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Greetings!
I hope this newsletters finds you well. We have had a full and exciting month here at Abriendo Mentes. We had a number of volunteers spend time with us, each person bringing a new energy to the team, great success in our children's classes, exciting workshops that benefitted over 70 people in our communities, and most incredibly, we raised over $8,000 during our matching campaign! We set the goal to raise $8,000 before the end of August, and thanks to our amazing supporters, we exceeded that goal.
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I can't express my gratitude enough to all of our donors and supporters. This campaign is our most important during the year and knowing we have so many people all over the world believing in the work we do is encouraging. The money we raised ensures we can continue offering much needed educational and social programs to rural, underserved communities here in Costa Rica. Thank you for your continued support!
Enjoy the September Edition!
- Rachael Sine
Country Director
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Summer Matching Campaign Update
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Our team would like to say a BIG thank you to all who donated to our Summer Matching campaign! We raised over $8,000 which will be matched for a total of $16,000!
We rely on the ongoing support from generous people like yourselves to continue our work within the communities of Potrero and Brasilito. Thank you for your generosity!
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We are thrilled to honor Cristofer Mendoza as the student of the month for September! Cristofer is in 6th grade and is an active participant in our Brasilito Youth Development Program. He attends English and computer classes, and is often asking to go to extra classes as a 'helper'. When we asked Cristofer why he likes going to Abriendo Mentes classes, he responded and said "I like to learn English. It's a form of security. I heard that children who learn how to speak English have better job opportunities in the future. That's why I go to classes." Cristofer's mother, Raquel, is very proud of him and puts education first for her children.
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She said that sometimes it's hard to make ends meet in Brasilito, but they are choosing to stay there so Cristofer can continue to take advantage of Abriendo Mentes classes and the benefits the organization brings to the community. "We will struggle to stay here in Brasilito until there are no more Abriendo Mentes classes to give Cristofer", Raquel says. She noted how happy her son is when he comes home from classes and is very grateful for the teachers who show him love and respect.
Cristofer is curious, respectful and a joy to have in our classes. He is motivated to learn and receive a quality education so he can support his family in the future. We are lucky to have a wonderful student in our classes and congratulate him on being a star student.
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Prevention and Detection of Sexual Abuse in Children
On August 19 we welcomed Clinical Psychologist Catalina Diaz to the Potrero community to give workshops on the prevention and detection of sexual abuse in children. This topic is of extreme importance to our communities and more than 50 children, school teachers, Abriendo Mentes staff and volunteers, and parents and community members participated in the dynamic sessions.
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Women's Health Workshops
Dr. Noelia Gomez, a Gynecologist from Spain, joined us as a volunteer for two weeks in August to deliver health workshops for the women and girls in the community of Brasilito. Noelia organized workshops for our 24 attending members of the community, covering important topics on the physical, mental and sexual health of women. We were thrilled to have Noelia on our team as she provided invaluable information and support to the women and girls in our communities.
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Mother's Day and Family Day Celebrations
This month's community engagement activities focused on creating fun and relaxing spaces where our communities could celebrate both their Mother's and Families in our annual Mother's Day and Family Day celebrations held across both Potrero and Brasilito.
Abriendo Mentes worked in collaboration with the Brasilito ADI (local town council) to celebrate all of the wonderful mothers in our communities by holding a free Zumba class in Brasilito. In Potrero, we had a fun afternoon of coffee and cakes for the mothers. In the week leading up to Mother's Day, the children spent time working on creative gifts and paintings in classes to give to their moms to show how much they love and appreciate all that they do.
The 2nd annual Family Day was celebrated in Potrero on Saturday August 25. In partnership with Beach Community Church, Abriendo Mentes organized Baseball and Volleyball games, hosted an arts and crafts table and provided lunch for all who attended. It was a great afternoon of time to reflect on the importance of family in supporting the development of our children.
If you would like to see more photos from these fun events or stay up to date with all of our community engagement activities, follow the Abriendo Mentes Facebook Page, where we post daily about all of our upcoming events and projects.
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We are always so blown away at the business and people within our community who reach out to us wanting to give their support to the children and families of Brasilito and Potrero. The following organizations have been so wonderful in the last month, giving assistance to Abriendo Mentes in many different ways. If you are a part of a local business who would like to help out in the community and support the work of Abriendo Mentes, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@abriendomentes.org
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Annual Presidential Flamingo Fishing Rodeo
For the third year in a row, Abriendo Mentes has received support from the Presidential Challenge Charitable Foundation during it's annual Fishing Tournament in Flamingo. The Foundation generously donated $600 to Abriendo Mentes from the proceeds of the silent auction during the tournament. It is fantastic seeing how this event has grown in the last three years and we are excited to see the event develop in the future!
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Bagel Kitchen Potrero
We are thrilled to be receiving support from Bagel Kitchen Potrero, who generously donate bagels every week to our students in Brasilito. It is so fantastic seeing the kids try these new foods and absolutely love them every week. Bagels have definitely become a highlight in our after-school program for the kids in Brasilito. Thank you for your generous contributions!
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Our work would not be possible without the support of generous donors. Please consider making a gift to Abriendo Mentes today.
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