Volunteer Reflections: 3 lessons (of many) from my time with Starfish

Today's post comes from Martin, our very first volunteer in Ecuador!

--

Lesson 1: There is a universal language spoken through hugs, smiles, and laughter.

My favorite day with the Starfish Scholars was on our trip to the park. That day was great, except for one small thing. Up to that point I had always worn a polo or a t-shirt. That day was the first time I wore a cut-off shirt since we were suppose to be playing soccer. For some reason, the girls were laughing at me. At first I thought they were giggling because they were happy to see me. I asked why they were laughing and Ana responds by lifting my arm. Maria pointed to my armpit hair and broke out laughing. I immediately pulled down my arm. I felt embarrassed for a moment and they didn't care. They laughed and laughed and all I could do is laugh with them.

Lesson 2: The people you serve are always going to do more for you than you can do for them.

I can't believe how much the families cared about me. I was served food, asked if I needed anything, served more food, and even was taken on a family trip to the river. They threw me a party with tons of food and got me my favorite cake. I always felt that people were doing things for me, giving things to me, and wishing the best for me. It was always hard to go since they made me feel so at home. The hospitality and friendliness of the Starfish families are unparalleled, aside from my own family--and they kind of have to love and feed me. 

Lesson 3: Community can't be taught, it must be built with time, trust, and consistency.

If there is one thing I learned is that trust is something given to those you love. They loved me from the beginning and are so trusting that it was a little unsettling at first. Now I think about how beautiful that was. The reason they trusted me was because the people before me, Beth and Jenn, had already put in the time to develop, maintain, and improve upon their relationships with not just the families of the scholars, but the families in the communities where they lived as well. Beth and Jenn started something beautiful, a program for the kids that was both good and the right thing to do. They didn't make it easy, though. It had a status and becoming a scholar is something you earn through good grades and attendance at Starfish meetings, tutoring, and events. The scholars host events and activities, too. They even have leadership positions. All things they can take pride in and should as they deserve the opportunities the Starfish Foundation provides. They are the future of their communities and I am hopeful for the future.

So far in 2015...

2015 is already off to a great start.  As we begin the new calendar year, we are also gearing up for the end of this school year here in Guayaquil.  That hasn't stopped us from adding a few new things to our schedule though!

In January, we started off the year re-energizing a partnership with DIGS, a group based in Guasmo Sur that helps young people with develop creativity and teamwork skills.  This year we're taking our partnership one step further.  Starfish has three teams that will compete in the March tournament hosted by DIGS in Mi Cometa.  Teams practice once or twice a week with their leaders.  Stay tuned for more info about their final projects in March!

In other exciting news, after receiving the grades from the first semester of studies, we selected our top Scholars to join us on a fun field trip to Bucay! Bucay is a town on the edge of the mountains.  We were able to escape the Guayaquil heat for the day and enjoy a water park complete with multiple water slides, fields to play on and a delicious meal!  We can't wait for the year end grades and we hope to celebrate with even more students who have worked hard to raise their grades!

Lastly, January also marks the despedida or goodbye to our longest volunteer to date.  Nancy has been volunteering with Starfish since July and will now continue her good work in Colombia before heading back to the U.S. to see her family and begin college.  Our students and educadores will certainly miss Nancy.  Thank you for all that you have done!!

A Reflection on Senior Year...by Starfish senior Joel

Today, senior Starfish student Joel shares with us a reflection on his last year in high school, and his motivation for the future.  Joel has been with us since the first days of Starfish and we are so proud of all that he has accomplished so far!!

"Hi, I'm Joel.  I'm in my last year of high school.  To be in the last year of high school....it's gratifying to know that you are about to graduate and meet one of your goals which is to finish high school.  Of course, the last year is not easy because your life is slowly taking an important turn towards responsibility.  One begins to become more independent, but it's always necessary to listen to others' advice for something that you don't understand.  It may be related to your studies, which are important.  Someday, thanks to your academic efforts, you can achieve diplomas or scholarships like what I had, and with these accomplishments, people will respect you as a person.  If everything goes well, in the future they will also respect you as a professional."


