Manizales | Year of Giving

Posts Tagged ‘Manizales’

Day 174 – Roey K.

Posted in Refusals, Something for others, tagged $10, Colombia, Costa Rica, culture, Manizales, Panama, Pereira, religion, travel on June 18, 2010| 4 Comments »

The day had finally come that I had to return to Washington after almost two weeks of incredible work in Manizales.

I am working on a collage of photos of my trip that I hope to post soon.

I left the coffee and banana finca for the last time and made the way up the mountain. Four-wheel drive is a must. I hopped out as we got to Adriana and Augusto’s store and switched the ten dollar bill and we continued on our way.

It’s a pretty drive, wrapping around the mountainous roads of Colombia’s coffee belt for two hours.

I arrived with plenty of time and started to make my way through the check-in process. Now I have been to Colombia before and am familiar with the multiple revisions that they do of your luggage, but this time it went a step further. I had purchased some coffee and other goods to bring back as gifts for some friends. They poked holes in almost every item I had and tasted it. They opened up the Colombian rum that I had purchased and poured some over their finger to make sure that it wasn’t liquid heroin! I know the man was just doing his job and that he is doing it for all the right reasons, however, it’s frustrating to watch someone open and damage all of your gifts for others.

While I was being searched I noticed another man that was being searched who looked familiar. I asked the customs officer who he was and he said that it was Tego Calderon

, a well-known Latin American Reggaetón artist. I had heard of his name but couldn’t say that I was familiar with his music. Anyway, I thought he might be an interesting person to give him my $10.

Tego Calderon

On board the flight from Pereira, Colombia to Panama’s Tocumen International Airport I saw Tego again. He was being moved up from coach to first class. We arrived in Panama and were met on the tarmac by a shuttle bus that took us to the terminal. As I squeezed into the crowded shuttle bus I found myself shoulder to shoulder with the Puerto Rican musician who appeared to be travelling with his wife and some friends or band members. I asked him how the concert went in Pereira and he politely replied that it went well. Then there was a little silence and he turned to chat with one of his friends.

So many of you have written to me talking about anxiety to approach someone and give them $10. Well, let me tell you…I was very nervous about Tego to accept my $10, but I did. He accepted my card and read both sides of it. “So what is it?” he asked in Spanish. I explained very quickly the concept and he replied, “Man, I don’t have time, we got to catch a flight to Santo Domingo.” I assured him it would be fast, but he just smiled and laughed and shook his head. As the doors opened and he exited the shuttle bus he said “I’ll check out your website.” He and his entourage quickly vanished.

While waiting for the flight to depart, I tried to give my $10 to Alfredo, a COPA Airlines pilot, but he just didn’t feel comfortable. He asked a lot of questions but didn’t seem to get the giving project.

I boarded my final flight, COPA 488 from Panama to Washington’s Dulles International Airport. I had seat 14A which is by the emergency exit and doesn’t have a seat in front of it. As I approached my seat I saw that someone was sitting there. After double checking tickets, it turns out that Roey was supposed to be in 14B: the middle seat.

The flight was just under five hours and was scheduled to land at 12:55AM. So I knew I was going to continue the streak of 174 days without missing a day of giving, I needed to find someone on this flight and give them the $10 before we land.

The plane took off and I pulled out a notebook to try to write some of the blogs from the previous days. I was so far behind (and still am) and needed to get caught up. I didn’t have my notebook out one minute before Roey, now in 14B, asked, “Do you journal? I have more than 2,000 journal entries.” Inside I was smiling as I realized that I just found my day’s recipient!

Roey (Photo: Reed)

Roey is 29 and lives in Bethesda. Originally from Israel, he moved here when he was five. He is passionate about his religion and his heritage and shared openly with me. When he is not out pursuing some adventure in Costa Rica, Roey works in information security for a firm that specializes in auditing government information systems for compliance with the Federal Information Security Management Act.

He was traveling with three friends on their way back from a trip to Costa Rica. They met on Gesher City DC, a social website that according to the site is the “one-stop connection to all things young and Jewish in DC!” They had been on an amazing eco-farm while they were there. Roey got his camera out and showed me the many photographs he took while visiting this beautiful natural paradise. Here Roey talks a little bit about his general impressions of the “Ticos” – that is the name given to the local people of Costa Rica.

We talked about coffee, as I had just been on a coffee plantation and some of the people that he met on his trip were in the coffee business. It sounded like the highlight of their trip was a day that they visited the Cacao Trails in Cahuita. Roey said they got to see the entire chocolate making process. And no tour apparently is complete without tasting the final product. “It was the best chocolate I have ever tasted,” Roey told me. He explained that the flavor is so much better because they do not extract the cocoa butter like many commercialized chocolate manufacturers do.

Roey wasn’t sure what he was going to do with the $10 but he said he planned to do something for someone else. I look forward to hearing how it was used.

We talked the length of the entire flight. I met his two friends Julia and David too (the fourth friend took a different flight). In fact, I even gave Julia and David a ride home. They didn’t live too far away from where I live so it was nice to be able to help them out. Roey stayed behind as his parents were on their way to pick him up.

Roey fresh off the plane (Photo: Reed)

Roey is a guy who likes to make connections. He loves to think of the people that he knows that might be able to help you out or simply be a good friend. I think I left with a half-dozen names of people or places that he thought might be of interest to me. I haven’t followed up on them yet, although I should. Roey loves to meet new people and if you are in the DC area and open to meeting new people, I know Roey would love to meet up!

An interesting tidbit. The following day the blog was accessed by somebody in Santo Domingo. I don’t have too many visitors from there, so who knows, maybe it was Tego!

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Day 173 – Adriana and Augusto H.

Posted in Savings, tagged $10, Colombia, comida, cultura, culture, dar, familia, family, food, giving, Guacas, Manizales on June 17, 2010| 2 Comments »

My father, Manny (blog follower), and Sammy (Day 113) at the WWDoG DC Get-Together (Photo: Ryan Sandridge)

Thanks to all of you who participated in the Worldwide Day of Giving! It was amazing. So many great stories from all over…pictures and even video from some people! I received a lot of emails from people who said that they tried, but just couldn’t do it. It was too far out of their comfort zone. That’s ok. You tried. Keep trying.

I also received lots of emails from people who want to continue doing this every 15^th of the month…what a great idea. Feel free to continue to post your stories here or on Facebook WHENEVER you pay it forward. I will remind everyone on July 15^th for those who want to give it another try!

A lot of you have asked how the DC Meet-Up went. I was so happy to see so many former recipients, followers of the blog, people I only knew from their comments, and even people who had received $10 from someone on the Worldwide Day of Giving that then joined us at the happy hour. All the local news stations were also there. I will try to get links for all the media from that day, including the two earlier interviews I did that day on News Channel 8 and CNN.

I am excited to write about my recipients for today’s post. As my trip was winding down in Manizales, I started to get sad as the trip was coming to an end. The day before I left I was in the Guacas area where I was staying getting ready for a barbecue that Roberto Gonzalo was organizing. About 10 minutes up (literarily up the mountain) there is a small store that has some billiard tables and a TV for neighborhood people to come together. Roberto Gonzalo and I had stopped by there on a few occasions and bought items we needed or enjoyed a beer at the end of the day. This night I thought I would go and get to know them and see what they would do with my $10.

I left the gated area of the plantation and started to ascend up the mountain. I can’t convey to you how steep this hill is. The store is only about 200-250 yards away, but it is a workout to get there. Pinto the dog escaped and was at my side as I lift one leg in front of the other. My heart starts to pound and sweat is rolling off my forehead. I stop for about a minute to catch my breath. The altitude adds another level of complexity at 7,000 feet. Pinto knows the way and he runs on ahead of me as I crest the incline and see the store off to the left..

Adriana, Augusto, and Pamela

The store is owned by Adriana and Augusto who live upstairs with their seven-year-old daughter. I had seen them a few times while I was on my trip. Augusto was always out front working on something; cutting wood on the lathe, welding some metal, working on a car, etc. Adriana tends to the store and their daughter.

It is a holiday weekend and many people have traveled leaving the store void of the usually two or three locals chatting about the election or the upcoming World Cup. I find Augusto leaning over a table that has a large metal door laying flat on top of it. Clad with goggles he wields a welding torch with his right hand along one of the edges of the metal door. He gives me a wave and I walk toward Adriana who is sitting outside at a table with her daughter.

View from Augusto/Adriana's store (Photo: Reed)

By this time Augusto had retired the blow torch and had walked over to the table. We made some small talk and then I told them about my project. I sat down and shared with them the journey that has become my passion over the past six months.

Adriana, who is 28, tells me that the store has been there for as long as she can remember. It has been in the family for years. She manages the store and also makes homemade morcilla which she sells in the city. Morcilla is a type of sausage that is made by cooking blood from pigs, cows, goats, etc then adding a filler such as rice until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled. I was introduced to morcilla when I lived in Valladolid, Spain. Although it is quite tasty, I usually try not to think about what goes into it.

Augusto is the Colombia version of MacGyver. Every time I would see him he was fixing something. He is an industrial mechanic by trade, but he is a skilled woodworker, metalworker, carpenter, plumber, auto mechanic, etc. He even likes to do car detailing. The 32-year-old builds more in a week than I have in my entire life. I asked him what the door was for and he said that the local prison had contracted him to make 12 doors for them. I would think they would contract those sort of things with large companies, but “MacGyver” has a good reputation and the work flows his way.

A former police officer, he made the career change after being sent to the tension stricken border area between neighboring Ecuador. “It was too dangerous for me,” he states “and I like to work with my hands.”

