This half day tour takes you up close to some of the Caribbean Sea’s most dramatic wildlife
Bringing a Community Together
Audrey Blocker, Peace Corps volunteer from La Ensenada has prepared the following letter to members of the Bocas community and beyond. Please read it and if you have any gifts to contribute to this worthy cause follow the links at the end of her letter.
Greetings from Peninsula Valiente! This is your friendly Peace Corps Volunteer, Audrey Blocker, emailing to let the Bocas community know about my latest project. First and foremost, thank you for taking the time to read this. I hope you find what I have written here of interest to you. Please open your hearts and minds to this foreign world of underdevelopment that exists in Panama.
I have been living in the indigenous Ngöbe community called La Ensenada in the Comarca Ngöbe-Bugle near the Bocas del Toro province of Panama. Many of you might be familiar with the location. I have heard references such as Playa or Punta de Uva out in Blue Fields My job is to teach and train the people of this indigenous community organization and project management skills. Tourism is the main focus in my community and surrounding communities. I also incorporate educational discussions about improving health and cleanliness in the household.
Aside from all of these tasks, my biggest project yet is to build a bridge through a swamp and over a small river that divides the community. I have applied
for a Peace Corps grant under the Peace Corps Partnership Program to fund this bridge. Under this program, the efforts to complete a project involve the community and “partners,” or rather donors. The idea is that the community will put forth at least 25% of the cost of the desired project and the partners donate the rest of the cost. The project goes online on the Peace Corps website and anyone who wants to be a partner can donate any amount to the remaining total needed to finish funding the project. The community of La Ensenada understands that to fully appreciate and benefit from building this bridge, they will have to make a contribution to the cause. Therefore, La Ensenada is prepared to donate all manual labor costs: this expense alone covers over half of the project’s total cost.
Here is some background information on why La Ensenada wants and needs this bridge.
The community is spread out along the inner cove of the Bahia Azul bay and is divided by a river. This division creates problems for the people regarding transportation, communication and school attendance. A bridge will help to solve these problems and improve the infrastructure of La Ensenada. The idea is that a 500 foot, cement bridge and walkway will cross the river and span a mangrove that further impedes the crossing.
The children of the community will no longer have to worry about finding a ride in a dugout canoe to get to school because they will then have the freedom to walk. Members of both sides of the community will be able to be more mobile and attend more community activities. Participation in the community-improvement projects will increase with this new mobility. The rapidly developing tourism market will have greater access to other parts of the area tourists want to visit. People commuting from neighboring villages will have a safer route to use than how they commute today, which is scaling a rock wall with ocean waves crashing below.
My request for funding will cover material costs, which include cement, rebar and tools to realize the project, as well as the cost of transportation of materials to the boat-access-only location of La Ensenada. The people of La Ensenada will provide other important materials such as sand and gravel, as well as the cost of their labor.
In the developing world infrastructure improvement projects are keys to success. The bridge will be tremendously significant to all of the men, women and children of La Ensenada.
I have written this email to cordially invite you to please be a partner to the community of La Ensenada and donate to their bridge. The amount you donate could be between $5 and $500…or even $1,000!!!! Any amount is helpful. All donations are tax-deductible. All gifts or bequests to the Peace Corps are gifts to the United States for exclusively public purposes. Once the donation has been processed a thank you letter will be sent, which can be used as a tax receipt. The name on the tax receipt will reflect the account owner on the credit card or check. And if you can’t donate, then please spread the word. I understand the economic stress these days. My greatest request here is that even if you donate, PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD! Perhaps you have close friends or family who would be passionate about this cause. Perhaps you work for a company or business, or know someone who does, that would like to make a tax deductible donation.
Once the project is fully funded I will post a blog with progress reports and pictures to keep the partners up to date. If you have any questions about the project, how to donate or about anything at all regarding this explanation, please don’t hesitate to ask. Your kindness, generosity and consideration are appreciated more than you know. You will be helping fulfill a dream.
To donate, please visit:
https://www.peacecorps.gov/
Or follow these instructions:
1. visit www.peacecorps.gov, 2. click Donate to Volunteer Projects, 3. type in "Blocker" to search for my project, 4. the project's name is Bringing a Community Together - click on this name, 5. read the project description and donate to the right of the screen, 6. commend yourself for having supported development projects in rural Bocas del Toro and Peace Corps Panama!
~Grace and Peace ~
Audrey “Doli” Blocker (Doli is the indigenous name my community gave me)
