Vickey's blog

Dear Friends,

Emma Condori, former scholarship student, English teacher at Colegio Emmanuel, English program coordinator,  volunteer coordinator of volunteers in Bolivia, editorial board member of QUIP's Quaker Youth Book Project, FWCC-trained translator, and willing office assistant to Bernabe (I'm quite likely leaving something out here - did we mention she's also served on BQE-Bo's scholarship committee?), has been awarded a full 3-year international student scholarship to Earlham School of Religion's Masters of Divinity program.

Internado staff and students are working their new vegetable garden - on land loaned by a local supporter who also volunteers tutoring - so they can grow more of their own food and help keep costs down. (Food prices are rising rapidly in Bolivian due to widespread inflation.)

I cannot believe that I am in America; it is like in a dream and in the films. I believe that God is amazing,
friendly - and U.S. Friends are, too. In the last AVP workshop, I chose Realized Ruben as my positive adjective
name. (“Realizar” in Spanish means to fulfill or carry out/bring into being.) I feel realized thanks to God and thanks to YOU.
I think Americans...

Click here to read the full article and several more.

BQEF Board member Barbara Flynn is leading a Quaker community service trip to Bolivia June 13-27, 2009.
While not a BQEF-sponsored activity, the trip sounds so good we wanted to share it with you. Information
below is taken from Barbara's Treasures of the Andes website:

Explore the Magic of the Bolivian Andes: home of a culture older than the Incas with legendary historical sites (and over 30,000 Quakers). Spectacular vistas and towering peaks, lush valleys and the sacred Lake Titiikaka.  Center of a democratic grassroots social revolution ending 5 centuries of "apartheid".

The Healthy Students Proposal

From Our Scholarship Students...
Loida Cutipa, March 28: May you have a lovely day and may God bless your lives and your work that you carry out day today…My studies this semester cost $340 (US) and I receive $250 (US) from the scholarship …I work cleaning the institution in order to complete my payment and my expenses for food and other expenses for studying.

This has been an extraordinary month for the Internado.  School started in February with the Internado in the same location as last year, and enrollment up from eleven to eighteen.  A good beginning, indeed, in spite of the site being temporary.  A building was located that promised better control of comings and goings and more solid structure, but it seemed a distant prospect.  Within just three weeks, however, all the arrangements have been made and the Internado will move (piece by piece) this weekend, March 30-31.  WOW !!  There is now a permanent place for the young students (mostly Quakers) who otherwise would have to walk one to two hours each way to attend middle school or high school.

"Dinner with Emma" ~ by Newton Garver
Emma Condori, now 28, visited the USA from mid-December 2005 through mid-February, the final month being a most valuable internship at Westtown School. Prior to her visit, she told Jens Braun and me during our 2005 trip to Bolivia that she would like to meet with us, so we took her to an Israeli restaurant in La Paz for supper. It was an unforgettable experience.

Click here to continue reading the pdf file.