Adriana said something to her daughter and she disappeared into the store. Pamela had been sitting patiently at the table the entire time that we spoke. She reappeared minutes later and walked over to me and placed a cold bottle of the local beer, Poker, on the table next to me. That is just the kind of hospitality that people grow up with here. She smiled and went back to her chair.

I wanted to find out more about how Adriana and Auguto met. Adriana told me about how they had actually known each other almost all their lives. In fact, they even dated when they were teenagers, but later separated. They reconnected years later and married.

Augusto had several questions about the Year of Giving. We talked about how it got started, my family, and some of the other people I have met along the way. I explained that they could look up the blog online, but they didn’t have internet access. There is another small store about 100 yards away that has a computer where you can pay to surf the web. I mentioned that they could go and look it up there. Maybe they will do that.

I offered them either dollars or pesos. Augusto said he would prefer dollars. “For now I think I’ll keep it as a reminder of us meeting each other.” I only had one ten dollar bill with me and it was really beat up. I placed it in his hand and told him that I would stop by the next day on my way to the airport and give him one in a little better shape. He nodded as if to say that was ok, but not necessary.

We wrapped up our conversation. I paid for the beer and bought a few more to take to the barbecue. As I headed down the driveway and turned onto the dirt road to make the journey down the mountain, Pinto appeared out of nowhere. I had completely forgotten that he had accompanied me on the journey. It was now pitch dark out and the lack of street lighting makes the walk down the mountain slightly challenging, although I’ll take walking down the mountain in the dark over walking up the mountain any day. Especially with Pinto by my side, he knows the way.

The next day as we left for the airport, I hopped out of the jeep to make good on my word about exchanging the ten dollar bill. Augusto and his family were sitting at a table eating lunch. “I have been thinking a lot about your project today” he said. “It’s really amazing.” We switched the $10 and said “until the next time.”

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Day 172 – Sandra T.

Posted in Something for others, tagged 20000 pesos, Colombia, escuelas, estudiantes, Manizales, music, musica, pobreza, poverty, schools, students on June 15, 2010| 8 Comments »

Versión en español sigue abajo.

Good morning and welcome to the Worldwide Day of Giving!!!

Today is a day that you can do what I have been doing for 182 days (I am behind on posting my blogs). It’s so simple…find someone you don’t know, tell them you are participating in the Worldwide Day of Giving and give them $10, or whatever you can afford, no strings attached and find out what they will do with the $10. Hopefully you can learn a little bit about them as well. I always get their contact information and then try to stay in touch. Have fun with it! Then I hope you will share your stories here…if you take pictures or video, you can post your stories on the Facebook Page.

I have a couple of media interviews today. This morning I am heading over to News Channel 8’s Let’s Talk Live for an interview with Natasha Barrett and Melanie Hastings. Then around 2:30 I will be on CNN with Ali Velshi. Finally this evening, I will be celebrating here in DC at Café Dupont (The Dupont Hotel) from 6-8pm. If you are around, please join us!

Interviewing Sandra in her classroom (Photo: Roberto Gonzalo Ceballos)

On day 172 I found myself at the Instituto Tecnico Marco Fidel Suarez (ITMFS), a grade school in Manizales. The kids here are similar to the those at the San Agustin school. They come from very simple backgrounds. Poverty is rampant and sometimes the brightest part of their day is the time they spend at school. “Sometimes the meal they get here might be the only meal they get all day,” says Sandra, and English teacher at the school.

The bilingual chorus that I was working with at this school was made up of Sandra’s students. After we were done rehearsing with the students, Sandra stayed to talk to me some and I found my recipient for my 20,000 pesos.

Photo: Reed

An educator for the past 13 years, Sandra never imagined she would be teaching at a school like ITMFS. “I was teaching at the University.” And before that she had some pretty impressive jobs translating and interpreting for the Ambassador from India. “I don’t know how it happened but somehow I ended up teaching here and I am so happy to be here.”

Colombia divides it’s neighborhoods into socio-economic categories called strata. The wealthiest is six and the poorest is zero. This school has children from the zero and one strata. To me the concept was unfamiliar to identify people so readily by a stratum based upon where they lived, but here it was quite common. In fact, many of the students that I met would ask me which stratum I belonged to. A question that I didn’t know how to answer but comparatively speaking, it was surely much higher.

Sandra is passionate about teaching. She speaks English all the time and expects her students to try their hardest. Most of the students were lucky to know a few words in English. The hope is that by learning the songs that we teach them that they will make a connection and learn more quickly. There was one girl who was quite advanced in the chorus. She had an amazing natural ability I think for languages. Sounding almost like a proud mother she nodded her head and said, “Yes, she is quite good isn’t she.”

I learned that English is not the only thing that Sandra is passionate about. Now the proud mother really came out and she flipped through her phone for a second and handed it to me. “I have the most special baby boy: Juan Felipe.” He is three and looked so happy in the photos she shared.

I shot a little video of the class singing as well as Sandra explaining what she was going to do with the $10 and why. This one is in English. Enjoy.

Versión en español

En el día 172 estuve en el Instituto Técnico Marco Fidel Suárez (ITMFS), una escuela del sector público en Manizales. Los niños de acá son parecidos a los del Colegio San Agustín. Tienen un historial muy simple en donde la pobreza es excesiva y algunas veces, la mejor parte del día es el tiempo que están en la escuela. “Algunas veces la única comida que tienen es la que comen aquí” dice Sandra, la docente de inglés.

El coro bilingüe lo integran los alumnos que asisten a clase con Sandra. Después de haber terminado el ensayo con los estudiantes, me quedo con Sandra para hablar un poco y encuentro a quien darle mis 20,000 pesos.

Sandra, siendo docente durante 13 años, nunca imaginó que estaría enseñando en una escuela como el ITMFS. “Fui docente a nivel universitario” y antes había trabajado como traductora e intérprete para el Embajador de la India. “No sé cómo sucedió pero de un momento a otro terminé enseñando aquí y estoy feliz de hacerlo.”

Students at ITMFS (Photo: Reed)

En Colombia los barrios se clasifican en categorías socio-económicas llamadas estratos. El estrato más rico es el seis y el más pobre es el cero. Los estudiantes de esta escuela provienen de estratos cero y uno. Para mí el concepto no era familiar, es decir, identificar a las personas rápidamente sólo con base en el lugar donde viven; pero aquí en Colombia es algo demasiado común. De hecho, muchos de los estudiantes que conocí, me preguntaron a qué estrato pertenecía. Una pregunta que no supe cómo responder, pero comparativamente hablando, de seguro mucho más alto.

Sandra es apasionada con respecto a su trabajo, habla en inglés todo el tiempo y espera que sus estudiantes hagan su mayor esfuerzo. Muchos de los estudiantes son afortunados al conocer algunas palabras en inglés. Se espera que aprendiendo las canciones que les enseñamos, los estudiantes hagan una conexión y aprendan más rápidamente. Había una estudiante en el ensayo del coro, quien estaba muy avanzada con respecto a los otros; creo que tiene una extraordinaria habilidad innata para los idiomas. Con el tono de voz de una madre orgullosa Sandra mueve su cabeza y dice: “Sí, es muy buena para el inglés”.

Aprendí que no sólo el inglés es lo que apasiona a Sandra. Aparece una madre orgullosa quien saca su teléfono celular, busca por un momento y me muestra una foto: ¨Tengo el bebé más especial: Juan Felipe.” Tiene tres años y se ve muy feliz en las fotos.

Grabé un corto video (encima) en donde aparece el ensayo del coro y Sandra explicando qué va a hacer con los $10 y por qué. Está en inglés. Disfrútenlo.

Este blog fue traducido generosamente por Sandra Toro en Manizales, Colombia.

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Day 171 – Myriam G.

Posted in Something for themself, tagged 20000 pesos, art, arte, Colombia, espanol, Manizales, pasión, passion, Spanish on June 15, 2010| 5 Comments »

Versión en español sigue abajo.

Tomorrow is the big day. Have you been thinking about who you might give your $10 to? Don’t over think it. Follow your heart. Tell them what you are doing. Explain to them quickly what the Year of Giving is about. If you are at a loss on how to start the conversation, maybe this example that I sent to some friends will help.

Hi…I was wondering if you could help me on a personal project that I am doing…well, let me explain to you what the project is and you can decide for yourself. I am participating in the Worldwide Day of Giving, a day that celebrates altruistic giving and community engagement. The project is simple….I find one person who I don’t know and give them $10, no strings attached. I would love for you to be the recipient of my $10.”

If they say yes, you can ask other questions and learn more about them….etc. If they are still unsure, explain that if they say no, then you will simply have to find someone else. If they say they are not worthy of the $10, tell them they do not have to keep it and that they can do anything they want to with it. If they say that they prefer that you give it to someone who needs it, remind them that they can also do that. Sometimes you get a few objections….but hang in there and you will find the right person.

Then submit your stories here!

Changing subject a little, I didn’t get any takers to meet up and use my $100 game card at the ESPN Zone. They were not very flexible in letting me use the credit for anything else (like food at their restaurant, etc) so I gave my card to some school kids there on a class trip. They were ecstatic.

I wish I had captured Doña Myriam smiling in this picture, but she had her serious artist look going on (Photo: Reed)

Today I have a beautiful story to share with you. While I was in Manizales, I spent a good amount of time at the Rafael Pombo Foundation. One day there was an adult art class taking place. I was taking some photos of them painting when the work of 85-year-old Doña Myriam caught my eye. We started to talk and I knew I had found my recipient for the day!

Doña Myriam gave me so much energy. She has so much passion to learn new things and live an active life. She has taken up painting and if you take a look at the video, you will see that she is quite talented.

