Flooding, Flooding, and more Flooding....

(Nate, after a long day of trench digging, shows off the depth of our new and unexpected lake)

Ok, so personal projects have been completely put on hold. I'm sorry I know that you are all patiently waiting for your children biographies, yet I'm literally knee deep in puddles throughout my home and don't really know what to do. If you can all hang tight for a little while longer it would be greatly appreciated. Here are some pictures so you can see what's going on.

(View of the property sitting in the lake. Please note that the cabanas normally sit approximately 12 inches above ground level, and as demonstrated by the far cabana, water is actually flooding in)

The reason for the flooding in a new road which has been constructed on the peninsula in order to increase tourism and foreign investment to the area. The problem with the new road is that the lovely engineer who was hired forgot to put in any type of drainage system. Instead he raised the road up at least a foot higher than it was and literally plugged up the natural drainage of the entire peninsula. It is scary to see.

(Curly enjoying the ease of drinking water from the new lake. He doesn't even have to leave the comforts of the house, just needs to get to the door.)

Over the past several days Nate and I have secured a meeting with the mayor of El Viejo and collected over 150 signatures of community members effected by flooding from the construction of this new road. Yesterday we and several community members attended the meeting. We were really hoping for the best. But honestly they say they have done nothing wrong and the flooding is on our property which is considered private property, and therefore this is now a private matter. Haha, the funny thing is if you walk the road you can see how necessary it is for them to add culverts and drainage swales. Yet they do nothing, and help with nothing. The kicker, this property is really the governments, we just rent the land from them.

The Good the Bad and well… the Flooded

It has been a very exciting and trying past couple of week. Recently we had a lovely family from Maine staying with us. Steve, the father, is a pediatrician and is planning on working in the new local health clinic run by the Ministry of Health and owned by a group of firefighters in Canada. Lisa, the mother, is has put together a program with the Rieche School in Portland, Maine making comic books. The idea is to have an exchange of second graders ideas! The children, Nick, Tom, Elsa, Ashley, and Alex, will be assisting with the comic books and participating with the after school program at Rancho Esperanza.

Working with this family has been quite a thrill. The kids added a new energy into the hostel life as well as all projects which they participated in. Lisa brought down amazing comic books from two second grade classes which were received with awe by the second and third grade class in Jiquilillo. This was the first time most of the students in the Camilo Zapata School had ever seen comic books before. Once the project was explained the students jumped right into working on their personal comic books. As they had never seen examples before it was challenging to begin, however, many of the students had ideas which really began to take shape.

The next day Steve headed out to the clinic to begin a short term working relationship with the local health workers. He had spent time in Portland, Maine, fundraising for vitamins to bring with him to be distributed in the clinic. It’s a wonderful thing to do here, especially in the community, where antibiotics are handed out for everything including the common cold. Perhaps Steve will start a new trend here in the community!

The sad news in this story is just five days after the arrival of this wonderful family, who were planning on staying at Rancho Esperanza and working in the community for two weeks, they left. They did not necessarily leave because they wanted to. They left more because they had too. This year rainy season has begun early in Nicaragua. Over a month ago Hurricane Agatha passed through Guatamala just to our north and saturated the area with rain. We have been receiving almost daily rain storms since, which have left us at Rancho Esperanza and approximately 15 other family just in Jiquilillo flooded. Steve, Lisa, and all five kids packed up and headed out to explore the cities of Nicaragua. It was just not healthy to have them stay longer in what we now refer to as the laguna. Rancho Esperanza, where I live, has since been closed since June 25. We are completely inundated with water with levels rising to above knee deep in several spots and ankle deep inside many buildings.

It has been a sad scary and frustrating time. We have not been able to do anything. Since the hostel has been closed all community projects have also been shut down. Nate, Marissa, and I have actually had to move out completely. We are currently renting a house in Jiquilillo but are hoping to get back home soon. Currently we have been digging trenches attempting to alleviate some of the puddles. It has been helping; however, it’s just not enough. This is the worst flooding we have seen in over 6 years. No one in the community remembers this amount of water coming this early during rainy season. We still have several more months to go before we hit September and October when the real rains begin. Currently we have been only two of several people who have been working to help with the problem. The current community leader has been making phone calls and has been able to get several governmental officials out to this area to see what has been happening. The sad this is they have done nothing since. Just today Nate, while in town stopped by the governmental office and was able to arrange a meeting with the Mayor which will take place on Thursday at 9:00 am. We are hoping to be able to provide transport for all affected families to make a huge point at this meeting.

