The Integral Project for a happy childhood "Good Shepherd" Pino, PINIFE

It began on July 31, 2008, the birthday of the founder of the Good Shepherd Congregation. This day the project offices were inaugurated. The agreement was signed between Chalice Canada and Our lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd Congregation. 

In February 2008 the International Manager, International Finance Manager and Regional Director of Chalice visited El Pino, invited by the congregation for our interest in working with you, since we already know the work done by Chalice with the Good Shepherd sisters in Paraguay in Itagua, as well as we were dreaming to have our children sponsored, since we do not work with any government institution or international bank, The work with these children require this help.

Since this first visit we kept in touch, because it was a good place to open a Chalice site. In June an application was sent and in July was accepted to start and to send the applications of the first children.

In the meantime the sisters, the volunteers and the field worker were thinking about the name of the project, as well as the logo that we would have, and we agree to call it Good Shepherd, but it had to be an integral project, and especially a project made to make our children happy, and since all this was said in the letter of Jn. 10 "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." Everything was ready and the designed logo was a girl seeing the cross and the crook, since el Pino is a mount and the cross and the crook are symbol of the shepherd that supports all the mission.

On August 18th we sent to Canada the first 101 applications and in December we had the first responses of sponsors choosing our children. By April 20^th and 21^st we celebrated Christmas with the 154 children in list because in November we sent the second group of applications and in the first semester we started to receive the funds of Chalice for the sponsored children.

The headquarters are located on 1109 Circunvalacion Ave, Lima, in the low part, in the place where the Good Shepherd sisters live, though every direct work with the children is in front of the avenue in El Pino mount, where the Good Shepherd Center is located, in Sector 19 Lot 24-25 in El Pino. This is in the upper level of the mount. The center is known as The Good Shepherd Parish, because the mass is celebrated every Sunday and every special event. There we also have the only library in the entire mount, working from Monday to Friday, having workshops for the children, teenagers and young people, a hydroponics workshop in the parish roof, a small hall with 4 computers, a small store managed by teenagers that helps in their studies, the card workshop made of recycled materials, the young people who participate are in the different pastoral programs in the church, workshops are open for any children.

The help of the sponsorship is invaluable, because it makes possible that these children have the possibility to study. This year they have received their school supplies, the sport uniforms, their medical examinations, psycho-logical therapies and the mid-afternoon snacks for those who go to the library; besides other benefits such as: the Christmas Smiles program and the Gift Catalogue. 

The benefits are for the sponsored children - in this way the whole family is helped and when there are other programs they are also included like in Christmas Smiles and the Catalogue, the monthly meetings are done with the people in charge of the children. Here, they talk about a specific topic, and later on a snack is shared with all the presents. In the last meeting we celebrate the birthdays of all the children from January to April.

Some of the children are siblings, according to the families or the number of children we can register more than a child the parents' responsibilities must be kept, even if the number of siblings is too much and not every child can be in the program. The parents must not lose their responsibilities.

We realized that some children that never used to come to the center now participate in programs such as catecheses, the library, card workshop or hydroponics, also in the mass. Those who did not go to school last year for their poor economies now are attending school and feel motivated, because they have uniforms and complete supplies. Besides, the careful observing makes the parents be more interested in their children. It is a great help for the families and they express it so. We are new in this project but we expect better results in short and long terms.

At least once a month a Chalice employee visits the child and his responsible, since every month there is a meeting between the child and the person in charge of him to talk about formation, or to communicate them all the benefits they will receive in the month or any mail to answer or an eventual medical examination or appointments with the psychologist or to talk to somebody, we are always in the center, some of the children go to the library for any pastoral program or workshop offered.

The distance between the offices and where the children live is about 10 to 30 minutes and those beyond the hill are about one or two hours by a bus. But from the Center on the Hill that distance is less because it is from 5 to 25 minutes walking from the farthest point. The only school in the Hill is "Damaso Lebergere" where there are many sponsored children, and the distance is between 5 to 25 minutes walking, there are other children who choose schools that are at the bottom or in other districts and are between 20 to 40 minutes by bus. In the case of secondary schools all should be out of the Cerro by motorcycle taxi or bus at a distance of 15 minutes to an hour.