She raised 10 children. Sadly her one son, an electrician, has passed away. I think back to the recent death of my cousin Ricky and how hard it was on my aunt. My heart always goes out to parents who lose a child. There is just nothing that prepares us for that. She also lost her husband who died in 1976.

Our conversation turned to happier times, like her childhood. She shares that at 12-years-old she wanted to join the communist party. By 15 she had changed her mind. But this interest in politics and government led her to want to pursue a career in law. “But times were different then. My father forbid me to go study at the university.” Well, she is making up for lost time now as she follows her passions.

Photo: Reed

I asked her how she planned to use her 20,000 pesos. There was an electricity in her voice when she answered me. She smiled and placed her hand on top of mine and said, “I am going to buy some more painting supplies so that I can do more painting!” She has been making paintings for each of her children. Maybe with the additional funds she can start making paintings for all those grandchildren!

This woman had something special. She warmed my heart and I was sad when I left. It was like I was saying goodbye to my own grandmother. I gave her a hug and we exchanged phone numbers. I have uploaded some of the video from our conversation. It is in Spanish, but even those of you who don’t understand Spanish might enjoy seeing her paint and just watching her expressions. She’s beautiful.

VERSIÓN ESPAÑOL

Mañana es el gran día. ¿Has pensado a quien te gustaría darle tus $10? No lo pienses tanto, sigue tu corazón. Mi consejo es que les cuentes lo que estás haciendo, explícales rápidamente que significa el “Año del Dar”. Si no sabes cómo iniciar la conversación, quizá este ejemplo te sirva.

“Hola.. quería saber si me puedes ayudar en un proyecto personal. Déjame te explico mi proyecto para que decidas si me quieres ayudar. Estoy participando en el día mundial del Año del Dar, un día que celebra el dar sin condiciones y el compromiso de la comunidad. El proyecto es muy simple… yo encuentro a una persona que no conozco y le doy $10 sin ninguna condición. Me encantaría que tú seas la persona que recibe mis $10 el día de hoy.

Si la persona te dice que sí, ahora puedes hacer más preguntas y aprender más sobre él/ella. Si no está seguro, explícale que si dice que no, simplemente tendrás que ir a buscar a otra persona. Si dice que no vale los $10, dile que no se los tiene que quedar, que puede hacer lo que quiera con el dinero. Si dice que prefiere que tú se lo des a otra persona que lo necesite, recuérdale que él también puede hacerlo. Algunas veces recibes algunos rechazos… pero sigue intentando para que encuentres a la persona correcta.

Después, comparte con nosotros tus historias aquí!

Cambiando de tema, no pude encontrar a nadie para reunirnos y usar mi tarjeta con $100 para jugar en la Zona de ESPN. La gente de ESPN no fue muy flexible y no pude usar el dinero como crédito para otro gasto (como comida en el restaurante, etc). Acabé dando la tarjeta a unos niños que estaban de paseo con su clase de la escuela. Los niños quedaron encantados.

La profesora de la clase de arte (Photo: Reed)

Hoy tengo una historia muy linda para compartir. Ahora que estuve de visita en Manizales, pase un buen tiempo con la Fundación Rafael Pombo. En una de mis visitas, tuve la oportunidad de entrar a tomar fotos en la clase de arte para adultos. Estaba tomando fotos de los alumnos y de sus pinturas cuando de repente encontré el trabajo de Doña Myriam, una señora de 85 años. Comenzamos a platicar y supe que había encontrado a la persona que le daría los 20,000 pesos de ese día.

Doña Myriam me dio mucha energía. Ella tiene muchas ganas – y mucha pasión – de aprender cosas nuevas y vivir una vida activa. Ahora está tomando clases de pintura y si ves el video, veras que tiene talento.

Doña Myriam crió diez niños. Desafortunadamente, un hijo hombre, un electricista, murió. Esto me hizo pensar en la muerte reciente de mi primo Ricky y lo difícil que fue para mi tía. Mi compasión siempre va para los padres que han perdido un hijo. No existe nada que lo prepare a uno para eso. Doña Myriam también perdió a su esposo que murió en 1976.

Nuestra conversación cambio y comenzamos a hablar de los buenos tiempos, como su niñez. Me comentó que a los 12 años, quiso unirse al partido comunista. A los 15 ya había cambiado de parecer, pero siguió teniendo mucho interés en temas políticos y de gobierno por lo que decidió estudiar la carrera de derecho. “Pero los tiempos eran diferentes, mi padre me prohibió ir a la universidad.” Ahora trata de recuperar el tiempo perdido y de seguir sus pasiones.

Photo: Reed

Le pregunté cómo planeaba utilizar sus 20,000 pesos. Hubo electricidad en su voz cuando me contestó. Sonrió y puso su mano sobre la mía y me dijo, “Voy a comprar más provisiones de pintura para poder pintar más!” Ella ha estado pintando cuadros para cada uno de sus hijos. Quizá, con las nuevas provisiones de pintura, Doña Myriam podrá comenzar a hacer pinturas para cada uno de sus nietos!

Esta mujer tiene algo especial. Me sentí triste cuando me fui. Fue como si le dijera adiós a mi propia abuela. Le di un abrazo e intercambiamos números de teléfono. Subí un video en español de nuestra conversación. Es muy linda.

Este blog fue traducido generosamente por Carla Tena en Washington, DC.

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Day 170 – Juan L.

Posted in Investment, tagged 20000 pesos, alcalde, Colombia, future, futuro, gobierno, government, inventions, Manizales, mayor, politica, politics on June 14, 2010| 3 Comments »

It looks like there is a glitch with the website today. Instead of my usually banner of the open hand that is at the top, I have a nice picture of a foot bridge and some trees. Not sure why that is happening. Is anyone else seeing the footbridge picture instead of my normal banner?

For those of you who will be participating in the Worldwide Day of Giving and sharing your stories with the world, you need to post them here. If you have photos and video to share, you will need to do one of two things. Either upload those on the Facebook page or write the stories here and put links to the photos/videos on a 3^rd party website (such as YouTube or Flickr). Sorry to do it this way, but there are some technical challenges that prevent uploading the pictures and videos straight into this website.

I am so excited to hear about your giving experiences! If you have some questions, check out the comments here that should help answer any questions you might have.

So this morning I have an interview with DeLuca and the morning team at Q92, a Canton, OH based radio station. I have spoken to them before and had a good time with those guys. Later in the day I am talking with Tim Day of KG Country 99.5, a radio station in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. I spoke with Tim about a month or so ago and he wanted to check in and see how things were going.

Then I was thinking about going over to the ESPN Zone tonight. I heard that they are closing tomorrow for good! I have some game cards with like $100. Although there is no mention of them closing on their website, I did hear it on two different news programs. Anyway, I don’t think they are going to refund me the balance on the cards, so they need to get used. If anyone wants to meet up tonight and help me use the rest of the credits on my card, let me know!

Today’s entry is a very special one. While I was in Manizales, I met with the Secretary of Education for Manizales, Dr. María Constanza Montoya Naranjo. She is a wonderful woman who is working hard to deliver the best education possible for the students in Manizales. One day we were talking about the Year of Giving and she suggested I give my $10 to the Mayor, Juan Manuel Llano Uribe. I had seen him on Friday at the event with US Ambassador William Brownfield. Anyway, she said she would give him a call and try to arrange something. Well what do you know? She arranged a meeting the next day!

Mayor Juan Manuel Llano Uribe

I get invited into a large conference room to wait for the Mayor. Already seated are four students and two teachers from a local school that had recently returned from a science fair in Dallas, TX. These students had built some robots that are prototypes for larger scale versions that would be used to help in the coffee production process and they were there to demonstrate their ingenuity to the Mayor.

Well, how the hell am I going to follow that act?

Anyway, the school children leave and I get a few minutes with the Mayor. He invites me to walk over to an adjacent room which turns out to be his office. It’s spacious with very nice views of Manizales. There are a couple of comfortable chairs arranged around a coffee table on one end. He disappears for a moment and then returns. We chat for a little while and I try to do my best to explain the Year of Giving. I am not sure what he thought of it, but he agreed to talk with me.

He spoke about the growth and globalization of Manizales and the expected increase of tourism to the city. “What should a tourist be sure to see or do while they are here?” I asked. He said that one should definitely try to see the eight different shades of green that Manizales has. He was referring to the vast natural beauty and the stunning variety of greenery that exists there. I was certainly doing that by staying on Roberto Gonzalo’s plantation. He also mentioned that I should visit Nevado del Ruiz, a snow-covered volcanic peak that has been active in recent history. The current cone was formed about 150 years ago. Atop the mountain is a massive glacier. The Mayor says that this is the only peak of its kind that is accessible by car. That is impressive, not to mention that it’s at 5,135 meters, that’s more than 16,000 feet! Well, I didn’t make it there unfortunately, but next time!

He stressed his commitment to making Manizales a bilingual community and that they were strongly behind the educational transformation that is needed to make this shift. There are two critical investment areas for this to be a success according to the Mayor: technology and human capital. “It’s sowing the seeds for the future,” he said. Here the Mayor speaks about his vision for Manizales (in Spanish).

When the Mayor is not hard at work on the future of Manizales, he says that he enjoys playing golf and riding motorcycles. I wonder if he has taken his bike up to Nevado del Ruiz. That would be pretty spectacular!

So what do you think the Mayor is going to do with the $10…or 20,000 pesos in this case? That was what was on my mind throughout the entire conversation. I circled back to the 20,000 peso note that sat in front of him and asked what he planned to do with it. I got an answer that I have never heard before. “I’m going to take your 20,000 pesos and give you 100,000 a year from now.” I am not sure exactly how he plans to do this and I didn’t ask. I just let it be.

Mr. Mayor…I look forward to seeing you next June!

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Day 169 – Giovanni B.