Also important to note, Joel has done an excellent job preparing for his graduation, participating in the equivalent of SAT-prep classes and earning an admirable score on the exam.  As such he is currently exploring 2 options, the public university to which he will automatically gain admittance with his outstanding test score, and a private university scholarship through another local organization which awards scholarships specifically based on merit.  Let's wish him the best of luck as he continues in the scholarship process!!  ¡Buena suerte Joel!

Spanish language - Joel's original post:

Hola, soy Joel.  Estoy en 3ro de bachillerato.  Estar en el último de colegio...es muy grato saber que estás a punto de graduarte y cumplir con una de tus metas que es finalizar el colegio.  Claro que el último año no es fácil porque tu vida poco a poco va tomando un giro importante que es el de la responsabilidad.  Uno se comienza a independizar, pero siempre hay que escuchar a los demás, sus consejos, en algo que no entiendes.  Puede ser referente a tus estudios, que son importante.  Algún día gracias a tu esfuerzo académico puedes obtener logros como diplomas o becas como los obtuve yo, y al obtener todos estos logros, las demás personas te van a respetar como persona.  Si todo va bien ya puede que más adelante de te respeten como un profesional.

Vacation Fun @ Starfish

The first two weeks of October are always an exciting time for our Scholars – school vacation! Last year the government standardized the school year schedule so that all schools have vacation at the same time.  This was especially exciting for us at Starfish because it meant that we could plan some special activities for all of our Scholars and tutoring students.

This year we had a fun mix of activities including: Crafts with recycled materials, Talks on Self-Esteem and Values, Debating, Music, Games, Community Service, Sports and more!  All of our Educadores were able to share their special talents and knowledge with all Scholars and tutoring participants.  We all got to learn a lot - exercising both our minds and our bodies during school break!

To end the week our students from Guasmo traveled to Flor to inaugurate the new space and end vacation with a fun-filled day of ice-breakers, games, soccer and more.  We even decorated the place a bit – each person leaving their mark with their handprints on the wall.

The theme of the day was “5K”.  Why you might ask?  To support our friends over at VISEDAL in Nicaragua.  Their Baltimore based non-profit sponsored a virtual 5K for their scholars.  This meant that you could run 5 kilometers – or do 5 of any activity – from anywhere in the world!  Our students participated by playing 5 games of soccer, building 5 towers, jumping with 5 friends, cooking (& eating!) 50 pounds of rice and much more!  Check out the VISEDAL page to hear more about this awesome event! Starfish even won a special prize as the largest group to participate in the 5K.  ¡Felicidades chicos!

A message from our Guasmo Employees

During the months of July, August and September, we have had a lot of activity which we are really happy to share with you in this post.  It's important to the help of the volunteer during these months and it's a pleasure that some of them are still here.  They are a big help, especially with English and some other activities like ice-breakers, group activities, etc.

During these months, we've continued working with the parents for snack at tutoring.  The parents are a lot more committed to the foundation and this is really important for us because we feel that the work isn't only done within the premises of the foundation, but also in each home.

We are very happy to have had the Starfish Board and visitors here in Ecuador.  Thank you for visiting us and thanks for your words of encouragement and well wishes.  We also enjoyed the 2014 Starfish "Olimpiadas" (field day) here in Guasmo.  We were looking forward to the Olimpiadas and by the blessing of God and working as a team, everything turned out well.

We also went to the beach with the visitors.  This was very special for everyone.  The students were very happy and they behaved well both on the trip there and back.  All behaved well, while also having fun and continuing to be charismatic.

We've done a lot of diverse activities, one of which is starting each day with an ice-breaker activity or group game since this helps them work as a team and participate more.  It's really good since it helps wake the students up and get rid of any stresses from the day.

