ECASSEF Newsletter
Newsletter 1 - january 2010
Dear ECASSEF friends,
First of all, we want to thank you wholeheartedly for every gift, every pat, every appreciation,
every positive beam of energy and the trust of supporting us the past year.
In 2009 both Jean and I had the luck to be able to come to Belgium.
We were very warmly welcomed everywhere, which made us really feel good.
The time was much too short to be able to accept all invitations.
We do our best to repeat this visit in 2010.
We wish you much happiness, true friends around you and good health in 2010.
From ex-volunteer Tine, we learned last year that ECASSEF is 'Growing together'
and we hope to add some additional centimeters this year.
In this newsletter, we'll inform you about the progress of our projects.
Children's day care center in Gualsaqui:
60 children come daily to the Children's day care center so that their moms can work in the field
and that their elders sisters can go to school.
The toddlers and preschoolers get activities according to their age.
The three cooks take care of varying and healty meals.
For the educators and mothers we regularly organise workshops with themes like hygiene
and Andian values within the family and the community.
Like every year, the ‘Pase del Niño’ was a highlight:
During this party, the children were dressed as figures of the Christmas story.
In row, the angels and shepherds went through the mainstreet of Gualsaqui, singing Christmas songs.
After the ceremony in the church, games were organised and afterwards everybody received a tasty meal.
Thanks to the support of SOS De Ronde Venen (Vinkeveen – The Netherlands) we could give them additional
didactical material and good toys, while they received a sweater and candy from the local agencies.
Adoptionplan
This schoolyear, 36 godparents from Belgium and The Netherlands supported 27 children and youngsters in Ecuador
to enable their families to send their child to school.
The youngest godchild is Yari and he is six years old.
Lately, Yari lost his father (as he drank himself to death).
His mother earns a bit by making fringes of shawls, for which she receives 40 dollarcent each.
The eldest of the adoptionplan is Angélica, who just became twenty-two.
She is starting her fourth semester in her study as a teacher.
She studies in the weekend and during the week she works half-time for ECASSEF.
Two youngsters of the adoptionplan are now in the fifth class of the secondary school.
Without the support of the Godparents they already would have gone working.
For these children we organised the following activities:
•In october and november they received English lessons of our volunteers Goedele and Eddie.
During these lessons, the pronunciation and actively producing of the language were emphasized
instead of passively copying.
The lessons were all given in the classes of Yachay Wasi;
•At november 1st a workshop about self-image and Andian vision or ‘Cosmovisión Andina’, has been given by Ucinqui.
The aim is that the children get to know their own culture better (and identity) and the culture of their ancestors,
so that they improve their self-image;
•At the end of november all godchildren were invited in Yachay Wasi to make Christmas cards
for the padrino’s in Belgium and The Netherlands.
The results were excellent and we hope that the Belgian and Dutch postmen delivered the cards everywhere.
School connections
The basic school in Cambugán with 80 students is the new sisterschool of the H.Family at the Bosmolenswijk in Izegem (Belgium).
Enthousiastically both schools created an actionplan.
In december in the Bosmolensschool, the focus has been on the yearly Ecuador-week.
During this week,the students got workshops about Ecuador and its culture.
The week was ended with a flea-market from which the income goes to the school in Cambugán!
The school of Cambugán had as its first activity the “Paso del Niño”,
where the children expressed the Christmas Story in a procession through the village.
The cooperation between parents, teachers and children has been remarkable:
they also participated actively in the procession.
This has all been recorded to photos and films so that the children from Izegem can see how Christmas is celebrated here.
Furthermore, the school wants to present her organic vegetable- and herbsgarden to the Bosmolensschool.
The students of Cambugán are helping to take care of the plants and herbs.
The products from the garden are used in the school meals.
Also the personnel, the parents and the children of the Montesorrischool in Otavalo
are looking forward to a connection between schools.
We hope to receive a positive reaction from one of the Flamish schools
we wrote to cooperate on this.
In search of balance between nature protection and fair trade in El Quinde and the Intag zone
The sector of EL QUINDE, which already has been supported for several years by the community of Wevelgem,
lately received a new impulse:
There is not only one, but three sectors in the region with the name of El Quinde (The Hummingbird).
All three are situated in the subtropical cloud forest.
The population has all the same problem of how to survive there without destroying nature.
During visits and meetings with the population of the three Quindes this problem was heavily discussed.
The growing realization that together and with our guidance they can find the balance between production
(and Fair Trade as an important part of it) and tourism,
so that the already cut down areas are replanted in a responsible manner and the existin primary wood stays protected.
At november 18th the coworkers of Ecassef and members of the association APCI (coffeeproducers from Intag)
visited the coffee coffee plantation of the Belgian Georges Esther in Mindo.
Georges Ester is experimenting in a scientific way for years to improve coffee
and increase the production per acre.
His aim is to pass his knowledge to the Ecuadorians coffeeproducers and has been asked ECASSEF
to play a role herein.
Preventive healthcare in San José de Quichinche
At november 9th we introduced a healthcare project to the 24 communities of San José de Quichinche.
This project consists of 3 parts:
•An inventory of the existing knowledge of medicinal plants in each community
and interviews with the elder people about the use of them will be the basis of a publication.
This will contain an explanation in words and images of all local medicinal plants,
for what illness they help and how they need to be kept.
The publication will also contain a chapter about the Andien vision,
and something about the prevention of accidents at home and tips about the usage of
all kind of remedies in case of an accident.
•Some three volunteers per community will get education,
in combination with knowledge of the traditional herbsmedicine,
and to be able to deliver First Aid in case of accidents.
Each municipality with have somebody who is permanently and rapidly available
to deliver Aid at the location.