Posted in Savings, tagged $10, Colombia, escuela, Manizales, music, musica, profesores, school, teaching on June 13, 2010| 2 Comments »

Just two days until the Worldwide Day of Giving!

If anyone is located in an area affected by the oil spill or knows someone who is, please drop me a note.

Today’s recipient has a very special treat for you so I hope that you have a way to watch the videos that are posted on here.

Giovanni at work at the Batuta Foundation (Photo: Reed)

While I was in Manizales, I met Giovanni, a 31-year-old talented musician. Although born in the nation’s capital of Bogotá, he originally came to Manizales to play the bass for the city’s orchestra. He continues to perform in Manizales and cities throughout the region in addition to teaching music at the renown Batuta National Institute; a national system of youth orchestras that aims to foster social development through music.

He says he really likes life in Manizales. I got a rather first hand view of his life as I was Giovanni’s neighbor for the 12 days I spent in Manizales. He was living in the area of Guacas where Roberto Gonzalo lives and has his coffee plantation. To go to work, he regularly makes the exhausting 30 minute walk up the mountain to grab a bus that goes down into the city. It’s at least an hour or more to get into the city. I know that because I did that several times while I was there!

Giovanni invited me into his home. It’s simply decorated with the essentials. I can not help but notice the large bass leaning against the wall. I was hoping he would play it for me.

We speak a mixture of Spanish and English. He is very comfortable talking to me and even starts to prepare some dinner. Dressed in a t-shirt, pants, flip-flops, he moves around his kitchen. I asked him what he was cooking. “I am kind of inventing right now.” I tend to do the same thing.

Before I know it he had made some coffee and served me a cup.

This is what was on Giovanni's music stand (Photo:Reed)

He says that he personally likes jazz, symphonies, and chamber music. With a music degree from the Technological University of Pereira, he has a solid appreciation of many music genres. If Pereira sounds familiar to you, it’s probably because that is the airport where I arrived. Giovanni added that it is also where his parents live.

Since I have been here during the election period, I also asked Giovanni who he felt would be the best leader to continue Colombia’s positive development that it has experienced over the past several years. He gave me that slightly uncomfortable look that many people do when you move the conversation to political views. He says that he has the most faith in Antanas Mockus from the Green Party. “But I think Juan Manuel will win,” he says referring to Juan Manuel Santos who leads the poles.

Like Viviana from Day 164, he opted to receive $10 instead of 20,000 pesos and also said he planned to keep the money as a memory of this experience. That is touching that he would want to keep it to remember our meeting.

I asked Giovanni if he would play for me and he obliged. Take a listen to this. It’s beautiful.

Giovanni had some questions for me as well. When I told him that I grew up in Pennsylvania, he told me that he had been there and that he travelled there regularly to perform. His grin told me something was not as it appeared though as he divulged that he was referring to Pensilvania, another city in the state of Caldas. Somehow I think that William Penn had no idea that years later there would be a city in Colombia that would share the name of the US state that was named after the colonial leader.

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Day 168 – Jorge M.

Posted in Something for themself, tagged 20000 pesos, Colombia, economia, economy, elecciones, elections, empleo, jobs, Manizales, politica, politics, trabajo on June 12, 2010| 1 Comment »

Version en Español sigue abajo

We are three days away from the Worldwide Day of Giving! Check here for more details.

Also for those of you in DC, many of us are getting together on Tuesday at The Dupont Hotel. There will be former recipients of the Year of Giving, blog followers, and a special appearance from my Dad! Come out and join us from 6-8pm…the hotel will have some free appetizers and reduced drink menu for Year of Giving followers! Also, I will be organizing some grass-roots relief for those out of work in the Gulf region due to the oil spill.

On Day 168 I didn’t have any meetings scheduled in the morning so I decided to find an internet café in Manizales where I could get caught up on my blog. I found a place in the heart of the city and logged a few hours of work there. It was really cheap too! About 65 cents per hour. And the connection speed was fast!

After I finished, I wandered down to the small plaza and fountain in front of city hall. It was there that I saw Jorge just sitting in the center of the plaza.

An out of work telecom technician by trade, Jorge is actively looking for work. Something I could identify with. The feelings one has and the challenges one faces while being unemployed are not so different in another culture. Being out of work triggers similar emotions and responses regardless of the language that is spoken or the geography of the locale.

Realistically Jorge doesn’t even have that much of an option to consider moving from Manizales to other areas in search of work such as Medellín, Cali, or Bogotá. He was born and raised in Manizales…in the Barrio Caribe area. He is separated now, but has a 14-year-old daughter. So this makes his situation a bit more complicated.

I asked Jorge what he would ideally like to do professionally. “Unfortunately due to the complexity of the current economic situation you got to do what comes your way” he laments. I thought I would see what Jorge’s political views were given the correlation to the economy. “It’s too bad Uribe had to go…I think things here have been pretty good,” he says about Colombia’s current president who managed to change the law in order to serve two terms but was not successful in further change so that he could continue in power.

Despite his general content with Uribe’s time in office, he chose yesterday to vote for a candidate from a different party. He gave Antanas Mockus from the newly formed Green Party his vote. “Juan Manuel is too aggressive militarily and he never asked for forgiveness,” he said about current President Uribe’s Minister of Defense, Juan Manuel Santos, who leads the poles and is a member of the current administration’s U Party. His comment about never asking for forgiveness most likely refers to the “False Positives” scandal where the Colombian military, under Juan Manuel Santos, has admitted to murdering civilians and dressing them up in guerrilla or paramilitary garb so that they could claim to have caught and executed members of these radical cells.

I shifted the conversation away from politics and toward what he planned on doing with the 20,000 pesos. “I’m going to buy some resume paper,” he told me.

I was able to shoot a short video with Jorge where he talks about two dreams that he has: be an ecological volunteer and skydive. This video is in Spanish.

VERSIÓN ESPAÑOL

Estamos solo a tres días del Día Mundial de Dar! (Revise aquí para mas detalles)

Además para aquellos de ustedes en DC, muchos de nosotros nos reuniremos el martes en Hotel Dupont. Ahí estarán algunos recipientes del Año de Dar, seguidores de blogs y una presencia especial de mi padre! Vengan a unirse a nosotros de 6 a 8 PM… el hotel tendrá algunas picaderas gratis y un menú de bebidas reducidas para los seguidores del Año de Dar! Además , estaré organizando alivio de raíces para aquellos que se quedaron sin empleo en la región del golfo debido al derrame del aceite.

En el día de dar numero 168, no tenía reuniones pendientes en la mañana, entonces decidí buscar un Internet-café en Manizales en donde podría ponerme al día con mi blog. Encontré un lugar en el corazón de la ciudad y allí me conecte por un par de horas de trabajo. Además fue bastante barato!, acerca de 65 centavos por hora y la conexión era muy veloz!

Después que terminé, vine a parar en una pequeña plaza y una fuente en el frente de la Alcaldía. Fue allí en donde vi a Jorge, sentado en el centro de la plaza.

Un técnico de telecom fuera de empleo, Jorge esta activamente buscando empleo, algo con lo que yo me podría identificar. Los sentimientos que uno tiene y los desafíos que uno enfrenta mientras se esta sin empleo no son tan diferentes en otras culturas. Permanecer sin empleo desata emociones y respuestas similares a pesar del lenguaje que se hable o la geografía del local.

Manizales (Photo: Reed)

Realísticamente Jorge ni si quiera tiene mucha opción para considerar mudarse de Manizales a otra áreas en busca de un empleo, tales como Medellín, Cali o Bogota. El nació y creció en Manizales…en el área del Barrio del Caribe. El se encuentra separado, pero tiene una hija de 14 años y esto hace que la situación sea un poco más complicada.

Le pregunte a Jorge que es lo que idealmente le gustaría hacer profesionalmente. “Desafortunadamente, debido a la complejidad de la actual situación económica, uno tiene que hacer lo que venga” se lamenta. Yo pensé en ver lo que Jorge opina políticamente debido a la correlación de la economía. “Esta muy mal que Uribe se tuvo que ir..pienso que las cosas estan mucho mejor,” el dijo sobre el Presidente actual de Colombia que se las ingenio para cambiar la ley para así poder servir dos términos pero no obtuvo el éxito en dichos cambios para poder permanecer en el poder.

A pesar de su contentamiento general con el tiempo de Uribe en el mandato, él decidió ayer votar por un candidato de otro partido. Le dió su voto a Antanas Mockus del recientemente formado partido “Verde.” “Juan Manuel es muy agresivo militarmente y nunca pidió perdón” dijo él acerca del Ministro actual de defensa del Presidente Uribe, Juan Manuel Santos, quien lleva la ventaja en los polos y quien es miembro de la administración actual del partido U. Sus comentarios acerca de no haber pedido perdón seguramente se debe al escándalo de los “Falsos Positivos” donde se encontraba la militaría de Colombia bajo Juan Manuel Santos asesinando civiles y de haberlos vestido con atuendos de guerrilla o atuendos de paramilitares para luego poder reclamar haber capturado y ejecutado miembros de células radicales.

Cambié la conversación fuera de la política y hacia lo que el planificaba hacer con los 20.000 pesos que le di, me dijo “Me voy a comprar hojas de vida (papel de currícula).” Tuve la oportunidad de hacer un corto video donde Jorge habla acerca de sus dos sueños, ser un voluntario ecológico y paracaidismo. El video que se encuentra arriba, esta en Español.

Esta traducción fue hecha gratuitamente por Jeannette Pérez.

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Day 167 – Giliante V.

Posted in Something for themself, tagged 20000 pesos, cafe, coffee, Colombia, depresion, depression, elecciones, elections, Manizales, politca, politics on June 11, 2010| 5 Comments »

Versión español sigue abajo.

