Project Peru |
|
The work of the refuge
The refuge at Zapallal continues to be the main focus of the work where we give a home, food and shelter to a number of children in need. Peru has experienced difficult times in the past and there has been much displacement and disruption to family life, particularly when this project was started. To an extent, though, that problem has eased over recent years. Peruvian staff have been regularly employed, though initially the project worked entirely on a voluntary basis. New clients are referred both by word of mouth and through referrals from appropriate services in the vicinity of the refuge, or from further afield. They can be longer-term residents, but others we help on a temporary or transitional basis. The criterion we use is that they have needs that we can address. The children are not specifically "street children" in the current popular understanding of the phrase, though some may be, and some might be if we did not help. Many do have relatives who for different reasons cannot care for them. Some unaccompanied children come for short periods until they can be accepted into other neighbouring refuges or until they can reunite with family members to try to rebuild their normal family lives. Some residents ultimately relocate with family members in Lima; in some cases they return to their original communities in the interior of the country, in other cases they settle in the vicinity of Zapallal, or in other refuges. Many people also use the facilities on a daily, non-resident or casual basis for a number of activities which we become involved in. We are developing new work, especially with some of the family members of the children living in the refuge. To see photos of meetings with family members click here. At the refuge there are frequent things to celebrate. For example, activities towards end of 2004 included the annual nativity play, first communion for some of the children, monthly birthday parties and a school "promotion" party. To view more photos of daily life at the refuge click
the links below. |
.gif)
