A New Year

With all the negative press concerning Rocinha in the last few months, There are still plenty of positive things going on here. And I am not the only one. There are many people who have overcome many obstacles to become successful here.

After collecting donations in the last 3 months, I am finally getting around to distributing many that have been here in the Dj School. I have always been searching for those people who are in need so, it may take time, but eventually I find the right people.

Many people and organizations here already get help and I prefer to find those who are in dire need. 

Ruth Silva’s Project "Projeto Flor e Xavier"

We have been contributing to Ruth’s project since January of 2017.  

I remember someone here in Rocinha referring me to her homeless animals project. I have always loved cats and dogs and I have 3 cats of my own. When walking through the community, you often see dogs or cats in the streets. Its difficult to figure out which ones are abandoned and which have owners. But my heart hurts seeing the way some people here treat animals. 

So our relationship began with Ruth contacting me if she needed help in regards to helping to pay for cat/dog food, Medicine or vet visits. I believe in documenting things as I think those people who donate money have every right to see that the money goes to the animals. Accountability and integrity are important if trust is to be gained and given to any organization. Especially if a project is soliciting donations of money. This hopefully will show others that they can trust us to distribute the donation to the proper project.

Ruth has always been good at documenting what she receives as she knows it will only attract more people to help her animals shelter. Below are photos of just some of the donations and the construction of her shelter. 

I remember visiting this plot of land wondering what it was. They had just finished the foundation. One of their 60 cats checking out the area.

Through our tourism project we were able to contribute to the purchase of about 300 bricks to help build the structure. Here they have put cement over the bricks to give the building more strength.

These people worked day and night to get this building put up. They put this up even after having the police come by one day to knock it all down thinking it was going to be some illegal structure. Ruth and her husband went to the police and explained their situation and got permission to put their animal shelter up.

This is the shelter but still in progress from the outside. This is about 30 meters away from Ruth's house so they animals will be well cared for and have their own place to eat, relax and have a lot more space.

Working on the upper walls from the inside of the structure. The key is to have good ventilation so the place stays cool and after cleaning, the floors can dry.

 It's almost finished. They will be completing the walls as they get more money.

A photo of her animals

Some of the donations:

And Vet visits:

The two below are two female cats who were neutered. It costs 50 reais here is Rocinha to get the cats fixed. 

And Ruth and her husband on their motorbike picking up bags of cat and dog food for their "family". I really enjoy seeing the progress of what they came from 6 months ago to now having a house just for the animals. If you want to donate in some way or volunteer with her project, please contact me and we can organize things here for you. 

SCHOOL SUPPLIES

I put an add on facebook in one of the Rocinha Facebook pages letting people know that I had some school supplies to donate. A woman who also has 24 cats who I have known for a while had contacted me about some children she knew that were in need of somethings. I have known Luiza for about 5 years. She finally came by my house to pick up the supplies two days ago. Luiza lives in the Valao, one of the poorest areas of the favela. So, I know the children she is helping are from this area.

The bag on school supplies that I gave her was full of many different things. She separated everything and put them into 5 different bags to give to each child.

The kids who received the supplies and a little about them.

Lucas Souza is 15 years old and in 9th grade in public school. He ended being held back one year because in 2015 he had tuberculosis which can be a big problem here in Rocinha. It takes about 6 months in total of being on medication to get rid of tuberculosis.  He is a good kid and loves to help him mom around the house and care for the many cats they have. His hobbies are reading and video games. His favorite games are Dungeons & Dragons, World of Warcraft, League of Legends and Magic. His goal is to work on the development of games and wants to learn English. 

Isabel Souza 13 years old and in 8th grade. Like her brother Lucas, she is a good kid who likes to help others. She loves the cats. Her dream is to learn Japanese and travel to Japan. She loves to read and is very dedicated to her studies.  

Angelo 4 years old and is entering into his first year of pre school. He is a very smart child. He comes from a big Capoeira family and is always wearing his Capeira uniform since he knew how to walk.

Miguel 11 years old and is an extrovert and happy child. He loves to play football and has a passion for drawing and art. He is in 6th grade and enjoys school. 

Lindalva is 15 years old. She is very smart but has a hearing deficiency. She has encountered many challenges in public schools where she is studying at the 9^th grade level. Her passion is to sew and make clothing. She likes to make clothing for her siblings. She makes all her clothing by hand as she does not have a sewing machine. 

I want to thank those who have donated to projects here. Without you, this is not possible. We will continue to try to help as many people possible here. If you have interest to visit Rocinha or donate something to one of the many projects here please contact us at: visitrocinha@gmail.com