TJ 09 – Two days away…
Just wanted to update and let you all know that on Saturday afternoon we’ll be pulling into Tijuana in style – 16 fantastic teens, 4 crazy leaders, 52 fair trade soccer balls (a big thanks to James @ social conscience for setting us up with such a great deal!) and 75 school bags to give away to children down there….oh yeah, and one house to build.We’re stoked to see our sponsor child, Gustavo, again, and build a house for him and his family…this is a once in a lifetime thing!!
Thank you so much for your support. Please keep us in your prayers if you are the prayin’ kind of person. It is always an intense trip.
Also, please pray for Ana – we are going to see if she is willing to leave her life of factory work to return to school and get an education. If she is willing, we are going to help her out – some kids from my school (who were on the 08 trip) decided to raise money to help support putting her into a private school after hearing her story last year. I met Ana two years ago, when the team I was helping lead stuccoed her family’s house. Ana wrote the test at the end of gr.7, and didn’t get a high enough grade. Now she works in a sewing factory for 10 hours a day, and rides a bus for about 3 hours to and from work. She probably makes about 10 dollars a day, if she’s lucky. Ana is about 14 or 15.
This is huge, perhaps the most important part of our trip, but Ana and her folks need to agree with the idea before we can act. If they say yes to this rescue, then perhaps we can help break the cycle of poverty in her family by helping provide Ana with an education that could get her a decent job.
I’ll update the blog when we hit the ground again in Canada. Here’s hoping for an amazing trip of spreading hope in practical ways…
cheers,
james
Why Fair Trade Soccer Balls?
Caption: With assorted footwear. @ the river, Tijuana, Mexico. At every major crossroads, Pastor Giarmo would call for all the kids to assemble. The bunch that rallied to his call became the newest ‘football’ team, and had to be photographed to document the beginning of their journey towards world cup victory.
To watch children playing soccer reminds you of how simple happiness can be to a child. All it takes is a ball, a few kids and some random objects for net posts, and you have a game. My brother, who lives in Mexico city, says that kids down there are ‘born with cletes on’, a statement that reinforces the popularity of soccer in Mexico and other Latin American Countries.
One of the coolest moments being in Tijuana in September o7 was watching kids as they were given soccer balls. One of the students in our group brought a suitcase full of deflated soccer balls to inflate and give away while we were in TJ. We handed these out at ‘the River’ – an illegal squat that stands close by the factories where the people work. Typical shift workers there earn about 12 dollars a day, and work 12 hour shifts.
The pastor who was guiding us as we handed out beans, rice, and some clothes and toys to the families there would stop at each dusty ‘intersection’ and call to all the kids in that area to come. He assembled them as the newest ‘football’ team, and had to get official team photos as well, as the children were given a soccer ball. It was a simple gift, but one that was amazing to give!
I am stoked to announce that Scott of Fair Trade Sports {Edit: 830 – and the company Y Focus Fair Trade Sports} have offered to supply us with fair trade soccer balls to the Children in Terrazas and ‘The River’ area.
Why fair trade Soccer Balls? Well, conditions in Soccer ball factories and for people who have to hand stitch soccer balls are notoriously bad, and to be blunt, it doesn’t make sense to give a gift of a ball made using child labor (a cycle that reinforces poverty and oppression) to a child who lives in poverty (or any child, for that matter). It just doesn’t make sense to help someone while supporting the oppression of others. The great thing is that the prices of fair trade balls are similar to those made by Nike and Adidas. If you want to read more about this issue and what companies like Fair Trade Sports do, then check out their blog. There’s a good post by them, titled “Health Care & Micro Credit Programs”.
Fair Trade Sports & Y Focus are great companies, and I’m excited to support them.
Details on our cost for a soccer ball coming soon…
Our goal for Sept. o8: 20 Fair Trade Soccer balls to be hand delivered to children in Terazzas and @ ‘the River’.
Our Dreams & Goals for o8
It’s time to be making goals for the upcoming year, and my family has some crazy ones for o8!
Here they are, and we will need your help to meet them:
1. 100 Backpacks hand delivered to the children of Terrazas, TJ, Mexico. (cost = 10.80 + taxes = 12.25 per bag)… Our plan is to Partner with DCS in having the bags filled, and then the o8 team to TJ will deliver them.
2. Funding one house build for a family that needs it in Terrazas, TJ. (cost from the ground up = $5500)…
3. 20 Fairly traded soccer balls to hand deliver to the children of Terrazas and ‘The River’ (cost yet to be finalized).
‘Speak up for the people who have no voice,
for the rights of all the down-and-outers.
Speak out for justice!
Stand up for the poor and destitute!’ Proverbs 31:8 & 9 – The Message
Here’s to a great new year, and sharing faith, hope and love in practical ways!
