Copy


June
2022
CAA Newsletter

In this Issue:
  • From the President
  • June Board Meeting Highlights
  • Help Wanted
  • Program Updates
  • Alliance Updates
Events and Activities
  • CAA Monthly Mixer 
  • CAA’s Day Away Program
  • From Our Members
  • General Information

From the President

It’s halfway through June as I write this in San Isidro up on the east side of San Ramón.  We are into lots of rain, sun, and clouds almost every day. It makes us wonder how much more will come in September and October, which are usually rainier. Luckily for my imagination some of the local Costa Ricans here say that sometimes there are heavier rains in the early months and then less in the later months and that July could bring a mini-summer/dry time. Whew!  Today we had a beautiful clear morning with great mountain-range views. Now I am looking at banks of huge gray and dark gray clouds coming in low and heading our way from the west. When I was walking the dog early yesterday, it was no surprise that even with a totally clear sunny sky my neighbor walking to work had his large umbrella under his arm for the certain afternoon big downpour. We agreed that it was a wise idea.
In CAA we are focusing on the best ways we can help specific community needs and engage us in various positive and fun ways too. I was thinking about how many expats here regularly provide help and assistance to neighbors and others who they know and care about. With CAA we have the leverage of working together in addition to our individual generosity. Working together allows us to tackle other needs such as the education programs and assist existing local organizations like the orphanage, Árbol de Esperanza, the hospital, the Faithful Servant Mission (Bajo Tejares) and others that make a difference and need support themselves.



In the next month we will be sharing the work we are doing now and sending a survey to get your reactions, personal engagement interests, and priorities. We are planning an August picnic and get together to socialize, and we will invite some of our partner organization representatives to come too so you can meet them and learn more about what they are doing. We will send more information and in the coming weeks.  Oh, and the sun just popped out again from the big bank of clouds. I take that as a great sign. It’s still going to rain cats and dogs, but it’s OK!
In the meantime, enjoy all the updates and the featured photos below of our local feria, where we get to shop weekly year-round.

May Board Highlights

We have responded to Árbol de Esperanza for emergency food aid needs for two months. The subcommittee on sustainability support will be considering food aid as an ongoing initiative in the community. We are also clarifying additional needs and several specific opportunities to assist Árbol that we will be bringing to our members.
Conversations with Faithful Servant Mission continue as they determine specific programs and identify what volunteer and support roles might look like for CAA and members.
 
The Spanish Conversation Groups subcommittee announced that the next session will start July 19.  Details below.
The English Conversation Club subcommittee is reaching out for additional volunteers as the enrollment of students has continued to grow over the past month. More information below.


Finally, we are looking at scheduling a member picnic sometime in August at a covered park-like location where we can see each other face to face, enjoy some food and fun, and learn about some opportunities for support and volunteer engagement. 
In advance of the picnic, we will be sending an email survey to get your feedback on CAA support, engagement priorities, and options. We want to hear how our members want to engage in and/or support individually. We are looking forward to your feedback.
Help Wanted
 
We are looking for a volunteer to compose and send our monthly e-newsletter using Mailchimp, an online app for creating and maintaining email lists and sending email “blasts.” The complete content (edited text, photos, and art) is provided by our
communications team and this job entails composing the newsletter online using the app and an existing template. We estimate the job requires about four hours per month at the same time each month (right after the board meetings). There might be a few other email blasts from time to time, but not frequently. We offer detailed documentation, training, and colleague support. Interested? Contact editor@caacr.org.
Activities and Events

June Mixer!

OUR NEXT MIXER is Thursday, July 21,
from 3-6pm at Olga’s Place.
We hope to see you there!



https://www.facebook.com/olgasplacerestaurante/
Directions: https://goo.gl/maps/C9LjGkbZi76dsKmm8

CAA’s Day Away Program!

The CAA Day Away Program offers social activities within a short drive from San Ramón. Gather your friends and have some fun! Watch this newsletter and our Facebook page for future trips TBA.
 
