On Tuesday, March 30, my dad and I had the pleasure of touring two of Alma’s projects outside of Cusco. We were greeted (nice and early!) in the morning by Ian, Alma’s program director, who drove us out to the first project on an incredibly breathtaking drive through the mountains. We were both thoroughly impressed by Ian’s skills navigating the narrow winding roads of the highlands.
Our first stop was at the village of Patatinta, where Alma had initiated conversation to begin a project in the local school. On our drive in, we coincidentally ran into the head of the parent’s association, which proved valuable for Ian in having a fruitful discussion with the school’s principal. The kids at Patatinta were welcoming but incredibly shy – they loved taking pictures though! The Alma foundation has now begun work at this school, which was great news for us to hear.
After our trip to Patatinta, we travelled to the village of Tucsa, where Alma has worked for about a year now with an after school project. With this project, students are given the task of writing a story, then acting it out and filming it in order to improve reading comprehension. The bonus for the kids is that they get to work with digital cameras, which helps keep them motivated and having fun with the project. It was amazing to see the difference in the welcome we received from the school kids at Tucsa, where Alma has been working, compared to Patatinta. As soon as we pulled up beside the school, the kids began chanting Ian’s name, and all came out running to greet us. They were clearly thrilled to see him, which spoke wonders to my dad and I about the positive impact of Alma in rural communities like these. After seeing first-hand the amazing impact Alma has had, we will both continue to support grassroots projects like these.
Jackie McPhedran
