March Madness

There have been quite a few things going on as of late here in my world here in El Salvador. First things first, we have been continously working on this new program in El Salvador called the Regional Leader system. Its a new way to bring more organized and ground level support to the Peace Corps volunteers, both technical as well as peer support from those who have more experience in the region. The other advantages are those in which we can take the load of the program bosses in many cases since we are already in the region and on the ground. There are six of us working around the country and we are trying to start regional meetings, meet with the local NGOs around, visit personally the local volunteer sites, and create the Regional Handbook for those who are soon to swear in. This is the program that we will be trying to get set up this year, so that when the new group of Regional Leaders starts this coming year, they can hit the ground running.


Closer to home, my community has been busy :) They had a fundraising event a few weeks ago here in the Community House that we renovated. The youth organized the event pro-Health Committee and did clown stuff and dramas and stuff like that. We actually had a packed house. We sold all types of food outside, and my stand outside was hotdogs, hahahaha.

People outside buying food

Me and my chef had while stuff is going on inside, haha.

The leader of the group doing his act.

Clown 1

Clowns 2/3

The other projects here are the stoves that we are still ALMOST done with, because the people who are trained to build them say they are too busy to do so, so I have to keep bringing in the builder from across the country, and now he says he sick. So that has made it harder and harder. There are 2 left in my community and 6 in the community where the new volunteers are. Also check out the pictures of the new bathrooms that we are finishing here in the community, we just have a few things to finish with them.

Preparing the base

Playing cards on the new table before building the stove on it

No more cards, very sad, but there is the final product.

Another before

Another after.

Starting to dig the latrines... a 4.5 meter double hole

prepping the walls

halfway there!

both projects I've done at that spot in the same picture, the announcement system and the bathrooms

Almost done!

The murals in the Community House are coming along. The local artist has finished outside and one of the murals inside, and is starting the second one. We are STILL short a few sponsors for murals, so if anyone thinks they want to sponsor one, feel free to CONTACT me as usual (or donate on the sidebar). We also have a series of art classes going on at the moment with the local artist as well. He is giving classes in the morning and evening, twice a week, for 3 months in the Community House. This project is sponsored by a Kids to Kids grant. We shall see how that turns out as well.

Well since we have finished outside, we have started inside the community house.

A little closer.

Close up.... there are a few things left to paint. The rope line where the rings are hanging. Aaron's family on the right and the sales people on the left.

Lets see, also there was a birthday here last week and since we didn't have cake, I made a pound cake that actually didn't turn out too shabby. I was surprised, haha.

Improvised POUND CAKE, yummy. I didn't have sour cream, but oh well.

Also, these past few days, the new volunteers in the municipality, visited my community. We were going to go on the yearly trip to Esquipulas, Guatemala with my community, but we couldn't at the last minute, there was some trouble with new Peace Corps protocol, yadda yadda yadda. So we hung out and we cut some oranges and bananas and stuff with Don Raul. It was a good time.


We had to carry that about a mile and a half by the way.

This was me welcoming Matt to my orange community hahahaha.

Oh yeah, I also took the GRE last month. It wasn't that great of an experience here. It was paper based, and they setting was in San Salvador in an English school where the moderator cranked up the AC to 5 below and then kept leaving the room and leaving the door open so that a billion running screaming kids could come watch and chill etc etc. Not to mention the forgot some protocols that were normally obvious, like the short break between sections. ANYWAYS, still havent got the results back, but not expecting much.

Anyways, gotta run. Hope all are enjoying/not enjoying Lent.

A Lenten Reflection

Give up complaining——focus on gratitude.
Give up pessimism——become an optimist.
Give up harsh judgments——think kindly thoughts.
Give up worry——trust Divine Providence.
Give up discouragement——be full of hope.
Give up bitterness——turn to forgiveness.
Give up hatred——return good for evil.
Give up negativism——be positive.
Give up anger——be more patient.
Give up pettiness——become mature.
Give up gloom——enjoy the beauty that is all around you.
Give up jealousy——pray for trust.
Give up gossiping——control your tongue.
Give up sin——turn to virtue.
Give up giving up——hang in there!

Back in Action

Ok, so lets get started. Things have gotten back to normal pretty quick. Most important things first, I got back in time to have our second annual New Years Card Tournament.... a game they call "chucho" (dog), but its somewhat like what we know as spades, but without the trump suit. The points work in a way that every group of 3 face cards is a point, and the ace is worth a full point by itself. Anyways, there are some pics below of that awesomeness as well as a video, although my team got put out in the first round, I had fun. The prize for the winning team was a makeshift gift card to the other neighbors store.

Our Double Elimination bracket....I'm team 3, haha.

My partner focused on the game

The Final Table



A quick view of the competitors

Also, we had the community development association (ADESCO) Christmas Dinner, and it went well and there are a few pics of that too. We had beef, rice, salad, coke, and music..... well, after they gave their yearly report. It was a good time.

Christmas Dinner

Look at all those tortillas!!



Oh yeah, and before I forget, when I got back a month later, they were still clearing the roads up the mountain from the last bit of rains that came in November. The main roads are now clear, but the rural roads are still being worked on. The problem now though is that trying to clear the roads creates so much dust now that we are in the dry season, that it becomes a health hazard. So they have decided to wait and finish just before the rains start up again in May.

Before I start in the project that I am currently working on, I just want to thank those benevolent souls that responded in donating at the end of the year. I was able to attend the New Year's tournament and present each soccer team that had petitioned me a Mikasa soccer ball and net. It wasn't much, but it was something. They took some pictures, but I haven't gotten my hands on them yet, oops.