Progam Updates

CAA Scholarship Program Update

“We send our heartfelt thanks to all of the generous supporters of these students, and to the many volunteers who donate their time and money to help turn the dreams of these students into reality. Without these combined efforts, the last ten years of CAA educational scholarship support for these students would not have been possible.  Please help us continue to keep these dreams alive, one student at a time.”
CAA has for many years awarded our top-ranked students a special academic excellence award voucher, and about eight of our students are usually in the running for academic awards with all grades at 90+; at least three to six of those have posted all grades at 94+. Historically, only young women have earned CAA’s Academic Excellence awards—it has been difficult for the young men to break into this elite group. Four of the five Academic Achievement Award winners, from 2019, are shown in the photo. These young women had a lock on the top spots for most of their high school years—and we proudly recognize them.
This year and last, CAA did not issue the academic excellence recognitions because the Education Ministry replaced numeric grades with a Pass/Fail system due to the pandemic disruptions. However, the Education Ministry resumed numeric grades for 2022, and our students just received their first of two report cards for the First Term. Alisson, CAA’s Program Administrative Intern, is now collecting the report cards, and we are hopeful that our students have been able to get their grades back on track, based again on a numeric grade scale. We will review the report cards in person with the students/parents in July in preparation for Second Term classes in August, and again after the 2022 classes end in December. In 2023, we hope we can again identify and recognize another group of academic excellence students for their work. 
What are the other challenges faced by these 2018-2022 students?  According to UNICEF, 37% of children in Costa Rica now live below the poverty line (Swissinfo.ch/UNICEF, May 4, 2022). The Education Ministry reported in local news that public school students over the past 4 years have lost almost 2 years of instruction due to the two teacher’s strikes of 2018-2019, followed by the Covid pandemic disruptions of 2020-2021. Although the system has tried to add a few months of additional classes, it remains to be seen how much ground these 2018-2022 students have recovered, especially the most disadvantaged. 
In fact, the President of Costa Rica just decreed that (click here to continue reading)

English Conversation Club

The ECC is a program that gives ticos who already speak intermediate English an opportunity to practice their English and gringos the chance to ask questions about living in Costa Rica. The sessions are NOT classes as such; they are a space to practice a level of oral English, together with people of the same level (in groups of five to seven people maximum per leader).

Groups meet for five weeks for two hours per week and a donation of 10,000 colones (or 15,000 colones for two schedules) is required to support the Community Action Alliance scholarship program.  
If YOU would like to lead a group session, we'd LOVE to add you to our database of available leaders. At the moment we are mostly online, however pandemic permitting we'll add more in-person sessions throughout the year.
To be a leader the requirements are:
  • Native English speaker
  • Talkative and outgoing
  • Internet access with computer capable of audio and video transmission over Google Meet (virtual groups)
  • Tech savvy enough to handle video conferencing (virtual groups)
  • Have a gmail account (virtual groups)
  • Available to host two 1-hour sessions per week for 5 weeks (1-2 hours during the week and/or 2 hours on Saturday mornings)
  • You do not need to speak Spanish to participate
 
Now that ECC is both in person and online, leaders and students are welcome from all over.  We need YOU to share this opportunity as we are not known outside the zona occidente and our advertising is limited to word of mouth and social media posts. Thanks to everyone for their support of this program! Current sessions are running from June 20 to July 30 (No meetings week of July 4). Registration for the next session is July 29 to August 6 and meetings are August 8 to September 10.
Please direct interested students to bit.ly/eccvirtual
If you are interested in leading a group, please contact Dustin or Ricardo at info.eccsr@gmail.com

Spanish Conversation Groups

Register now for a four-week course beginning July 19, where we will practice conversational Spanish in small groups with Professor Manuel to learn new phrases for everyday situations and discuss topics of interest. The sessions begin with greetings and small talk, then a grammar topic for practice, and reading or listening comprehension (news article, video, audio message, etc.) Cost for the entire session is 8,000 colones.