Usually the longest holidays are from approximately December 20th until the first of March in the beginning of the school year and at half year in July have two vacation weeks for Independence Day holidays, on Easter also have no classes on Holy Thursday or Holy Friday. Birthdays are important to children. They like to celebrate with cake and candy, in PINIFE in April we celebrated their birthdays for all children of the project who had been born in months from January to April, were happy, we decided to do this celebration every month celebrating birthdays and this will be the last Saturday of the month in which we have the meeting with all the children and their parents. We bought cakes, soda, candy and a moment of dancing for the children.

We had a nice experience with two girls whose sponsors sent them extra money for their birthday, we told them to call their mothers and asked what kind of gift they would like from their sponsors and we bought a pair of shoes for one and pants for the other.

There would be no trouble in sending packages to the office if all the requirements of the custom office, like sending new objects and if possible, with the voucher. Another point is to be sure of the product allowed to enter the country and if procedures are done there would be no trouble, the children would be happy of receiving such wonderful and significant gifts from his sponsors, and if our children are happy we are too.

Of course you can visit your godchild, making previous coordination with the PINIFE office, in order to organize everything, the children would be happy, since many of them ask if they will ever meet their sponsors in person and have that wish for that day to come.

The child starts school at 4 years old and finishes at 16 years old, some of them have delayed their studying for health problems of them or their parents, or poor economy, this would be impossible now since the project must reassure that the child can study and has all the supplies to make it possible.

The nursery school begins since the 4 or 5 years, then the primary school from the first to the sixth level and then secondary from the 1^st to the 5^th level, finally the superior subjects, technical or professional.

The official language is Spanish and Quechua, but in Lima everybody speaks Spanish and most of the parents that come from the highlands speak Quechua, at school they are taught English but it has a poor and elemental level.

We expect when the children finish the secondary school, they could find options to get trained in superior or technical institutions, according their skills.

Most of the children families are poor or extremely poor, they recycle non-perishable products picked on the city streets in the worst conditions, and others are dockers (package carriers, a heavy job) in the fruit or vegetable market, some others repair wood boxes. Many mothers are peeling chile or selling something, and some children participate in these activities, Most of them live in rented and small rooms, These are the poorest, since they do not have an own house. Some live in a relative house and many families come from the provinces, specially, from the south highlands which is the poorest region of the country.

Some of the children have not been recognized by her fathers, for this reason they do not have an identity card. Or have been recognized by a relative, the families show solidarity, some children whose parents are absent are in the care of some relative or neighbor.

The center staff

Field worker: Zoila Cadillo: she visits the houses and goes shopping with the director, she communicates the meetings. Investigates the cases, picks and leaves the children and their families to the medical examination, she participates in all the activities of the center and the offices.

Translator: Martin Vera: checks and makes the translations of all the documents to be sent to Canada, He is an eventual employee.

Accountant: sister Antonieta Llanos. Accountant of the Project, Comes to the center one day in the week when required, She makes the economical reports with the director.

Volunteers: French people that help in the translation of the documents, they visit the children, help in the school reinforcement and in any required activity, they are eventually here between one and five months.

Peruvian volunteers help in the activities with the children and their parents, specifically in the recreational part and previous organization and during the activities. Sometimes help to make the letters for the children or in an office work when required.

Director: She makes office works. She makes field work, interviews the parents and the children, helps in the elaboration of letters for the children, makes the different reports and all needed in an office. She makes all the shopping. She makes all concerned to the administrative and organization of the center.

Sister Adela: She helps in the selection of new children, in the elaboration of letters, familiar visiting and interviews with the parents, participates in the elaboration an execution of the monthly meetings, and so on

Sister Rosabel: Works with the children in the elaboration of their letters in full time, Takes photos and makes visits, as well as she helps in the organization and execution of the different activities. 

The office is located in a five floor building. The office works in the 4^th floor, the sisters live in the 3^rd floor, and they are the owner of the 3^rd and 4^th floors.

When the mail is received in the office a person to translate the documents is required, a volunteer or the translator himself, this can last from 1 to 3 days, then the field worker takes the letters to the children and if the mail is for their birthday, a right day is settled for the child to be given what they sent to him. In the case of money, the mother and the child are called to express what they want to buy with the sent money and the delivery day is settled.

We expect that the information be useful, understanding that we are a new project, and that we are learning in the way. If there is something misunderstood I will be pleased to answer your doubts. May God bless all your work for the good of our children that need your love the most.

Be sure about my prayers. With plenty of love:

Sister Karla Bernabé Lamadrid

Director of PINIFE