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What’s
new with the Colombia
Project
TCP Board Meeting
Saturday, Nov 3, 2007 - 9:00 a.m. – United Way
Headquarters - 3250 SW 3rd Ave, Miami
(Coral Way
and SW 3rd Ave)
Benefit Brunch – The Fifth
Annual Benefit Brunch, will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday, February 24, 2008
at the Rusty Pelican Restaurant, on the Rickenbacker Causeway (on the way to Key Biscayne) in Miami. The $55 cost includes brunch and a tax deductible donation.
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Strategic Planning Session -- Thanks
to Catherine Raymond of Raymond Consulting Inc for coordinating a Strategic
Planning workshop for Colombia Project board members. If your organization
needs strategic planning assistance, contact Catherine at
csraymond@bellsouth.net
Website - Thanks to a 2007 grant from the Representative Juan C. Zapata District 199
Fund at Dade Community Foundation, The Colombia Project website has
moved to a new home. And thanks to Martin Pelusso
of www.proimagen.com and Noah Clements,
The Colombia Project has a new website to support a new business model. As
of December, 2005, loans and reports will be handled in semi-annual cycles
for groups of projects rather than individually.
FUNDEHUMAC
– attacking the cycle of
poverty from all angles. With the mentoring of Alba Lucia Moreno of
FUNDEHUMAC, low-income college students who receive scholarships from
the Magdalena Foundation fulfill a community service
requirement through a variety of creative and worthwhile activities. One recent
project was a Christmas party and gift distribution for
elementary school children who receive scholarships through Friends of
Colombia’s Paso a Paso program. Thanks to The Colombia Project, there was also quality
entertainment. Jorge Arrieta, a talented
composer, singer and musician received a loan from The Colombia Project to buy his own
electric key board and can now teach and perform at
various venues on his own, such as the gift distribution
ceremony, at the school back yard, providing the
children the opportunity to dance and sing along. According to Haroldo Suarez, head of the Magdalena Foundation,
these children never experienced anything like this. By working together we can make a
difference.
AMB Foundation Grant The Colombia Project received a
grant of $6000 from the AMB Foundation of Phoenix, Arizona for an indigenous
program in Santa Marta.
At the request of the indigenous
population, this effort, which was initially planned as a micro-credit
endeavor, evolved into an artisan coop to benefit 52 indigenous families
who hope to sell to passengers of cruise ships now stopping at Santa Marta
NPCA Award The Colombia Project received
the Loret Miller Ruppe
Award for outstanding community service at the National Peace Corps
Association’s summer conference in Portland, Oregon
– August 2, 2003.
Colombia Exterior Award
The Colombia Project received a Colombia Exterior
‘Excellence Award’, June 12th, 2004 in Miami.
Rotary Club
Award Returned Peace
Corps Volunteers of South Florida received an award for ‘Outstanding
International Community Service” in February, 2007, primarily for
contributions made through The Colombia Project.
Site Visits The
Colombia Project board visited FUNDEHUMAC in Magdalena in August, 2004,
September, 2006 and August, 2007, and ODRI in Popayan, February, 2005. In September 2006, members of the
Colombia Project team met with APRODEFA representatives in Cartagena
and opened a new program in December of 2006. In the summer of 2007, the first three loans were distributed through MINICOL in Quindio. See the reports for those site visits on
the PROJECTS page.
Repaid Loans As of September 2007, the $9800 sent to date to FUNDEHUMAC has provided benefits to the community double that amount. Thanks to reinvestment of repaid loans, that $9800 has supported $15,000 in direct loans and provided $4800 to strengthen that grassroots organization.
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