It has been discussed over and over again here in this community and a conclusion has finally been made. The reason the water seems to be more this year is because of the new road. Recently the local government of El Viejo partnered with US Aid has been working on bettering the road in this community to promote tourism. The problem here is that in bettering the road, they raised the level of it and did not take into consideration that proper drainage may need to be added as well. So essentially what they have done is put a huge plug in the middle of the natural drainage of the community, in turn leading to stagnant water.

Photos and updates to come soon.

Bathrooms almost Complete!!!

Day 1: Building in poor condition, doors falling off, roof inundated with holes, latrines full and super smelly!

So after a long meeting about the rehabilitation of the bathroom structure at the primary school in Jiquilillo, the parents have begun. It was decided that we needed a week and a few days to complete the majority of the construction. The plans were that every day a group of five fathers would assist the lead carpenter Roberto Ruiz, one day would be a group of 5 mothers. This was the plan and the hopes of the entire community, everyone at the meeting seemed to be on board! So the first day of work arrives, I get to the school to help oversee the project and make sure we had all the appropriate supplies, and what happens but I get there 30 minutes late (car problems), Roberto, the lead carpenter, arrives just after me, about an hour later two fathers arrive, 30 minutes after that one more father comes. It is always funny, and a bit frustrating, to see such dedication at all the community meetings but when push comes to shove, only about half are really on board.

Day 2 & 3: Sanding down the metal cross beams of the roof structure.

Although we started the construction a bit late on day 1, we were able to push through and get all necessary work accomplished in only 3 hours! The following five days were the same, only about half the fathers or mothers showed up, if we were lucky.

Day 4: After removal of roof and grinding of metal cross beams

Eventually all construction was completed. This included removing the roof, sanding all metallic surfaces and then painting them, painting the roofing panels, and then securing them on the building. With all this done we are now only waiting a bit until I return from my boarder run, as my visa expired. The next steps include emptying the latrine chambers, completely scrubbing the building, and finally hanging the new doors which will be constructed while I am in Costa Rica.

Day 5: Using a new liquid paint remover to remove remaining paint and begin cleaning building.

All in all, this has been a very successful project. The community has been able to take complete ownership of this project. Assist Jiquilillo, Inc., has only provided funds to secure all necessary materials (which were fairly expense for the typical income here in Nicaragua). This in turn is just greasing the wheel for the community who was able to muster all necessary man/woman power needed to complete a project to better the lives of their children! I am proud to be able to be a part of this!

More pictures soon once everything is done!

Bathrooms underway, if the rains can slow…

Just the other day while I was simply cleaning the library anticipating the arrival of the schools’ director; I noticed a strange sight. Slowly mothers and fathers began to filter into the school property. Some mothers came into the library and chatted and helped me clean, others hung around outside as if waiting for their children to be released from class. The metal pipes clanged signifying that the school day was over, and the children ran out the doors screaming in joy. This all occurring at only 10:30, about an hour and a half before the normal release. As several mothers and I continued to clean they began to ask me what today’s meeting was about. I answered slightly confused that I was unaware of who was presented at today’s’ meeting. This created several chuckles and then I realized that I was the one presenting at the meeting. Sweat began to pour off my brow and butterflies magically appeared in my stomach, as I realized how completely unprepared I was for said meeting.

I set off down the hall to chat with the teachers, who used their magic teacher calming skills to alleviate all fears. We began to prepare key points I should be addressing and 5 minutes later about 40 parents filtered into the classroom. Thankfully the crowd was small and many of them I considered good friends of mine. It was slightly reassuring looking out into the crowd about to give a presentation that I had no idea I would be giving.

Slowly I began, as I always begin… “Good morning and thank you all for taking your time to come today. As all of you know Spanish is not my first language and I still have difficulties, if you do not understand me please do not hesitate to stop me.” This raised a good chuckle as always. I continued on about how I have been slightly disappointed with the parent – school participation or lack thereof; to how I’ve been working in the Library Tuesdays and Thursdays; then onto how I have several projects I’d like to see completed before my departure this year, including a simple desalinization plant for the well and the repairs of the main latrine facility; then finally about future project ideas including the installation of electricity through the main power company.