For those of you who have not seen the video I posted yesterday about my life on the plantation in Colombia, check it out. Although totally different than my life here in DC, life there on the plantation was excellent.

Are you ready for the Worldwide Day of Giving? It’s this Tuesday. It’s your chance to do what I do for one day and then share your story with the world. I want to collect as many experiences from around the world about giving that day and share them here…let’s make something beautiful happen. I need your help though to get as many people involved as possible.

For those of you in DC, I am looking forward to actually meeting up on Tuesday evening with those who are interested. I am currently working out the final details with a local venue (Dupont Circle) and hope to host the event there. In addition to celebrating the Year of Giving and the Worldwide Day of Giving, we will do something to help those who are out of work in the Gulf region due to the oil spill. I hope you can join me!

Sunday the 30^th was election day in Colombia. I was excited to see how the election process took place in another country. Roberto Gonzalo’s sister was working at a polling place. He was voting at another place. It was pretty much like it is here. Voting levels are about the same as here I think, somewhere around 50% of the population voted. As I mentioned yesterday, the election resulted in two candidates going to a run-off election on June 20^th. It’s widely believed that the Juan Manuel Santos will prevail.

While I waited for Roberto Gonzalo to vote, I met Giliante. Giliante works for the El Gran Cafeteiro company and sells coffee on the street. Dressed in somewhat of a space suit, he walks the street with a metallic canister on his back filled with piping hot coffee. He then has a hand control that he dispenses coffee out of for about 25 cents per cup (he makes about six cents per cup). Check out Giliante in action preparing a coffee for me.

The 34-year-old Manizales native has been doing this for nine months. It beats the construction jobs he was doing before. He enjoys the fact that he meets a lot of different people every day.

I asked him what he would do with my 20,000 pesos and he said he would use it to buy some medicine he needed: flouxetina (prozac) and acido valproico (valproic acid). I had never heard of flouxetina and acido valproico so I asked what they were for. The educated and well spoken mobile coffee barista looked at me and said, “They are medicines to help me not get depressed, because when I get depressed I have a problem with cutting myself…with self mutilation.” It was then that I started to notice small scars on his hands and on the right side of his neck. He must have noticed me staring at them and said, “I have hundreds more…most of them on my arms and stomach.” He lifted his shirt up and I was stunned. His chest and stomach were completely covered with crisscrossed lines. It was impossible to look away from the center of his chest where a fresh-cut was present and maybe a half-dozen stitches protruded through the skin.

Giliante (Photo: Reed)

Giliante was so calm and mild-mannered, I could not envision him doing this to himself. He said that when he does not take his medicine, he gets depressed and feels the need to cut himself. The latest cut happened about a week ago he told me.

I asked to take a picture of his chest, but he got very shy and said he would prefer not to. I respected that and we said goodbye.

Roberto Gonzalo then asked me what his answer was to my question about what other people might be able to help him with. I had not asked him that question though. I scanned the crowd, but he had dissolved into the sea of anxious voters.

As we walked back toward our car, I hoped we would see Giliante again so that I could ask him how people could help him. Would you believe that about a half hour later we saw him five blocks from where I originally saw him. I got his attention and asked my question. He didn’t hesitate, “I would like to find a surgeon who would remove some of my scars for me. They are painful reminders.” I vowed to try to find a surgeon who would help him with that and also offered to try to get the medicine that he needs. He was so thankful. If anyone can help Giliante or has suggestions on ways to help him, please let me know.

I couldn’t stop thinking about him for days.

Gilante talks about his job and the elections…

Spanish Version

Para aquellos de ustedes que no han visto el video que publique ayer acerca de mi vida en las fincas en Colombia, échenle un vistazo. Aunque totalmente diferente a mi vida en DC, la vida allí en la finca fue excelente.

¿Estás listo para el Día Mundial del dar? Es este martes. Es tu oportunidad de hacer lo que yo hago por un día y luego compartir su historia con el resto del mundo. Quiero reunir la mayor cantidad de experiencias de todo el mundo de tratar de dar en ese día y compartirlas aquí… hagamos que algo hermoso suceda. Necesito su ayuda para conseguir el mayor número de personas que participan como sea posible.

Para aquellos de ustedes en Washington DC, estoy deseando una reunión en la noche del martes con los que están interesados. Actualmente estoy trabajando en los detalles finales con una sede local (Dupont Circle) y espero poder realizar el evento allí. Además de celebrar el Año de Dar y el Día Mundial del dar, vamos a hacer algo para ayudar a quienes están sin trabajo en la región del Golfo debido al derrame de petróleo. Espero que pueda unirse a mí!

El Domingo 30 fue el día de elección en Colombia. Me emocioné al ver cómo el proceso electoral se llevó a cabo en otro país. La hermana de Roberto Gonzalo estaba trabajando en un centro de votación. Él estaba votando en otro lugar. Fue más o menos como aquí. Los niveles de votación son casi lo mismo que aquí, creo que alrededor del 50% de la población votó. Como dije ayer, la elección dio lugar a dos candidatos a una segunda vuelta el 20 de Junio. En general se creía que Juan Manuel Santos seria el determinante.

Mientras esperaba que Roberto Gonzalo votara, me encontré con Giliante. Giliante trabaja para la compañía El Gran Cafeteiro y vende café en la calle. Vestido el algo como un traje espacial, camina por la calle con un bote metálico en la espalda llena de café humeante. Luego el tiene un control de mano que le dispensa el café por unos 25 centavos por taza.

El nativo de Manizales de 34 años de edad, ha estado haciendo esto durante nueve meses. De acuerdo a el es mejor que los trabajos de construcción que estaba haciendo antes. Le gusta el hecho de que se encuentra con un montón de gente diferente cada día.

Le pregunté qué iba a hacer con mi 20.000 pesos y me dijo que lo utilizaría para comprar unas medicinas que necesitaba: flouxetina (Prozac) y ácido valproico (ácido valproico). Yo nunca había oído hablar de acido valproico y flouxetina así que le pregunté qué eran. El educado y bien hablado barrista móvil de café me miró y dijo: “Son medicamentos que me ayudan a que no me deprima, porque cuando me deprimo tengo un problema con cortarme mí mismo… con la automutilación.” Fue entonces que empecé a notar pequeñas cicatrices en las manos y en el lado derecho del cuello. Él debió de haber notado mi mirada fija en ellos y dijo: “Tengo muchas más… la mayoría de ellos en mis brazos y el estomago.” Él se levantó la camiseta y me quedé atónito. Su pecho y estómago estaban cubiertos completamente con líneas cruzadas. Era imposible apartar la vista del centro de su pecho, donde un nuevo corte estaba presente y tal vez una media docena de puntos sobresalían a través de la piel.

Giliante estaba tan tranquilo y apacible, no podía imaginar que él hacia esto a sí mismo. Dijo que cuando él no toma su medicina, se deprime y siente la necesidad de cortarse. El último corte sucedió hace aproximadamente una semana, me dijo.

Le pedí que me dejara tomar una foto de su pecho, pero él se puso muy tímido y me dijo que preferiría que no. Yo respete eso y nos despedimos.

Roberto Gonzalo me preguntó cual fue su respuesta a mi pregunta sobre lo que otra gente puede ser de ayudarlo a él. No le había hecho esa pregunta. Lo busque entre la multitud, pero él se había disuelto entre la aglomeración de votantes ansiosos.

Mientras caminábamos hacia el coche, yo esperaba ver a Giliante de nuevo para que yo pudiera preguntarle cómo la gente podía ayudarle. ¿Creerían ustedes que alrededor de una media hora más tarde lo vimos cinco cuadras de donde originalmente lo vi. Llame su atención y le pregunté mi pregunta. El no dudó: “Me gustaría encontrar un cirujano que eliminara algunas de las cicatrices en mi cuerpo. Ellos son un recordatorio doloroso. “Juré tratar de encontrar un cirujano que le ayudara con eso y también ofrecí tratar de obtener el medicamento que necesita. Estaba bastante agradecido. Si alguien puede ayudar a Giliante o tiene sugerencias sobre los medios para ayudarlo, por favor hágamelo saber. No podía dejar de pensar en él durante días.

Encima hay dos videos de Giliante grabado en español.

Este blog fue traducido generosamente por Nancy Alvarez en Los Angeles.

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Day 166 – Rubiela B.

Posted in Rent, tagged 20000 pesos, arepas, cafe, coffee, Colombia, comida, employment, finca, food, Manizales, plantation, politica, politics, trabajo on June 10, 2010| 3 Comments »

Version en espanol va ser publicado al final de jueves.

On Friday Roberto and I decided to have a few beers at a local convenience store that has a TV, two billiard tables, and a few tables where locals can sit and relax.

After our second beer some neighborhood kids asked if we wanted to play some street soccer. We agreed.

Not only am I terrible at soccer, I was completely out of breath running back and forth on the gravel road that was our “field.” We are at about 7,000 feet which is about 6,990 feet higher than Washington, DC. That on top of the 24 ounces of beer sloshing around my stomach had me completely incapacitated. Thankfully Roberto played well and scored two or three goals for us while I rambled around wheezing.

The next morning was Saturday and Roberto took me down the mountain to show me his plantation. He grows coffee, bananas, guavas, etc. and has pigs, chickens, turtles, dogs…you name it. Here is a short video in English about life on the plantation.

Later that day he took me to his mother’s house where the entire family met for a long lunch filled with conversation about the following day’s presidential election. Most people in the household were supporting Antanas Mockus, however he ended up coming in second place with less than half of the votes of Juan Manual Santos. Nevertheless, there will be a run-off election between the two candidates on June 20^th.