Some municipalities are located very far away from a health center,
where medical personnel is only a few hours available.
•Finally, eachh municipality will have a medicinal plants garden and a First Aid case,
so that nobody needs to go to town for much too expensive
and not always effective medicines.
The beginning of the project ‘Cadenas Productivas’ from Yachay Wasi
At november 10th the project 'Productionchains'
has been presented in the Yachay Wasi.
The aim of this project is ‘organizar para producir’ or ‘organize to produce’.
Whenn various producers in a community learn to cooperate in a good way,
they can increase and improve their production and will they be stronger in the market.
We will work at three different levels:
At first, we produce for our own consumption in a responsible and healthy way,
thus by diversity.
At second, we will produce for the local and national market depending on the possibilities and the demand.
At third, we will produce for the foreign market,
by raising production cores in the 24 municipalities of San José de Quichinche and in the Intag zone.
At the moment we are studying in both areas for the opportunities in terms of soil, climate, height,
traditional agricultural products, knowledge, ... to start producing from the results of this investigation,
to process and to sell.
Expansion of the touristical network from Yachay Wasi
At november 11th in Yachay Wasi the idea has also been presented to develop a touristical network
in San José de Quichinche and in the 3 Quindes.
The experience we had at the guidance of Rushitamo in the process communautairy tourism,
will be used to offer other communities the opportunities for alternative income.
A first step herein is to organise a course for the local guides,
in cooperation with the ministery of tourism. Not only the members of Rushitamo will participate,
but also the inhabitants of other communities.
He who finishes the course with success, will get an official permit as a native guide.
The second step is a survey we will organise to investigate the opportunities of the touristical options within the region.
This happens in cooperation with the university of Otavalo with the students from the tourism department.
Volunteerswork and internship times
•At october 13th volunteer Tine went back to Belgium, after about a year of 'growing together' with ECASSEF.
The Rushitamo association had been organising a farewell party for her in Moraspungo.
There were many laughs and tears for the leave of such a good compañera.
In Belgium, Tine will stay active within ECASSEF.
•The new volunteers Goedele and Eddie have in oktober en november mainly worked at thefollowing activities:
o Teaching English lessons to the godchildren;
o working together with the children of the Montesorrischool in Otavalo.
Especiallt the excercising of motoric skills and concentration in children who had difficulty doing that;
o Offer help at the department of youth protection in the townhall of Otavalo, where they tried to get structure
in storing information;
•At the end of november, to our sorry we had to say goodbye to our compañero Eddie.
A nice farewell party in the Yachay Wasi was the sign of thanks of the local inhabitants for his work and support.
In Belgium, Eddie also keeps supporting the projects of Ecassef.
•We can also welcome some newcomers: Sarah Merchant, Laura De Wolf and Sofie Strobbe will be here for an internship
from the Artevelde hogeschool in Gent and the KATHO in Kortrijk.
We welcome them warmly!
•Anybody in Belgium who is interested in volunteerswork or an internship,
May contact Nick Verhelle, Jurgen d'Huyvetter of Tine Schuurmans
Free market in Gualsaqui:
The wekely lockal market in Gualsaqui continues,
although it is a difficult process of falling and raising.
At the moment, the market suffers from a low appearance of sellers and buyers.
By means of several initiatives, such as a lotery and a volleyballmatch,
the commitee of the free market tries to get more people to the market.
Not everything runs smoothly, but the people learn from their mistakesn.
The people at the heart of the commitee are willing to go on to get the market successfull.
Familiarisation trips
Anybody who wants to kow Ecuador in a unique way and would like to visit the projects of Ecassef,
can still subscribe for the familiarisation trip which takes place in july.
We like to ask our readers to promote this extraordinary trip to your friends and aquaintances.
Anyone who participates will loose his heart for for this country forever!
Info and a folder can you get from gino Vanneste
Financial support
There are two options for a donation:
- You do not require a tax certificate and use the KBC account of E.C.A.S.S.E.F. 469-5400501-71 with the indication:
“Member donation 2009” (Euro 20) or “Support to Ecassef”, or “adoptionplan” or “emergencyfund”, ...
- You do require a tax certificate (Donation of more than 30 Euro);
then use the following account: 435-8034101-59 of DMOS-COMIDE, Leopold II laan 195, 1080 Brussels,
with the indication: "B646 Progreso para Imbabura y Manabi - Ecuador - tax certificate please".
Anyone who is donating a monthly sum of less than 30 Euro, but on a yearly basis reaches this amount,
can also receive a tax certificate for the total sum. In both cases,
you might send us an email with the explanation what the support is meant for.
We then take care that the money gets to the right destination fund.
You will then also be entered in our adress database and will automatically receive newsletters
and weblog messages by e-mail.
If you do not have an e-mailadress, you will receive the newsletters by mail.
Many regards,
Ciao, until next time.
Jean, Ria, Goedele, Angélica, Sandra,
Martin and Yolande and our new Ecuadorian members Fermín Sandoval, Lourdes Escandón and Jorge Torres
E.C.A.S.S.E.F. Foundation - Ecuador – South America
TLF 00593-(0)99 - 931513
Mail to Ecassef.net
Mail to Ecassef@gmail.com
http://www.ecassef.net
Website: http://www.ecassef.waarbenjij.nu
In cooperation with
The Friendring of ECASSEF
Provinces West- and Oost-Vlaanderen – Belgium
The cities of Izegem and Deinze, the municipalities of Lendelede and Wevelgem
The Schools of H. Familie Bosmolens Izegem and De Regenboog in Ertvelde
Virga Jesse Hospital in Hasselt
SOS De Ronde Venen, The Netherlands
Godparents, sympathizers
IBERIA Airlines and Lafarge Cementos SA ECUADOR