A Zoom link will be provided a few days prior to the meeting. We can help anyone needing assistance to use Zoom.
For beginners and intermediate level, there's potential for an in-person session if there's enough interest. The group will meet for one-and-a-half hours at a central location in San Ramón. Email spanishconversation@caacr.org for more information regarding date, time, and location. The in-person class will run for four weeks—beginning date undetermined.
Learn more and/or register at https://www.actionalliancecr.com/spanish-conversation.html

ALLIANCE UPDATES




Árbol de Esperanza

This past month CAA had the opportunity to help some of Árbol de Esperanza’s Empowerment Program clients in their journey toward self-sufficiency. Árbol identified three families who were experiencing significant food insecurity and asked CAA if we could help.  With the assistance of Alisson Esquivel, social worker intern who works with the CAA Education Program, we were able to put together a process to address the need.  Working with Supermercado Carranza in San Ramón, we identified a month’s worth of basic food items for the families, which Carranza assembled and delivered to Árbol for the families and CAA paid for. The funds came from the new CAA Emergency Fund that was created last month for such situations. Included are pictures of two of the women who were so appreciative of our assistance to them and their families.

          
If you would like to make a donation to the Emergency Fund to allow us to continue to provide support to families in need, you can give your donation to any Board member who will in turn deposit it for you and send you a written receipt and thanks.  Or you can click here for detailed instructions on how to make a deposit into the fund.
Click here to see a list of articles Árbol de Esperanza is requesting as well as a way to make a deposit directly to their bank account.  If you would like to drop off clothing, requested items, or a donation you can do that Monday through Thursday from 11am-4pm. The office is located 50 meters east of Banco Popular. Phone: 8788-7921 or 4034-2340.
Learn more about the work of Árbol de Esperanza here: https://en.arboldeesperanza.org/

Hogarcito Birthday Buddies

There have been a number of children adopted in May (hurray!) which has resulted in no birthdays in June, but we have FIVE birthdays in July!
A contribution of 20,000 colones ($31 US) provides ice cream, balloons, streamers, candles, candy/stickers for each child, and a present specifically for the birthday child. La Duquesa provides one cake a month and Birthday Buddies pays for additional cakes when there is more than one birthday in a month.
Debbie Rudd makes jewelry that is sold at El Gato Marrón restaurant by the feria entrance to benefit Birthday Buddies. Please stop in!
Click here for more information or to become a Birthday Buddy.  THANK YOU to those who have generously donated through the giving envelopes at the mixers. Every colón helps!
~Linda Dwyer
                                                                         

Blankets for Babies

The Blankets for Babies of San Ramón group meets monthly to prepare 20 plastic mats, 20 blankets, 100 burpies, hats, 20 toys, and 20 masks to give to new mothers at the San Ramón hospital. Following the workshop they enjoy a delicious potluck lunch of everyone’s specialties.
Two of our members have returned to the US, which makes two sewing machines available for use as loaners. These machines are “workin’ girls” and can be used for personal use, but are expected to produce 20 masks, OR 30 burpies, OR 10 blankets a month, whatever the need. All necessary materials are provided to make these items.
To continue providing these gifts, Blankets for Babies needs soft flannel-type material and sheeting for the blankets, bibs, toys, and masks. Monetary donations are always appreciated. (Each new-mother packet costs about 8,000 colones for materials.) A big thank you this month to Laura Handler's sister, Marcia, for the large amount of sweet baby-printed flannel she sent from the States.
Please contact linda@caacr.org if you’d like to help or can donate material or money.
THANK YOU to those who have generously donated through the giving envelopes at the mixers. Every colón counts!
For more information about Blankets for Babies San Ramón or to contact us, please visit the Blankets for Babies page https://www.actionalliancecr.com/blankets-for-babies on CAA’s website.

~Linda Dwyer and Angie Thorne

Tamale Christmas

One of CAA’s alliances in San Ramón is with The Faithful Servant Missions in Bajo Tejares, an exceptionally poor area of San Ramón. Each December, the village women of Bajo Tejares celebrate a much-loved Christmas tradition by making hundreds of tamales to share with their families and neighbors. For almost a decade, CAA has helped by purchasing the tamale ingredients and helping make these special treats. Unfortunately, we were not able to provide volunteers for two years because of the pandemic, but this December we will once again provide more than 300,000 colones for supplies, plus volunteers to help make them. Watch future newsletters for your opportunity to volunteer. 
From our Members

Life In San Ramón

The Feria

Our fresh food market happens every Friday and Saturday near the blue/gray/green church (Iglesia el Tremedal). In addition to fresh vegetables and tropical fruits, you can buy potted plants and cut flowers, eggs, meat, clothing, leather goods, specialty items, and more! There’s also a soda and a stall that sells hot food items to go. (See more Life in San Ramón photos on the gallery page of our website: https://www.actionalliancecr.com/gallery.html Feria photos by Craig Huber and Janet Kikta.
General Info
 

Become a CAA member. It’s Easy!