We spent a few hours relaxing at their house after completely gorging ourselves with homemade soup, rice, beans, chicken, fried plantains and crunchy coconut clusters for dessert.

That evening we stopped at a small food stand in front of a residential building in the Francia neighborhood where Rubiela stood stoking the charcoal fire. There was only one thing on the menu: arepas.

Grilled arepas (photo: Reed)

Arepa is a flat bread made of corn that is very popular in Colombia, Venezuela, and even parts of Panama and Spain’s Canary Islands. Picture a pancake-like bread…or maybe a really thick corn tortilla.

Rubiela takes ground corn and mixes it with water, salt, and butter to make the dough. She then takes the dough, cooks it on the grill, and serves it with a thick tomato and onion stew (guiso) or cheese or both. Every day she makes at least 3 kilos of arepas which yields about 66 pieces of bread.

I found that there are several varieties of arepas and that they are consumed just about any time of day.

Rubiela and her son Cristian (photo: Reed)

Rubiela, a single mom, has been firing up the grill in front of her home for seven years. This is the way she provides for her and her 12-year-old son Victor Manuel. “There was nothing else to do so I started selling arepas,” she tells me referencing the economic struggles in Manizales. She says that it is even hard to find a job as a maid, much less an office related job with benefits. Ideally she would like to work in an office environment where she could help with receiving guests, serving coffee, and other small tasks.

Her laugh is contagious and fills the air with joy. I try not to let it completely hide the fact that I know that she dreams for something different. She is thankful though for her and her son’s health. “There are good days and bad days, but we never go hungry,” she tells me.

Roberto and I left to run some errands and agreed to come back later that evening. When we returned hours later, the sun had set, her son had retired into their home, but Rubiela was still tending the fire and cooking arepas. Her hearty laughter had subsided and she was noticeably tired.

We both got two arepas. I got mine topped with the tomato and onion guiso. Roberto got his with guiso and cheese. Each arepa with guiso was $0.40. If you wanted cheese on top, add another $0.60. Pretty cheap. They were delicious. We ate, laughed, and talked politics…hard to avoid with the election the following day. She was voting for Juan Manuel Santos, the candidate from the incumbent U Party.

Rubiela said she was going to hold on to my money and put it toward the rent that is due on June 4th.

Here is a short video of my time with Rubiela, part of it is in English part in Spanish.

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Day 165 – Alirio B.

Posted in Savings, tagged $10, Colombia, courage, espanol, Manizales, muerte, murder, violence, violencia on June 8, 2010| 4 Comments »

Versión en español sigue abajo.

Today’s story is going to move you. I have been thinking about Alirio since I met him.

On my third day in Manizales, I participated in a very interesting event. The Centro Colombo-Americano in Manizales invited the youth choir from Colegio San Agustín to sing at an inauguration of the recently renovated and rededicated Centro Colombo-Americano’s cultural center and John F. Kennedy library. This event was attended by Manizales Mayor Juan Manuel Llano Uribe, Caldas Governor Mario Aristizábal Muñoz, and US Ambassador to Colombia William Brownfield. The children performed beautifully and Ambassador Brownfield was very gracious in taking time to shake their hands and share a few words with each of them.

Later in the day, I attended a meeting at the Manizales Normal School with the representatives of the 12 schools that the Secretary of Education has selected to concentrate their efforts on for the Manizales Bilingüe project. After the meeting, Roberto and I walked about a block to where his car was parked. A few feet away from the car was Alirio, a 33-year-old parking attendant. The local system is to put a slip of paper on the window for each hour that the car is parked. We had three slips of paper on our window.

Reed talking with Alirio and his son Cristian (Photo: Roberto Ceballos)

In theory, this job is simple. Accurately account for the time that each car is parked there, go and collect payment from the vehicle’s driver when they return, and report the totals to the city’s Department of Transportation. But this job presents unique challenges for Alirio who is paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair. I contemplated asking him about how he became paralyzed and took a risk and politely inquired. I was not prepared for the horrific story that accompanied the explanation.

Alirio’s family had owned three coffee plantations in the 1990s. The paramilitary forces paid him and his family a visit on multiple occasions trying to extort money in exchange for protection from the FARC guerrillas. He always refused.

The threats began to intensify and culminated in a bloody massacre which resulted in the murder of his parents. He was shot twice. A bullet that entered his neck and exited under his arm left him paralyzed. Three years later the harassing continued and his sister and her boyfriend were also murdered in a roadside attack.

Click below to hear Alirio speaking about the loss of his family members as well as what he plans to do with the $10.

I listened to his tragic story. My attention 100% focused on every painful detail.

His life was forever changed. With his son Cristian by his side, he does what he can to get by. His dream is to drive a car again. “I still own a car and would really like to be able to drive again someday. But for that to happen I would need a special adaptation for the car so that the foot pedals can be controlled by hand.” This is out of Alirio’s economic grasp. I have added this to the Lend a Hand section. Perhaps a company who learns about Alirio’s tragic story will graciously modify his car at no cost so that he can once again experience the freedom of being able to drive himself places.

As for the $10, Alirio will add it to his savings. He has worked since an early age and has always been a person that saves so that he can hopefully retire at an early age and provide for his family.

Spanish Version

La historia de hoy te va a conmover. He estado pensando en Alirio desde que lo conocí.

Después de tres días in Manizales participe en un evento muy interesante.
El Centro Colombo-Americano en Manizales invitó el coro juvenil del colegio San Agustín para cantar en la inauguración de la recientemente renovada y re-dedicado Centro Cultural Colombo-Americano y la librería de John f. Kennedy. En este evento participo el alcalde de Manizales Juan Manuel Llano Uribe, el gobernador de Caldas Mario Aristizabal Muñoz y el embajador de E.U en Colombia William Brownfield. Los niños hicieron una actuación muy linda y el Embajador Brownfield fue lo suficientemente grato en tomarse su tiempo para darle la mano a cada uno de estos niños y compartir unas cuantas palabras con cada uno de ellos.(vea el video arriba)

Mas tarde en día participé en una reunión en la Escuela Normal de Manizales con los representantes de las 12 escuelas que el secretariado de educación ha escogido para concentrar sus esfuerzos en el proyecto bilingüe de Manizales. Después de la reunión Roberto y yo caminaos una cuadra en donde estaba su vehículo estacionado. A unos pies de distancia de donde estaba el carro estacionado, se encontraba Alirio, un empleado de parqueo de carros de 33 años. El sistema local es poner un papel en la ventana de cada carro por cada hora que un vehículo está estacionado. Nosotros teníamos 3 papelitos en la ventana de nuestro automóvil.

Parking lot tickets (Photo: Reed)

Teóricamente este trabajo es simple. Un conteo actualizado por el tiempo que cada auto permanece estacionado, ir a colectar el pago del chofer del vehículo cuando regresan a sus carros y reportar el total colectado al departamento de Transportación de la ciudad. Pero este empleo presenta retos únicos para Alirio que está paralizado de la cintura para abajo y confinado a una silla de ruedas.

Contemplé en preguntarle acerca de como él fue paralizado y me cogí el riesgo y le pregunté. Yo no estaba preparado para la horrible historia que acompañaba su explicación. La familia de Alirio eran los dueños de tres siembras de cafetales en los años 1990. Hubo un tiempo en que algunas fuerzas paramilitares trataban de extorsionar dinero de Alirio y su familia para protegerlos de las guerrillas del FARC. Alirio y su familia los rechazaban.

Las amenazas empezaron a intensificarse y culminaron en una sangrienta masacre que resultó en el asesinato a sus padres. A él lo abalearon dos veces, una bala que penetro en su cuello y salió por debajo de su brazo lo dejó paralitico. Tres años más tarde las amenazas continuaron y su hermana y el novio de su hermana también fueron asesinados en un ataque de carretera. Haga un click en el video mostrado arriba de Alirio hablando sobre la perdida de los miembros de su familia y de lo que él piensa hacer con los $10.00 dólares.

Escuché su trágica historia. Concentre mi 100% de atención a cada doloroso detalle. Su vida cambio para siempre. Con su hijo Cristian a su lado el hace lo que puede para seguir adelante. su sueño es poder volver a manejar un auto otra vez. “Aun tengo mi carro y me gustaría muchísimo en realidad poder volver manejarlo algún día, pero para eso necesitaría una adaptación especial en mi carro para que los pedales del carro puedan ser controlados con las manos.” Esto está fuera del alcance económico de Alirio. He incluido esta historia en la sección del “Lend a Hand“( Prestar una mano). Quizás, una compañía que descubra la trágica historia de Alirio podría gratuitamente modificar su auto sin costo alguno para que el pueda una vez más vivir la experiencia de poder movilizarse libremente.

En referente a los $10.00 dólares, Alirio lo va a añadir a sus ahorros. El ha trabajado desde muy temprana edad y siempre ha sido una persona que ahorra para poderse retirar a temprana edad y apoyar a su familia.

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Day 164 – Viviana O.

Posted in Savings, tagged $10, artes, arts, chicos, children, Colombia, English, escuela, espanol, Manizales, schools, Spanish on June 7, 2010| 1 Comment »

View from my open living room on the coffee plantation (Photo: Reed)

My second day in Manizales was wonderful. My main contact for the project I am doing here is Roberto who works for the Secretary of Education for the city of Manizales. Roberto owns a coffee plantation where my accommodations have been graciously arranged for during my stay. Although Cielo was right about it being hilly, it is not ugly here. It is beautiful. And as far as being cold, coming from Washington, DC I don’t find it cold but it does get a little chilly in the evening. If she had told me it was the city of rain, I might have agreed with her. It has rained a lot but then again it is the rainy season.