Many of you remember me talking about the bathrooms that we were building in the medical clinic here in the main town ("Picture Time", October 19, 2009). Well, all of the building process has been done for 2 months, yet we still don't have use of them. We have been waiting on the government water agency to do their part, but they are really slow. We still have a few options, and I am investigating some ways to expedite the process. We'll see.


Right now, I am deep into the Mural and Community Map project. We got some grants to support a local artist who has just graduated from high school do a series of art classes for the kids, to build a wall near the entrance of the community with a huge map on it, and to paint murals on the face, and inside of the Community House that we just renovated (you might remember that project too, from the post previously mentioned above). We just finished the map, and now I am trying to find the company that sells those metal park benches to see if we can clean up around the map and put a bench on either side. Also, we are seeing if we can get some locals to put a small roof on the map with some leftover metal that we have. The biggest hole that we have right now is labor costs for each mural. There are 8 squares inside of the Community House that we have prepared (about 5ft x 5ft each square), and each one will cost us $75 to paint. The young artist is doing us a huge favor in these prices, because as you all know, even in developing countries, these kinds of things go at a much higher rate. We have the actual paint, but now we are looking for sponsors for each mural. Right now, we have 3 sponsors and NEED 5 MORE brave souls :) I hope that we can find support in this, one of my last big projects. The advantage of this project is two fold. In that, I used the Community House renovation project as a teaching ground for the ADESCO of how manage funds and projects, and now they are in charge of everything, in colaboration with me, and then after each step we revise all expenditures and procedures. So far, so good. The second part is that the municipality has our community in mind to start developing Eco-Tourism, and so these are ways to make everything more attractive and people proud of their community. So if anyone is interested, we are looking for 5 sponsors!!! Please contact me at one of my email addresses if you are interested, or just donate at the paypal icon on the right with a note as to its destination. Thanks to all involved!!!


The front of the Community House (which actually still isn't finished.. the letters over the door and the white space to the right can be noted)

He's got some talent :)
The first stages in drawing the map

Side view of the almost finished product

Almost
Finished Product

The top corners are for the logos of the ADESCO and that of the institution that donated the paint. You can imagine it with a little rooflife tophat and a bench on either side, thats the goal.

Finally, phase two of that announcement system project that we had going on in the center of the community will begin (Picture Time, October 19, 2009). Some families from the Western US have donated specifically to build two latrines beside the local hermittage. This is the center point of the community where daily events go on, yet they still dont' have bathrooms. It is always necessary to look for the nearest neighbor's house down the street, and as well all know, that can be frustrating haha. We must keep in mind that the reconstruction after the earthquakes in 2001 have been slow here, and bit by bit the communities rebuild themselves, and now its time to help with public bathrooms. As far a manual labor goes, I am going to see if I can work out a deal with our scholarship students to work a few days for their service hours that we ask of them :)

Speaking of scholarship students, not to bore, people, but we had the honor of hosting some of our supporters of the San Pedro Nonualco Scholarship Committee from Louisiana this past weekend. They seemed to have a good time and even had a surprise waiting for them (and me) in the Mass on Saturday night. Apparently, someone had told Padre Tino that they were here visiting, so before ending the Mass, he was like, "William, William, where is William? Come up here" Of course I was sitting in the back, and so I had to go all the way up front, and then call them up front and say a few words about them and where they are from, and then the overfilled church gave them a huge round of applause for their work. They have helped the scholarship committee with 50 high school and now with what will be 8 university students this year. Good stuff. Sadly, I don't have pictures of that either, Dr. T if you are reading this, tell Mark that he will have to send me some pics, or if you have any send them to me and I'll post them.

Me and the other new volunteers hanging out with the visitors at Rolandos house

Rolando and Dr. T negotiating with the volcanoes behind watching

The university scholars with Dr. T on a hike to the top of the little volcano

All of the current scholarship students

The stove project is reaching its closing stages, and I am still in the searching stage for the big water project. And with that.... I close the project updates.

For those interested in helping out with part, or in some way, REMEMBER 5 SPONSORS, of course feel free to email me at rhettbwilliams@yahoo.com, which also appears in the profile above, or donate at the DONATE tab to the right with a description of where you would like to direct the donation, if you so desire. I'm usually pretty good about sending out pictures and info to the donors directly, or posting it here for everyone to see. Or, if you just have any great ideas, feel free to comment here or send it to me in email. The majority of comments people send straight to my email for some reason, but whatever floats your boat.

My new job as Regional Leader is also beginning to become more and more involved, I've been able to travel to one island here in La Paz, where they are asking Peace Corps for a volunteer, and I got to visit another island in Usulutan, with a spectacular bay view of three volcanos. I will probably have to move in February, which Im not too excited about, but I think it will all work out in the end. I know that its going to be a hassle with people to not try and overcharge me rent as a gringo, but oh well, we'll see how it goes.

I am taking the GRE the beginning of February as well so that will be fun, I have started looking over some vocab words, hahaha. I am also contemplating the FSO Test in June because its free, but that is still to be seen.

So, thats my life up until now, nothing too crazy :)

Here comes G.K.

"Being educated means reading the newspapers. Being properly educated means not believing the newspapers after you have read them."

G.K. Chesterton

Back in "The Savior"

So, just to let those sending me hate mail about not posting, hahahahaha much love, not too worry too much, its just that I have just returned to El Salvador (affectionately known as "the savior" in PC), and am getting everything together for the next post.....as well as getting my life in order.

There are lots of exciting things to show pics and tell about :) It should be up in the next few days.

Cuidense,

Rhett