bright.

Ramiro and I decide to come back in another week or so and bring him some easy books to take home.

Our treat for today is a visit to the Tortugario, where Beto's wife is waiting with lunch for us. We tour the mangroves and have some time left to see the turtles. We are on luck, at least a dozen baby turtles hatched recently and we will have the honour of releasing them into the ocean.

 

 

At our final school of the week on Friday we deliver a supplementary library.  Our first library was delivered here two years ago. As I listen to kids as they read. I am delighted to see the big difference. Again I ask several kids if they read at home. Most of them indicate they do. Wow, Project Amigo does make a difference!! We are helping children out of poverty by providing books and encouraging them to read. To read is to learn, to learn is to succeed in life.

I can hardly wait to see what progress the Suchitlan kids will have made two years from now.

This week we have delivered more than 5000 books to 10 schools and will continue to do this as long as we have volunteers to assist us and Rotary Clubs to donate libraries.

Saturday is a cultural day. We visit two archeological sites and take the group to downtown Colima, where they are free to do whatever they wish, whether it is some last minute shopping, visit the museum, cathedral of the Palace, or just enjoy the beautiful garden at the central square.

Lunch is at Los Naranjos. Where we each order from the menu. We say goodbye to four of the volunteer who are taken to Gudalajara this afternoon.

On our way back to Cofradia we visit the museum and the eco garden in Nogueres followed by a visit to the small town of Comala, less than ten minutes from Cofradia.

We all come home exhausted, but satisfied with the work we have completed and the many smiles we have seen. Everyone freshens up and assemble one more time for the farewell dinner.

 

We completed our first Workweek of the Season with nine more to follow.

Even though we will repeat some of our activities, each week will be different. With new people and new experiences.

What a wonderful group this was. They made our job so easy. Each person added something special to the daily activities we will miss them all. Most volunteers tell us that they are determined to return. That is very promising.

Sunday morning right after breakfast, Ted and Diego drive the rest of the volunteers to the airport and Joe, Ramiro and I look forward to a few days off after almost two weeks filled with activities and ponder. We feel so blessed that we are able to participate in this.

Life is Good!!