Colombia has taken on a very aggressive mission to become a bilingual country by 2019. To do this, every state, or department as they call them, and city has made action plans for how to reach this goal. One of the unique ways that this can be achieved is by leveraging the interest that students have in the arts to assist in language acquisition. Part of my involvement here is to work with an amazing non-profit organization focused on the arts, the Rafael Pombo Foundation. This is an excellent organization with a 25 year history of giving the community a place to explore the finer arts. Their Bilingual Performing Arts School can play an integral part in the efforts to improve the English proficiency in Manizales and even accelerate language acquisition rates.

On Thursday I visited the San Agustín Elementary School, a primary school that serves a severely impoverished area of the city. We worked with a wonderful group of students who were chosen to sing at a ceremony the following day for the governor, the mayor, and the US ambassador. Roberto and I, along with the school’s music teacher, Camilo, rehearsed two English songs with them.

Rain drops drip inside the Pombo Foundation soaking the 75-year-old floors (Photo: Reed)

Later that afternoon I stopped by the Rafael Pombo Foundation. I met the small staff and took a tour of the facility. The building is an impressive old European style mansion that is owned by the city of Manizales. Unfortunately, the city has completely neglected the upkeep of this historic landmark. From chairs that need reupholstered to holes in the roof that allow water to flood the building to overgrown landscaping. The facility is in dire needs of some funding so that it can make the needed repairs and continue to be a cultural epicenter in the city for the arts.

While I was there I met Viviana, the coordinator for the foundation. Viviana is 27 and lives in the Belen area of Manizales. With a degree in art education, she fits right in at the Pombo Foundation. In addition to her role as a coordinator, she also teaches some of the art classes. Her interest is in abstract painting and she credits local artist Margoth Márquez as an inspiration and mentor.

When she is not helping to run the Pombo Foundation, she is running her own foundation, Manizales Florece, an environmental group focused on issues in the Caldas state.

Viviana opted to receive ten dollars instead of 20,000 pesos and plans to keep it as a rememberence of our meeting and the Year of Giving project. Here is a short video in Spanish of her talking about her impression of the Year of Giving.

You will certainly hear more in the next two weeks about the Rafael Pombo Foundation, the Manizales Bilingüe Project, and the children of the San Agustín school.

SPANISH VERSION

Mi día segundo en Manizales fue maravilloso. El contacto mayor para el proyecto que estoy haciendo es Roberto, quien trabaja para la Secretaria de Educación para la Cuidad de Manizales. Roberto también es el dueño de una finca de cafe donde mi alojamiento se han organizado durante mi estancia.

Aunque Cielo fue correcta que el área es falduda, no esta feo aquí. Llegando de Washington D.C., el frío no me molesta pero los noches siento algo fresco. Si mi ha dicho que Manizales fue una ciudad de lluvias, de acuerdo. Ha llovido mucho así es el tiempo de las lluvias.

Colombia ha tomado una misión muy agresiva que hacer un país bilingüe por 2019. A hacerlo, cualquier estado – digo departamentos como se llaman – y ciudad han hecho planes como hacer este meta.

Una de las maneras que pueden hacerlo es aprovechando el interés de que los alumnos tienen en las artes para ayudar en la adquisición del lenguaje. Parte de mi participación aquí es trabajar con un organización sorprendente sin fines de lucro con un foco de las artes se llaman Fundación Rafael Pombo. Es un organización excelente con una historia de 25 anos dando a la comunidad un lugar para explorar las artes fines. Su Performing Arts School bilingüe puede hacer un parte integral en sus deseos a aprovechar fluencia en Ingles en Manizales aun acelerar sus niveles de adquisición.

Students of Colegio San Agustin (Photo: Reed)

Jueves pasado fui a visitar La Escuela Primaria San Agustín que sirve los gravemente pobres de la ciudad. Trabajemos con un grupo de alumnos escogidos a cantar al una ceremonia el día siguiente para el gobernador, el alcalde y el embajador del EEUU. Yo y Roberto con el profesor de música, Camilo, ensayemos dos cantos de Ingles con los alumnos.

Más tarde esa tarde dejé por la Fundación de Rafael Pombo. Me reuní con la reducida cantidad de personal y tuvo un recorrido por las instalaciones. El edificio es una antigua mansión de estilo Europeo e impresionante que es propiedad de la ciudad de Manizales. Por desgracia, la ciudad completamente ha descuidado el mantenimiento de este sitio histórico. Desde sillas que necesitan reparación hasta agujeros en el techo que permiten agua inundar y un jardín descuidado. La facilidad es en terribles necesidades de algunos fondos para que pueda hacer las reparaciones necesarias y seguirá siendo un epicentro cultural en la ciudad de las artes.

Mientras estuve allí conocí a Viviana, la Coordinadora de la Fundación. Viviana tiene 27 anos y vive en el área de Belén de Manizales. Con una licenciatura en educación de arte, ella encaja justo en la Fundación de Pombo. Además de su papel como coordinadora, ella también enseña algunas de las clases de arte. Su interés está en la pintura abstracta y ella menciona la artista local Margoth Márquez como una inspiración y mentor.

Cuando ella no está ayudando a realizar la Fundación Pombo, ella está ejecutando su propia Fundación, Manizales Florece ~ un grupo ambiental centrado en cuestiones en el estado de Caldas. Decidí Viviana a recibir diez dólares en lugar de veinte mil pesos y tiene planes a guardarlo como una memoria de conocernos y el proyecto Un Ano De Dar. Arriba tiene un video corto de ella dando su impresión del Un Ano de Dar.

Seguramente vas a escuchar más en los próximos dos semanas sobre la Fundación Rafael Pombo, el proyecto Manizales Bilingüe, y los chicos del colegio San Agustín.

Esta entrada del blog se tradujo amablemente por Penny Pérez.

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Day 163 – Cielo R.

Posted in Unknown, tagged $10, 20000 pesos, Armenia, Colombia, espanol, Manizales, Spanish, travel, viajar on June 4, 2010| 2 Comments »

Versión en español sigue abajo.

Last Wednesday I made the journey from Washington, DC to Manizales, Colombia. I didn’t sleep the night before. I had a lot to do to get ready for my trip and I had to leave for the airport at 3:45am, so it wasn’t really worth going to sleep. Besides, I would have all day to sleep on the plane right?

On the leg from Washington to Panama I got a window seat and the two seats next to me were empty. It was odd, since the flight was fairly full.

I arrived in Panama and had a few hours until my connection to Pereira, Colombia. I have been through Panama before, so the airport was familiar to me and I walked around browsing some of the shops. I picked up a few last-minute gifts to give to people along the way.

Cielo (Photo: Reed)

I boarded the plane around 11:30am. Much to my surprise, my seat was in business class! That was nice. I was hoping to give my $10 to someone on the plane, but there was nobody seated next to me. There was a woman in front of me whose cellular phone must have rung or made noises a dozen times before take-off and there was a woman sitting quietly across the aisle from me. I thought I would ask her to participate, although I have to tell you that I was nervous about it. I don’t know why, but giving my $10 away on the plane seemed very awkward! On the positive side, the people can not go anywhere so I have a captured subject for the length of the flight. On the flip side, if things go bad or if it is awkward I will be a captured subject and be forced to endure the awkwardness for the remainder of the flight.

The cabin was completely silent after take-off. I waited until the seatbelt sign was removed and people started to move around the cabin. Right as I was going to ask her they served us food. I took the opportunity to tell her that I was doing a project and hoped that she would consider participating after she finished her meal.

Our trays were cleared and I invited Cielo to become my 163^rd recipient. She agreed with a sincere but reserved smile and we began to talk. She was on her way back from Costa Rica where she had been visiting her sister who just had her third child.

Cielo lives in the town of Armenia, the capital of the Colombian department (like our states) of Quindío. Armenia is a mid-size city of about 370,000 that is situated between Colombia’s three largest cities: Bogotá, Medellín and Cali.

Both Armenia and Manizales are part of the heart of the coffee region in Colombia. It’s hard to talk about these areas without talking about how coffee and the coffee industry has shaped this region physically, socially, and economically.

Scheduled to graduate in June, Cielo has spent the last seven years studying biology. Although she had a job lined up to start after she graduates, she recently found out that she lost this opportunity as a result of her trip to Costa Rica.

Cielo says she is not sure what she is going to do with the 20,000 pesos yet…but agrees to let us know when she decides. I have a feeling that it might get used in a giving way, given her story about helping the woman at the airport (see the video) and lessons about giving that she said she learned in the Girl Scouts as a young girl.

The following video is in Spanish. Cielo shares a little bit about her thoughts on Manizales. She is not a big fan…calling it the city of the three F’s: Fria (cold), Feia (Ugly), and Falduda (steep/hilly). She also talks about an experience earlier that day helping a stranger out in the airport.

Our flight landed and we said goodbye to one another at the customs declaration area. I found my ride to Manizales and embarked on a two-hour journey through the mountainous coffee region and finally arrived at the Finca (Farm) Loma Linda where I would be staying while in Manizales. It is atop a very steep mountain with a stunning view of the town.

Let the adventure begin!

SPANISH VERSION

El miércoles pasado hice el viaje desde Washington, DC a Manizales, Colombia. No dormí la noche anterior. Tenía mucho que hacer para prepararme para mi viaje y tenía que irme para el aeropuerto a las 3:45 de la mañana, así que no valía la pena dormir. Además, tendría todo el día para dormir en el avión, correcto?

En el tramo de Washington a Panamá me tocó un asiento de ventana y los dos asientos a mi lado estaban vacíos. Algo extraño, ya que el vuelo estaba casi lleno.

Llegué a Panamá y tenía un par de horas antes de mi conexión a Pereira, Colombia. Había pasado por Panamá antes, por lo que el aeropuerto era familiar, así que camine alrededor viendo las tiendas. Cogí unos cuantos regalos de última hora para dar a la gente en el camino.