Recently during the month of September, we had our monthly Scholar and Parent meeting, where we were able to update the parents on the various activities we have been doing.  One of these is the visits to all of the high schools.  We informed each parent on the behavior and grades of each scholarship student, encouraging them to keep moving forward and aspire to continue with the scholarship in 2015.  We had the help of Carlos Campos (new volunteer).  He prepared a powerpoint to help the parents have better control and to not neglect their students' grades & education.  With the scholars we did some ice-breakers and we Carlos had also prepared a slide about the "Comfort Zone".  It was really interesting and it helped us reflect on the fact that we should not complacent but we should always aspire to be something more.

With true success in teamwork, luck has nothing to do with it; luck is for the improvised and unprepared; success is the result of perseverance, responsibility, effort, organization and the balance between reason and the heart."

We continue to work for an even better foundation.

From, Yuliana, Cynthia, Lissette, Betsabeth & Marcos

***

And for our Spanish language readers, the original post:

En los meses de julio, agosto y septiembre hemos tenido muchas actividades, las cuales nos llena de mucha satisfacción  mencionarlas en el siguiente post. Cabe mencionar la importante ayuda de los voluntarios en estos meses, y es un gusto tenerlos a algunos de ellos todavía, ya que son de gran ayuda en el idioma inglés para los chicos y otras ciertas actividades como dinámicas, trabajos, etc.

En estos meses hemos seguido trabajando con los padres con el refrigerio de los chicos, los padres se ven mucho más comprometidos con la fundación y eso para nosotros es muy importante porque sentimos que no solamente el trabajo se lo realiza dentro de las instalaciones de la fundación sino que también se lo realiza en cada hogar, tanto en los chicos que son becados como los que no son becados.

Nos llena de mucha alegría haber tenido la grata visita de la Directiva de StarFish aquí en Ecuador, gracias por visitarnos y gracias por las palabras de aliento y los buenos deseos. También disfrutamos de nuestras Olimpiadas Estrellitas 2014 aquí en Guasmo, nosotros estábamos muy ansiosos por las Olimpiadas y gracias a la bendición de Dios trabajando en equipo, logramos que todo saliera muy bien.

También fuimos a la playa con la Directiva, que para todos fue algo muy especial, los chicos estaban  muy contentos y tuvieron un buen comportamiento, tanto a la ida como en la venida, todos bien comportados y tranquilos, no dejando el lado divertido y carismático de ellos.

Hemos realizados diversas actividades una de las cuales que hemos hecho es comenzar el refuerzo con dinámicas, es muy bueno ya que los chicos se les quita la pereza y también el estrés. Realizar trabajos, juegos en grupos, ya que les ayuda a trabajar más equipo y que sean más participativos.

Ahora último en el mes de septiembre tuvimos la reunión de Padres de Familia y Becados, lo cual nos ayudó a explicarle a los padres las diversas actividades que hemos realizado, una de ellas es la visitas a los colegio, le informamos sobre el comportamiento y el aprovechamiento de cada chico becado, animándoles que sigan adelante y que aspiren a la beca en el año 2015, tuvimos la ayuda de Carlos Campos (nuevo voluntario), el preparo una diapositiva para ayudarles a los padres a que ellos tengan un mayor control y que  no descuiden las calificaciones de los chicos. Con los becados realizamos dinámicas y también Carlos les preparo una diapositiva acerca de la Zona de Confort que fue muy interesante y ayudo a reflexionar que no debemos de ser conformistas sino aspirar siempre algo más.

“En el verdadero éxito en equipo, la suerte no tiene nada que ver; la suerte es para los improvisados y aprovechados; y el éxito es el resultado obligado de la constancia, de la responsabilidad, del esfuerzo, de la organización y del equilibrio entre la razón y el corazón.”

“Seguimos trabajando para hacer una fundación aún mejor.”

Post data
Yuliana
Cynthia
Lissette
Betsabeth
Marcos

An Evening for the Stars...CT style!

Beth & Jenn with former Starfish volunteer and photographer for the night, Maria!

