The morning of July 4, 2008 was sunny and it was perceived early on that it would be a hot day. Unlike previous occasions, this time the order of things was reversed: I did the press coverage first before leaving Medellin and then I went to Rionegro for another visit to a SOS Village. Only 45 miles separated me from my destination, but 20 of them were on a steady climb through the hillsides, up to the high valley where the town is located.

I arrived a bit later than I thought, so the expectation when I arrived with Maira was great. People had been waiting for a long time and the welcoming was effusive. After taking to some of the kids on Maira, we went to the multipurpose room, where I told the stories of my trip to children, aunts and collaborators. To enjoy the moment we all had some delicious ice cream that calmed a bit the hotness of the afternoon.

After a delicious late lunch a sport just was organized and I was invited to participate. It was a totally new discipline for me ... and to any other person outside the village: the Voleibomba! (volleybomb) It was an innovation added to the traditional volleyball in which holding a towel in pairs, this was used to throw and receive a balloon filled with water which was used as the volleyball. And it was an Olympic discipline! ... At least in the SOS Children's Villages Olympic Games, which are held every June 23 in honor of the birth of their founder Hermann Gmeiner. It was a very interesting hobby, but more suitable for the heat of the afternoon than the cool evenings. We were virtually all soaked when the water balloons exploded!

An SOS Village and more ...

The SOS Children's Village of Rionegro became operational in April 1997 in response to the violence in the eastern Antioquia. It currently has 13 houses staggered on the slopes of a 27,000 m² site, where there are 115 boys and girls. It also has an administrative area and extensive cultural and recreational areas. Furthermore, outside the headquarters and in two nearby towns, there are two houses where they serve 18 more children.

It is the third Colombian SOS Children's Village and is located 2000 meters above sea level, in a region that in recent years has gained economic importance. Companies in the paper, chemical and food industries have moved their headquarters in Medellin, the capital of the Rionegro province. The construction of an international airport also contributed to the expansion of infrastructure in the region.

In March 1999, an SOS Vocational Training Center for training and preparation of the SOS mothers and other partners of the organization opened, which consists of four classrooms and the needed ancillary rooms.

For young adults in the SOS Children's Village, an SOS Youth House has been built in the city. In it, young people from the village live in an apartment during their high school education or vocational training, to gradually prepare them for independent living.

In 2006, Children's Village decided to start their presence in thevillage of San Antonio de Prado with the objective of strengthening the families there, taking into account the current population density (about 90,000), and the large number of housing solutions of social interest that have been established there. The lack of community facilities and social programs and job creation, have sparked a number of social problems such as unemployment, family breakdown and abuse, among others, where children are the most affected.

The Social Center of San Antonio Prado Medellin "My House" is located in the village of San Antonio del Prado, south of the city of Medellin, a sector known as Villa Nasareth, inhabited by displaced families in the commune thirteen of the City of Medellin. It became operational on February 1, 2007 and it now serves a total of 170 families and 176 children.

SOS Children's Villages in Colombia

SOS Children's Villages began its activities in Colombia in 1968. In 1971 the first families moved to the SOS Children's Village of Bogota, the capital city. After the disaster of the volcanic eruption in 1985 that caused the landslide that covered the town of Armero, SOS Children's Village built in Guayabal, 4 km from Armero, an SOS Vocational Training Center for organic farming for men and young women from rural and indigenous origins.

This country, where the drug trade is a permanent scourge, has for years been the victim of unrest, during which many people have lost their lives. The number of orphans is very high, so in 1986 another SOS Children's Village in Ibagué was built, in the coffee-growing region. To meet the increasing number of needy children two other SOS Children's Villages in Rionegro and Floridablanca were built until 1998. The New Life SOS Social Center in Bogota, originally a center for homeless children, it now serves mothers and their children and it prepares them for a new, independent life. In 1999 came into operation the vocational training center for SOS mothers and partners Rionegro.

At the beginning of 1999, a strong earthquake struck Colombia. SOS Children's Villages of Colombia immediately launched emergency programs to provide SOS to the population in the form of clothes, blankets, food and necessary medicines. A destroyed coffee coop was completely transformed into a kindergarten for SOS Children's Villages in Colombia.

There are currently six Colombian SOS Children's Villages (Rionegro, Bogota, Floridablanca, Ibagué, Ipiales and the recently opened one in Cali), all with SOS Youth Homes, plus an SOS Kindergarten, an SOS Hermann Gmeiner School, two SOS Vocational Training Centers and eight SOS Social Centers.

An extra day

The rain was the perfect excuse to prolong my stay for one more day in the village, so I took a little walk to the town of Rionegro. At night we held a film session and we got together in one of the houses to view the videos of my visits to other SOS villages, as well as some photos from the trip. The warmth and affection of the children and the aunts was constant during the time I spent with them, leaving me a huge load of good memories to carry with me the rest of the journey...

Should we all commit?

The work of SOS Children's Villages needs your generosity to continue to develop. Should we pledge our contribution by making a donation? .

To make donations directly to the SOS Villages in Colombia you may do so via the following contact:

www.aldeasinfantilessos.org.co

Fundraising Office Colombia

Address: Carrera 57 N. 44th - 38 - La Esmeralda

Phone / Fax: 315-3739 / 482-1048

e-mail: @ amigo.sos@aldeasinfantiles.org.co 

comunicaciones@aldeasinfantiles.org.co 

Thank you for your help!

 

Acknowledgments

To Claudia Maria Restrepo, director Rionegro SOS Village: for the reception and support during the visit.

To Laura Mendivil Anaya, from the Office of Communications and Fundraising: for coordinating my meeting with the media and the people of Rionegro to realize the visit.

To Andres Felipe Velásquez: for the note done for the newspaper "El Mundo", while leaving the city of Medellin.

To all support staff and partners: for getting to the village and making sure that everything worked out without any hitches.

To all the aunts, mothers and children of the SOS Village Rionegro: for your attention and dedication. Especially to Maribel Garcia, Dora Valencia and Claudia Zapata: for the permanent company and the shared good times during my stay at the Village.

To Tatiana Zapata: for the beautiful note you gave me and that would serve me as an inspiration to continue this journey with courage and dedication.