The result of the meeting was such. The bathroom project will begin on Tuesday June 1st and continue through Monday, June 7th The anticipate plan of attack is I will meet the head construction man and a group of 5 fathers 6:30am Tuesday morning with all the supplies loaded up. Tuesday the roof will come off the building and sanding of the metal surfaces will commence, Wednesday sanding will continue and potentially painting will begin, Thursday painting will be finished, Friday the new roof will be installed with all finishing touches to be completed Monday the 7th. This is the plan, but who really knows if this will actually happen as planned… We are now fighting nature as it has been raining nonstop for the past two days, keep your fingers crossed that the rain slows and the clouds lift!

Just a quick update on the sponsorships, all sponsorship packages have been distributed, we are now only waiting until I complete the biographies and photos of all families. It should be just two more weeks before you all get your information!!! Thanks for your patience.

Science Books!!!

So I've got some fun news from the Science world. A lovely woman from California, whom my mother met on a book exchange website, has become the schools new godmother of Science. She has managed to compile over 30 used but in perfect condition Spanish Science books. These will be used in the 5th and 6th grade classroom. Both teacher and students are incredibly excited and spent their recess (break) poking through the books. It was really fun to see the fascination and interest from the students. These are the first really good science books that they have been exposed to! Thank you Mariana!

Students sponsorships have been passed out. I will be beginning the biography's on Thursday for all 18 students. You will get your bios' soon!

Sorry for no News My Folks are here!!!

I think the title says it all but, well the last post never went up as we had a cloud covered day and go figure the internet doesn't work when there are clouds. And then to boot my parents showed up on the 2nd, and I've been enjoying every second with them. Sadly but surely today was the last day and I sent them on a plane around Noon. So just to update as you may have all guessed I only have time and energy to tackle my internet post and e-mails on Wednesday. So I'm trying.

Tomorrow is the day to finish the shoe and notebook purchases for the 18 sponsored students. It is exciting! Hopfully there is enough time, as I'm working around a bus schedule this time. Hmm.... also as my parents got a taste of what one would think will only take 2 minutes in 1 store, ends up taking 6 hours and having to hunt down Eduardo around the corner, then Pablo around the next corner, then Mario 6 blocks down, and well before you know it it's dark and you've already missed your ride home. So keep your fingers crossed and we'll see what tomorrow brings.

Oh and for all you Maine folks, I saw the funniest thing today while in Chinandega. A Gobiel's furniture truck. So if anyone is in contact with them. Let them know they are famous even down in Nicaragua!!!

Roof Plans Change Again... and Other News

This is written on February 24th. Yesterday was a school day and it was an interesting day to say the least. Several community members had approached me with questions regarding the schools roof. Just an update, as of the most recent town meeting the town had decided that it was a good idea to change the roof of the school. They felt that although the cost would be high it was important to make sure that they school was secure from the rain before additional expensive materials were added to the building. Therefore I was a bit surprised to be approached so recently after the town meeting.

It turns out the community has decided that they are not sure how they feel about change the entire roof. They feel that the panels are structurally sound enough and will last several more years. To prove this a carpenter in the community climbed up to the roof and walked around surveying the roof itself. Just as he was telling me how structurally sound each panel was, and there was no need to worry... he fell through. He didn't fall through all the way, just a foot through the roof panel, but still, it was just perfectly appropriate. Honestly, I don't think anything better could have happened to prove my point.

However, now the problem is that I have a hole in the roof of the school directly above the classroom with the library. I have a town who does not want to change the roof to aluminum because the material is thin and they are not sure how long it will wear. I have over 1,000 screws which need to be changed in order to secure the current roof in place. I have over 216 delicate roof panels that need to be taken off in order to change the screws. And all the panels are currently made out of asbestos.

What to do what to do.... I think this project may take a bit more planning and may be waiting for next year; which is absolutely fine. I will get a very light weight person up on the roof to fix the new hole and several of the old damaged roof panels; I do not think it is even appropriate to change the screws as it will be very damaging to the roof panels itself. I hope the town understands. I will surely find out at the next meeting. Therefore, I've decided to start the bathroom, which I have been given the go ahead to use the aluminum as a trial. This way we can find out for how long an aluminum roof can last.

Other news includes school sponsorships. Tomorrow I will be heading back into Chinandega to exchange several of the uniforms which were not the right sizes, purchase one more backpack, and purchase all the shoes for the 18 students. New sponsors are continuing to join and sooner than later I think I may be able to begin sponsoring several additional children.