A few weeks ago, we held another successful, "Evening for the Stars," this time in Windsor Locks, CT.  For the third time now, friends of Starfish gathered together for a night of good food, great company and a chance to learn a little bit more about our programs.  

Delicious buffet dinner

The night started off with some social time to browse the silent auction items and participate in a 50-50 raffle.  This year's auction not only featured several items from Ecuador, but also many local products.  In total there were over 35 items up for auction!

Auction Items from Ecuador!

Once all of our guests had arrived, we sat down for a delicious meal of rice, beans, enchiladas, chicken & more.  We shared with our guests about the need for Starfish and shared some of videos of our students. 

Guests Nadia, Joe, Matt, Rachel, Liz, Alyssa, Jenn & Jeff

As dinner was winding down, we had one last call for the silent auction before our keynote speaker, Don Awalt, gave a heartwarming and thought-provoking reflection on his recent trip to visit Starfish in Guayaquil.

Don during his reflection

All in all, it was a great night to share with friends, and a very successful fundraiser.  Between ticket sales, auction, raffle and general donations including those received from friends who could not attend, we raised 10% of our total budget for the entire year in just one night!

Guests Gabi, Julie, Shane, Nicole & Marcus

See our newsletter for official numbers, and if you don't already receive it, don't forget to sign up!

This night would not have been possible without the dedicated help and organization of many volunteers like those pictured below.  Thank you, gracias, from the bottom of our hearts!

   

 

Fiestas de Guayaquil

Starfish Scholar Lili in a traditional dress, with her classmates.

The "Fiestas de Guayaquil" celebrate the Foundation of Guayaquil every year on July 25.  Across the city, people celebrate in many ways including parades, fireworks and parties.  At many high schools, including Colegio Huancavilca where 4 of our scholars study, they also hold festivals with traditional art, music and food.  The volunteers and I had the opportunity to go and watch our Scholars in action celebrating their city!

Starfish Scholars Lili & Pamela with their friend Alex

Typical Guayaquil food - ¡qué rico!

Starfish Scholar Eddy competing with a classmate in the traditional 3-legged race

Huancavilca students performing a traditional dance to ends the festivities for the day!

Education Ignites Change

A Reflection on Education

I’ve come to realize that material things rarely truly empower people. Rather, it is the intangible things, such as education, that garner the most transformation. Education does not create dependencies; it sustains and empowers, allowing women in particular to be independent.

In a society where theft is a constant fear, education is a beacon of hope. What you learn in and outside of the classroom cannot be taken from you. Education is the catalyst for change, for development, for dreams that become realities, for peace.

Education allows individuals to empower themselves. With knowledge, they can make informed choices -- about their health, about their relationships, about their futures. And it is perhaps the greatest hope that this knowledge will translate to understanding and tolerance, which in turn will work to create a more peaceful, just, compassionate world. A world in which every human being is given the opportunity to grow and evolve and improve and empower himself/herself and others, where every person is treated with dignity, respect, and love.

That’s what makes Starfish so cool.

Jane with Genesis, Eloisa, Angie and Lissette in Flor de Bastión

It empowers its students to become leaders in their communities by supporting their academic needs. Focusing on education is a grass-roots approach, which puts power in the hands of locals who more fully understand the complex nature of the injustices that exist in their own communities.

That is not to say simply going to school will fix all the problems. The education system here is broken in countless ways (I’ve yet to hear a positive anecdote about the department of education). Poorly trained teachers, ill-equipped classrooms, and relatively ineffective curriculum based mainly on rote memorization deter children from being passionate about learning and/or interested in going to school. It’s often hard to explain to the students how important education is when their school day is more or less miserable and boring.

There are rays of hope though -- that despite broken systems, going to school is definitely not all for naught. That education really does ignite change. 

Jane at Veronica's house with Briggitte, André and Andreina

When André beams about how much he loves English class and practicing his English with us volunteers.

Or when Cristian talks about his passion for the sciences, biology especially, and how he doesn’t need help with science homework because he understands it.