Abordé el avión alrededor de las 11:30 de la mañana. Para mi sorpresa, mi asiento estaba en clase de negocios! Eso estuvo bien. Tenía la esperanza de dar mis $10 a alguien en el avión, pero no había nadie sentado a mi lado. Había una mujer delante de mí, cuyo celular debe haber sonado o hecho ruidos más de una docena de veces antes de despegar y había una mujer sentada en silencio del otro lado del pasillo frente a mí. Pensé en pedirle a ella que participara, aunque tengo que admitir que estaba nervioso por ello. No sé por qué, pero dar mis $10 en el avión parecía muy incómodo! En el lado positivo, la gente no puede ir a ningún lado así podría capturar un tema por la duración del vuelo. Por otro lado, si las cosas salen mal o si es difícil seré un tema capturado y estaré obligado a soportar la incomodidad para el resto del vuelo.

La cabina estaba completamente en silencio después del despegue. Esperé hasta que la señal del cinturón de seguridad fue retirada y la gente comenzó a moverse alrededor de la cabina. Justo cuando iba a preguntarle que participara nos sirvieron la comida. Aproveché la oportunidad para decirle que yo estaba haciendo un proyecto y esperaba que ella considerara participar después de que terminara su comida.

Nuestras bandejas fueron retiradas e invité a Cielo a convertirse en mi beneficiario numero 163. Ella acepto con una sonrisa sincera, pero reservada y empezamos a hablar. Ella estaba en su camino de regreso desde Costa Rica donde había estado visitando a su hermana que acaba de tener su tercer hijo.

Cielo vive en la ciudad de Armenia, la capital del departamento colombiano (como nuestros estados) de Quindío. Armenia es una ciudad de tamaño medio de alrededor de 370.000 habitantes, localizada entre las tres ciudades más grandes de Colombia: Bogotá, Medellín y Cali.

Tanto Armenia y Manizales forman parte del corazón de la región cafetalera de Colombia. Es difícil hablar de estas áreas sin hablar de cómo el café y la industria del café han dado forma a esta región física, social y económicamente.

Programado para graduarse en Junio, Cielo ha pasado los últimos siete años estudiando biología. A pesar de que tenía un trabajo en línea para comenzar después de que se graduara, recientemente se enteró de que había perdido esta oportunidad como resultado de su viaje a Costa Rica.

Cielo dice que no está segura de lo que se va a hacer con los 20.000 pesos… pero está de acuerdo a hacernos saber cuando ella lo decida. Tengo la sensación de que podrán ser utilizados en un forma caritativa, teniendo en cuenta su historia sobre cómo ayudo a una mujer en el aeropuerto (ver el video) y lecciones sobre lo que aprendió en las Girl Scouts cuando niña.

El siguiente video es en español. Cielo comparte un poco sobre sus pensamientos de Manizales. No es una gran fan… dice que es la ciudad de las tres “F: Fría, Fea, y Falduda (cerrado/montañosa). Ella también habla sobre una experiencia ese mismo día ayudando a un extraño en el aeropuerto.

Nuestro avión aterrizó y nos despedimos en la zona de declaración de aduanas. Encontré mi transporte a Manizales y me embarque en un viaje de dos horas a través de la región montañosa cafetalera y finalmente llegue a la Finca de Loma Linda, donde me voy a quedar mientras en Manizales. Es la cima de una montaña muy empinada con una impresionante vista de la ciudad.

Que empiece la aventura!

Esta entrada del blog se tradujo amablemente por Nancy Alvarez

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Day 158 – Anthony R.

Posted in Something for themself, tagged $10, baseball, DC, Manizales, navy yard, washington on May 27, 2010| 3 Comments »

Manizales has been great…despite the almost constant drizzle and heavy fog. This morning I visited one of the schools that the group I am consulting for is working with. The kids were amazing. It was sad, when I left they all gave me a massive group hug. I am actually going to see them tomorrow too…but they don’t know that! Check out this video of us working with some of the children who are in a bilingual choir in one of Manizales public schools.

I am still writing up blog entries from last week!

Photo: Reed

So I told you in the previous blog posting about my trips to see the Mets vs. Nationals games last week. After the game I was sifting through the crowds a the subway station platform trying to position myself so that I would make the next train. I walked by Anthony who was leaning against a short wall that overlooked the lower level of the station where another train line runs. As I walked by he leaned his head back as if to rest it against the wall, but there was not wall behind his head so his head went back further than he expected and his sunglasses fell from their resting position on top of his baseball hat and fell 20 feet onto the tracks below.

“Did you just lose something,” I asked him as I saw him quickly look over the side of the wall. Shaking his head back and forth he smiled and said, “Yeah…my sunglasses.” We both peered over the wall to see if we could see them but they were gone.

“They were cheap. I paid like $7 for them.” He shrugged it off and I continued my way toward the other end of the station.

I wasn’t ten feet away when I realized he should be my $10 recipient for the day! I rushed back to see if he was still there. He was.

Anthony is a 40-year-old Caddie Master at a prestigious local country club. He was born and raised in Maryland. After a few minutes I realized that he was a Met’s fan as well! Let’s go Mets! We reminisced a little bit about the days of the 1986 Mets. “People even used to say that I looked like Dr. K when I was younger,” he said referring to Dwight Gooden, the former star pitcher for New York.

It turns out that Anthony he himself is a former professional baseball player with the Texas Rangers’ farm team. He spent two years with them from 1992-1994. He also played on the USA national team and won a bronze medal in 1996.

Below there is a clip of us talking about Anthony’s attitude toward life and his experience with the Texas Rangers. You might catch a glimpse of his father directly behind Anthony if you look close. They had went to the game together. I still like to go to games with my dad. In fact, he and I went to see a game the last year that Shea Stadium was being used and then the first year of their new stadium, Citi Field.

Anthony is a really nice guy. I love that I met him and it is sad to think that if I had not been doing this project, I might not have stopped and spoken with him. With every person I meet through the Year of Giving, my life becomes much richer. An interesting irony given the negative cash flow of my current situation.

Oh, I almost forgot. You guessed it. Anthony is going to buy some new sun glasses with the $10 I gave him.

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Day 157 – Sharon L.

Posted in Transportation, tagged $10, baseball, Colombia, DC, Manizales, news, travel, washington on May 26, 2010| 8 Comments »

View nearby where I am staying in Manizales, Colombia (Photo: Reed)

I have arrived safely here in Manizales, Colombia. I am a little behind with my posting but that is somewhat acceptable if you consider what my internet set-up might be in such a beautiful location like this.

By the way, I have been thinking that it would be a good idea to document the giving experiences from Colombia in both Spanish and English. For one reason, if a recipient doesn’t read English very well they won’t be able to read their own blog posting which just seems wrong. Given my schedule, it would be great to have a native speaker “guest translate” for each of the days that I am here. If you are interested, let me know.

Last week the New York Mets baseball team was in town to take on the Washington Nationals. I grew up a huge Mets fan. Living in Central PA you would think that I would be a Philadelphia Phillies or Pittsburgh Pirates fan. The only explanation that I can give is that I started to follow them because we got WWOR Channel 9 from Secaucus, NJ which carried almost all of the Mets games at the time. It certainly wasn’t because of the team’s record back then. I started following them in the early 1980s when they were not a pretty sight. They got better though and went on to win the 1986 World Series. My father took me to game 5 of the National League play-offs that year against the Houston Astros. It’s one of my fondest childhood memories.

Anyway, I made it to two Mets games last week. My friend Chris and I were leaving the game and getting on the Metro when I saw a young guy playing the violin. I offered him the $10 but he declined when he learned that I would write about the encounter on the blog.

I scanned the scene for another recipient. It was almost as if a river current was carrying everyone to the Metro. In the middle of this swift moving mob was a woman holding her own against the current while she handed out the Express newspaper; a free paper published by the Washington Post that is mostly distributed to commuters. I have given several times to the vendors of Street Sense, but I have never given to anyone from the Express organization. So I did.

Sharon hands a Metro rider the Express (Photo: Reed)

Sharon was busy trying to capture the attention of the mostly disinterested passersby. She has handed out the Express for three years she tells me. “On a good day I hand out about 1,500 papers.” I remember responding to her with something like, “Wow, you sell a lot of papers!” I knew the paper was free but I just misspoke. She quipped back, “Honey, if I was selling these things I’d be a millionaire by now!”

She went on to tell me that “the people are the best part of the job!” Although that evening was almost perfect, Sharon says that she dreads the hottest and coldest days of the year. “That’s the worst part about this job: the weather.”

Originally from West Virginia, the 49-year-old now calls Washington, DC her home. She certainly makes a lot of us feel at home here when she give’s us our paper and wishes us a nice day. She told me that she was going to use the $10 to help pay for her transportation to and from work. I didn’t want to keep her from her job much more so I thanked her (and she thanked me right back) and said “goodnight.”

I am looking forward to writing more about Manizales this week. It’s a beautiful tranquil space. This should be a very busy and exciting 10 days!

Check out this short clip of Sharon in action!

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	Reed Sandridge on Day 19 – John S.
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Year of Giving

365 stories of personal giving

Posts Tagged ‘Manizales’

Day 174 – Roey K.

Day 173 – Adriana and Augusto H.

Day 172 – Sandra T.

Day 171 – Myriam G.

Day 170 – Juan L.

Day 169 – Giovanni B.

Day 168 – Jorge M.

Day 167 – Giliante V.

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Day 165 – Alirio B.

Day 164 – Viviana O.

Day 163 – Cielo R.

Day 158 – Anthony R.

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