Mothers and Daughters: Steven and the Turimiquire Foundation's work in Venezuela

May, 2018 View this email in your browser

Hello from Steven and Turimiquire to all of our Friends and Supporters!

One of the best ways to measure and appreciate our work is to follow
Mothers and Daughters across the generations!

Against the Odds, the Power of Love

Our work here at the Turimiquire Foundation continues unabated in the midst of Venezuela's prolonged socio-economic crisis. Shortages of basic commodities and hyperinflation, rampant crime and selective political repression, make normal living – even for the urban and rural poor who are experienced with deprivation – very difficult. We are observing new levels of suffering with no end in sight.

Even in the midst of such dire circumstances, we have the privilege of witnessing daily the strength of the Venezuelan family, a manifestation of love that has proven unshakable. In the Foundation's ongoing family planning and rural education programs, we see the strength, integrity, and resilience of this familial bond every day. The union between parent and child – and in our work, between mother and daughter - inspires us to work even harder to somehow give these low-income families a chance to succeed against the odds!

Here, we'd like to share a few stories of mothers and daughters across the generations:

In one generation, Petra's family has jumped from illiteracy to college educations! Petra, right, with three of her daughters from left: Daici, Heidi and Yeici, at their home several hours walking from the nearest road. Petra's mother Vidalina was completely illiterate and had 15 or more pregnancies before dying of untreated diabetes in her fifties. Petra is one of her 10 surviving children, all illiterate, and had six children of her own before we helped her to receive a tubal sterilization. Daici, the eldest daughter, has several children of her own after graduating high school in our scholarship program, and is now participating in our family planning program while attending weekend adult college with our support. She is determined to become a lawyer and is already advocating for student rights! With the Foundation's support, Heidi and Yeici have both finished high school and are now attending college.

Possibilities for a better life. Yura (left) with her two daughters Nailet and Nairobis. Yura's mother, Brunilda, died in childbirth at 31 years old during the birth of her seventh child in a small mud hut several walking hours from the nearest road. When things went wrong, Brunilda tragically had no chance, forcing Yura to abandon her studies to raise her younger siblings. Now Yura is determined that her own daughters have the options that neither she nor her mother ever had. Both Nailet and Nairobis are enrolled in college with the Foundation's support!

Opportunities for a career. Chabela, left, with daughters Estefani and Johana (their devoted father is in the middle). Chabela grew up in a remote rural area with illiterate campesino parents, and was one of our first students in the literacy classes that eventually led to starting the Foundation. Her children then became early participants in our rural education program. Estefani is graduating in engineering this year and is hoping to work in the oil industry. Johana is an accomplished nurse who works for the state public health ministry and collaborates actively with our family planning and surgery programs. Both are choosing not to have children until their careers are further along in a time of economic difficulty.

We have known and worked with all three of these families (and many more), going all the way back to the grandparents. We remember these Mothers when they were little girls. We have watched and proudly contributed to their measurable progress across three generations, now going on four!

Family Planning + Education = Progress !!!
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Our Turimiquire Recipe for a Thriving Community

Brunilda’s untimely death was our compelling wakeup call. We knew we had to do more. Looking back now over 23 years, we are thankful for what we have accomplished! What began as a small local initiative has grown to become the only recognized non-profit serving three rural counties in northeastern Venezuela. Lack of family planning, high maternal-infant morbidity-mortality, poor educational opportunity for rural children, are all critical developing world problems, and we are honored to be doing our part to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda for 2030.

Please Donate Here - Help Us To Help Others!

When you have very little, an old tennis ball can be a source of joy. For the kids in our valley, getting used tennis balls to play with is a big deal. We bring these rural children used tennis balls that we round up from players in town. Endless demand, the children find countless ways to play with them everyday. We're talking about used tennis balls here, folks ...

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Turimiquire Foundation
William Bloomstein
16 Crescent Street
Cambridge, MA. 02138
USA

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When we are dreaming alone,
it is only a dream.
When we are dreaming with others,
it is the beginning of reality.
Dom Helder Camara