Or when Pamela will let nothing get in her way of becoming a flight attendant.

Or when Maria, one of Starfish’s first students to graduate high school, begins university classes this fall in medicine, with dreams of becoming a pediatrician.

Jane with Maria on a field trip to the beach!

These awesome students represent the beginnings of a new generation: a generation of passionate, inspired leaders and doers and shakers.

That sounds like a pretty beautiful future to me.

A future that Starfish is shaping, poco a poco.

Written by Jane Lorenzi, Summer 2014 volunteer in Ecuador.  Check out more of her reflections here.

Meet the Students: Parte Ocho - El Fin

With this last post, you've now met all of this year's new students.  These 24 new Scholars join 17 returning scholars and almost 100 new tutoring students.  We are so excited about the growth of Starfish, and also of each one of our students who has made the choice to make education a priority!

Andreina

   

Hi my name is Andreina.  I am 13 years old.  I study at “Antonio Jose de Sucre” high school.  I like to sing, dance and play soccer.  My goals for this year are to get good grades and pass 8^th grade.  When I’m older I want to be a secretary.

Genesis

  

My name is Genesis.  My goals for this year are to get good grades and pass 10^th grade.  Above is a picture of Genesis with 2013 Starfish volunteer, Maria.

Yesenia

           

Hi, my name is Yesenia.  I like to listen to music, dance, study, and swim.  I am 13 years old.  I go to “Aurora Estrada” high school.  It’s going really well, I like my school.  I am in 8^th grade.  My goals are to finish my studies and be a great professional so that I can help my family, especially my brother. 

Meet the Students: Parte Siete

In this week's Meet the Students, meet newcomer to Flor de Bastión - Jordy, as well as tutoring students Michelle from Flor and Nery from Guasmo that earned their scholarship this past year :)

Jordy

  

My name is Jordy.  I am 14 years old.  I am in 9th grade.  I go to "Transito Amaguana" high school.  I play a lot of soccer.  I like the colors gold, silver, black and white.  My favorite food is baked chicken with salad.  When I'm older I want to be a plastic surgeon. I'd like to have my own family, house and car.

Michelle

   

My name is Kerly, but most people call me Michelle.  I am 12 years old, my birthday is May 9.  I am studying at “Martha Bucaram de Roldos” high school.  I am in 7^th grade.  I like to listen to music.  My favorite music is bachata.  I have 4 sisters and 1 brother.  My favorite subject is Computer and Physical Education.  My favorite food is rice with mashed potatoes and meat.  My favorite fruit is achotillo. When I’m older I want to be a doctor. 

Nery

       

My name is Nery.  My goals for this year are to get the best grades and to be a good students, but also a good person.  For me, my family is really special and beautiful.

Meet the Students: Parte Seis

These three all-stars all participated in our tutoring program in Flor de Bastión last year, as some of our youngest students.  Juliana was even one of our overall leaders on our star chart!  They all worked so hard, and we are so blessed to have them as Scholarship students this year!

Juliana

  

My name is Juliana.  I am 12 years old and I study at “Agustin Castro Espinoza” high school.  I like the color blue and my favorite soccer team is Emelec.  I have 5 siblings – 4 sisters and 1 brother.  My favorite fruit is strawberry.  My birthday is January 10.  I like math and science.  When I’m older I want to be a doctor.

Anthony

  

Hi my name is Anthony.  I like rice & chicken.  I go to "Agustin Castro Espinoza" high school.  I am in 7th grade and my classroom's on the first floor.  My favorite subject is Science.  In my free time I like to watch TV and help my dad with his work.  I am 13 years old and my birthday is March 23rd.

Betsy

 

My name is Betsy.  I am 12 years old and I study at “Humberto” high school.  I am in 7^th grade.  My favorite food is encebollado.  My birthday is April 17.  In my free time I like to cook, watch TV and movies.  I also like to listen to music.  My favorite music are ballads, vallenatos and bachata.  My favorite singers are Romeo Santos and Prince Royce.