This month, we welcome our newest CAA members, Kathleen Coughlin and Pam Coughlin, and give a huge THANKS! to those of you who have renewed your membership.
CAA members are connected to a rich network of friendship, support, and opportunities to participate in the life of our community AND they help improve the quality of life for others in the greater San Ramón area. It’s easy to join! Just follow this link for payment options: https://www.actionalliancecr.com/join-caa.html

Looking to the Future of CAA 

Our Sustainability Team focuses on helping create long-term success for CAA. Though there are many components to that activity, development (creating and enhancing relationships) and fundraising (income generation) activities are key components to achieving the goal.  If you have questions about what we are doing, please contact Mary Lou Hofmann, even.sleeves@gmail.com, phone & WhatsApp 8319 9314.
 


Did you Know?

Any CAA member can attend Board meetings, which are held on the second Tuesday of each month at 2pm at Coopenae. If you plan to attend and observe your Board in action, please email Terry at president@caacr.org so we set up enough chairs. Please discuss any items you would like added to the agenda with Terry at least a week before the meeting.

Have a Question?

Many of our friends, members, and neighbors are reading this from afar or perhaps from a forwarded copy. Please reach out to Board or Team members (email addresses at the end of this newsletter) if you have questions about specific programs or CAA in general or have suggestions for improving our organization. We love to hear from you!
Helpful Links for
San Ramó
n
Museo Regional de San Ramón
Museo Regional De San Ramón
(There are 2 separate FB Pages)
Centro Cultural e Histórico José Figueres Ferrer

Recyling Info
Municipalidad de San Ramón C.R.
San Ramón, in Costa Rica's Central Valley
San Ramón Costa Rica Info
Gringo Central San Ramón
Community Action Alliance of Costa Rica
 
Expat Focused
Organizations
Dave's Workshop - Woodworking
El gato marrón - Café and Gallery
 
 
Hacienda Vivace – Musical Events 
Vientos Bajos Activity Center - Pickleball, Bridge + Much More
 
Download our brochure!
https://www.actionalliancecr.com/uploads/5/7/0/9/57096965/caa_online_brochure-0222.pdf

Other Info

CAA’s MISSION STATEMENT

The Community Action Alliance of Costa Rica (CAA) is an organization of expats and costarricenses in the greater San Ramon area volunteering together for community and individual enrichment.  CAA aligns with organizations in the community, creating relationships and providing resources for community betterment and development initiatives. CAA provides its members opportunities for community integration, networking and socialization.
CAA is an organization composed of individuals with diverse religious, political, and personal beliefs and, as such, does not support or promote any particular ideology either in its publications or at its events.


Board Members (boardofdirectors@caacr.org)

  • Terry Handler, President
  • Janice Brown, Vice-President
  • Martin Rojas, Secretary
  • Jeff Barnes, Treasurer
  • Wagner Galo, Fiscal 
  • Scott McAnally, Vocal and Chair of Education Committee  (education@caacr.org)
  • Mary Lou Hofmann Vocal
  • Vocal 3

CAA Email:caacrorg@gmail.com
CAA Communications Team:  info@caacr.org
CAA Volunteer Coordinator:  linda@caacr.org

CAA Web Page and inquiries:  https://www.actionalliancecr.com

CAA Facebook Page: Community Action Alliance of Costa Rica

If you would like to change how you receive these emails (new email address, type of mailings desired, formatting, unsubscribe, etc.) please click the "Update your preferences" link below.

ADJUST YOUR SUBSCRIPTION PREFERENCES BELOW:
Copyright © 2022 Community Action Alliance, All rights reserved.


Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp