Tia Sue writes, thinks, muses.....

Hogar de Niñas 90th anniversary

2010-04-24T16:46:00.002-06:00

Drummers from Instituto San Cristobal Drumming for the tipical dancing

Our Bishop getting ready to celebrate the Mass

Kitchen Crew preparing the lunch

Here I am in front of the beautiful flower arrangement that Funda Niños sent us

The entrance with people signing in

Easter Lunch

2010-04-18T11:27:00.003-06:00

Here we are at Pencas an great restaurant nearby with views of the bay. Susy and Ana like it because there is face painting on Sunday.

Susi.

Ana and Rosa. Ana is Susi's sister and they plus Rosa spent Holy Week with me. Susi and Ana cannot stay with their mother but I picked up their mom and two siblings and they had a great visit at McDonalds - a tradition when they are here with me. Rosa has been with us for 11 years but we couldn't find her mother (they - the director and secretary at the home couldn't). We had not had contact since January. I found her and got her to come to the home to visit Rosa and take her to the health center. Rosa is special.

Ana

Good Day with Tutoring

2010-04-10T18:02:00.002-06:00

Sorry, no picture! I have to get help with that again. Today we had 7 seniors from Collegio La Salle to help with our girls who need the most help with school things. Two of our 7th graders have quizes on Monday so they both got a tutor. One worked with 2 of the 3rd graders. One worked with Jenny, also in 3rd grade. (She needs more help). One worked with our 11 year old second grader who went to 1st grade years ago. She is doing ok. Grifina is improving a lot in 1st grade and she worked with her tutor. Angie, also 1st grade worked with her tutor. They are both improving and in addition to working on homework they had a cutting project and a cut and past project and a coloring project as their skills there need a lot of practice.

pictures

2010-03-17T13:13:00.005-06:00

susi with her new glasses. jenny, also in third grade is beside her.

we have new play equipment. the slide plus 4 swings and a set of monkey bars

here is ana, second grade, using the multiplication program.

rosa, one of our new girls, at the computer.

here is one of our newest girls using the new computer. she is practicing multiplication with a free program on the net.

2010-03-14T16:07:00.000-06:00

Saturday

2010-03-14T15:48:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I got up early and went out to the Panama Rainforest Discovery Center. You can read about at at www.pipelineroad.org. I climbed the tower with a rest at each level. On the way up I had a beautiful view of a broadbilled motmot. At the top we saw a blue cotinga, a fruit crow, some migrating broadwinged hawks, two titryars flying by. We were way above the tops of the trees looking down on them. Of in the distance we saw a boat passing through the canal. It was a very quiet and restfull experience. Back at the visitors center I sat and watch many many hummingbirds feeding at nectar feeders. Themost common feeder had beautiful white tail feathers that flared out to the side. It was a wonderful relaxing day.

School starts tomorrow!

2010-03-07T17:40:00.001-06:00

Tomorrow is the first day of school and I hope to take some pictures! Please keep the 1000s of girlsand boys going back to public and private schools here in Panama. The school year ends in December.

Basic entry level school skills.

2010-02-24T19:09:00.002-06:00

Today I checked out Aralis one of our new girls for basic school school skills. She can trace and copy her name. She's learning the vowels and can cut and color. She didn't go to kindergraten but told me that some of the tings we were doing she did at home last year. No school for her last year because she was undocumented. No birth certificate! Born at home. She has another sister with us since last year and an older sister (9) but the older one doesn't have her documents yet.

Grifina - school will be new for her as well can cut and can use a lot of practice. She can color and copy very simple shapes and color.

Iam preparing a vocabulary game tolearn to say the name of pictures that start with each of the vowels. In Spanish there is only one sound for each vowel.

And 2 more today!

2010-02-17T17:28:00.003-06:00

We welcomed two more new girls today. mailyn is 5 and the other is 6. This means that Mailyn will start school when she 'should' and the other girl will go to 1st grade. We will give her a quick kindergarten course starting tomorrow! Our young Kuna girl does understand some spanish!

Two new girls!

2010-02-16T13:18:00.001-06:00

Today is the last day of Carnival. We admitted two new girls today, sisters, Kuna. The older one speaks Spanish but the younger, 7 only Kuna!

What a nice surprise!!

2010-02-09T19:42:00.002-06:00

Graciela appeared at my bedroom door shortly after I got home (she lives with me) and said she had her injection ready for me to give her! She has been able to prepare the injection for a long time but today is a real breakthrough in responsibility. I am sooooo pleased.

Mini vacation

2010-02-07T18:32:00.002-06:00

This weekend I took a mini vacation to a nice resport nearby. I addition to just enjoying the beauty of the place and the food I took a free ride to look for night mammals well animals. We saw a small herd of capyberras and one had babies. Also viewed sme wil pigs running fast. This was complemented by a large turtle. The next day I visited the orchard, snake, reptile and fish and the butterfly house. And todatyI took a 3 hour birding walk on pipeline road. Was pleased that I could make such a long walk. Also rested alot and some of the time in a hammock.

Adult education

2010-01-30T07:13:00.002-06:00

Currently I am teaching an Adult how to read in Spanish. She is 28 and has never been to school. I have some parts of a program designed for adults and she is doing well and is motivated. I used this program a few years ago to teach a 3rd grader how to read after she didn't learn in school. She learned and has finished 7th grade.

Graciela is back

2010-01-28T18:42:00.002-06:00

Yesterday the three girls, Ana, Susy, and Rosa, went back to the home so I am sort of on vacation! Yea!! Today Graciela came back from Changuinola, Bocas del Toro after a two week visit with her family. She went to rest right away but I think she had a good visit. More later.

Hi Again

2010-01-26T06:53:00.002-06:00

I'm back. Now all of the kids have been to camp and returned. Rosa is also staying with me since her family did't pick her up after camp. She is happy to be here. Since all of the girls live at Hogar de Niñas, which will reopen from vacation tomorrow, not picking up a girl isnot as bad as it might sound. We have all just gotten up and the girls are feeding the cats and now will get ready for the day.

Hot and Dry

2010-01-20T16:38:00.002-06:00

It is hot and dry here!!! This is 'summer' (no rain) and it is usually hot but dry? Tomorrow the youngest kids go off to camp and the ones there now will comeback. I will have Susy until the 27th and her sister Ana will join me when she gets back from camp on the 24th. Friday we will go pick up Susy's new glasses.

Camp

2010-01-18T17:26:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I sent off 9 kids to our Youth Camp, 6 from the girls' home and 3 from St. Pauls. Now I am enjoying two days of quiet - Ana is visiting one of the other workers at the home, Mariella, so she and Mariella's daughter Pati can play together.

Family Visit

2010-01-15T19:40:00.002-06:00

Today we had a family visit with Susy and Ana at McDonalds. They are Kuna indiginas and live in Panama city in smething lik highrise public housing. I go to pick them up near a community feeding program building for the children of the area. Susy and Ana are with me as they cannot live with their family. Susy, who is 10, saw her Dad for the first time! Then we went to McDonalds and they have food (which I get) and they eat together and play in the play area and I sit away from them and read and do sudoku. It was a great visit.

Graciela

2010-01-14T20:05:00.002-06:00

Graciela (our adolescent with chronic kidney failure) and her mom went to Changuinola, Bocas del Toro today for a 2 week visit with her family. She went will all her dialysis equiptment. She is sleeping at one of our churche's rectories so she will have clean water and electricity to do dialysis!

Glasses

2010-01-13T19:23:00.002-06:00

We went and had Susy's eyes tested. She was very cooperative and we also got a discount! They will be ready in a week. These glasses are much stronger in the frames than before! And she likes the frames she picked out! Pink.

Wow

2010-01-12T19:55:00.001-06:00

Graciela and her mother are about to goto Changuinola to see her family - this time for 2 with dialysis equipment and all. And we got two free round trip tickets donated by Air Panama!!!

Wonderful news today!

2010-01-11T19:39:00.002-06:00

Two great things happened today. A friend called me to say she had found someone to donate enough money for Susy to get a new eye test and a new pair of glasses. This is great because she cant see well even though she learned to read in second grade last year (we are in school vacation now).

I also received notification of receiving a large donation to help a young women in Medical School. There is a group of us supporting and this donation is really wonderful.

A nice Sunday

2010-01-10T19:35:00.002-06:00

Today we went to Church at St. Paul's where I go almost every Sunday. We have a 'feed the hungry program' for which I have much responsibility. We serve sandwiches, cookies and juice to about 40 to 50 people who live a lot of their lives hungry. Today we only had sandwiches and cookies as I was too tired yesterday to buy 50 juiceboxes! It is nice to see the people over and over and some days like today some who have been away a time come back. Several of them help serve and clean up and put away tables and chairs.

The two younger girls (Susy and Ana) and I went out for lunch. At the restaurant there is a young woman clown who paints faces which the girl´s love.

A a rest we went as we often do to a nice playground near one of the Episcopal Churches' Schools. It gives them a chance to run around and let off steam.

Hope many of you have had a good day!

Hello Again!!!!

2010-01-09T11:48:00.002-06:00

This is a quick note to say that I am starting blogging again. It is part of a resolution to connect again with people I know. Here we are in january, Summer here - the dry season! School was over in December and the Hogar is resting and the kids are with relatives or friends of the home. I have three, Susy (10), Ana (8) and Graciela (17) with me until the end of January. I plan to write at least once a week and will learn to upload pictures again!

Here are some more to meet

2009-03-15T14:19:00.003-06:00

The first and the third girls are new.

Beti 13going to 6th grade. We have treated the mark aound her mouth and she looks great. She has two younger sisters whome you will meet later.

Now this is Stefani. She is 10 and going into 3rd grade.

Susi 10 years old. She'll be going to 2 grade. Susi has some vision problems and tomorrow we are going to see an optomoligo. She has a sister Ana who you will meet later.

Sinilda 11 and her sister Maria Isabel(below) 9 have been with us two years. They are the first females in their family to ever go to school. Both are good students and are going into 3rd grade.

More introductions.

2009-03-15T14:04:00.004-06:00

Here are 5 more of our girls. All that you are seeing here were with us last year. Right now we have 5 new girls andyou will be meeting them shortly. I took these photos so that the girls could get swimming pool cards. They are going swimming every Tuesday and Thursday in the afternoon!

Karla age 7and going into 2nd grade.

Evelia 7 and going into 2 grade in a special class.

Enibeth 10 going to 5th grade.

Gissell 12 going into 5th grade. Stefani is her sister.

Rosa 12 and into 6th grade in a special class.

Meet someof our girls!

2009-03-14T15:55:00.003-06:00

Here are 5 of the girls now at the home. School should be starting on Monday but it is going to start in April!

This is Daliana, age 16, entering 9th grade.

Maria, age 11, entering 4th grade

Omaira, 19, just returnedfrom 3 years studying in Spain. (She had a schlorship from the first lady of Panama) Learning English and preparing to go to the University in 2010. She is living with her Godparents and spends some time with us.

Johana, age 11, going into 6th grade.

Kenia, age 11, going into 6th grade.

Please don't be concerned that some of the ages don't match up with where they are in school. One of the Girls' Home goals is to enable girls to go to school, with needed resources (from toilet paper, pencils and chalk for the teacher to mention just a few). Many have not attneded school reguelaly when they come to us.

We have 20 girls on the rolls right now so there will be more introductions.

Success at uploading a picture

2009-03-12T13:47:00.003-06:00

Procession of the massed choirs at the diocesian convention. I had success today in uploading a picture so with luck I can be back bloging.

Girls at the Hogar

2009-02-08T15:31:00.003-06:00

We have three new girls and 4 have gone to live with parent or parents. Two of these graduated from 9th grade, one, an older sister of one of the graduates and the 4th at her request after finishing sixth grade.

Today Ihad promised myself that I would add to my blog! BUT - I can upload pctures today.

Tia Sue

Happy New Yearfrom Tia Sue and Firecat

2009-01-02T10:35:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year from Firecat who is adjusting to living in an apartment. While he lived in Gamboa with friends he was and indoor outdoor cat. Now he is an indoor cat who wants to go out. At first he tried hard and in the meantime destroyed a couple of screens. He found a way to het out through the wrought iron door even though it had screen all over it! Now he can't get out through the door. Recently he goes out on a long leash attached to a harness and tied to a chair. I have to stay with him as he can remove the harness!!! He is by my side as I write this.

Here is a view on Ancon hill with the Panamianian Flag. It's the view from my front door. As you can see it is a summer day - dry and a bit windy. We are in the dry season.

Blessings, Tia Sue

Christmas Cards from the Girls

2008-12-29T11:22:00.002-06:00

The girls made Christmas cards for members of the Junta Directiva. Here are some. If you click on the picture it will enlarge. This is Daliana who just finished 8th grade. Remember that the school year here is from March to December.

Sinilda with her card. She and her sister were the first women in their families to go to school. They have both finished second grade with flying colors and both can read well. Also, their niece (who is the same age) went to school this year and also their younger sister went to Kindergarten.

Johana with her card. She has done well in the 5th grade this year. Johana has been with use since 1st grade.

Chochi or Maria Isabel is Sinildas sister. She had the highest average of the primary school students, 94!

Stefani has just finished 2nd grade and has done well. Stefani really likes to help.

More this week, Tia Sue

Felíz Navidad desde Panama

2008-12-26T11:35:00.002-06:00

Christmas party at the Home. We have finished our Christmas lunch (ham, potato salad etc. and are now giving out gifts. Santa Clause this year is the director and her helper is Yanitzia. Here Maria is receiving her gift. We are outside the chapel, living rrom and study area for the girls who can study independently.

Sinilda is showing off the doll she chose from a fine assortment of dolls given to the girls by a friend of the home.

This is the Nativity scene outside St. Pauls. It has a little fence around it as it is on the side walk near the entrance to the building. The star is my contributation, made from foam with a sticky side so it is adhering well to the wall. The custom is to put a few coins in a little cup when passing by.

Celebration of the life of Elizabeth Leigh

2008-09-19T14:48:00.002-06:00

Today we celebrated the completed life of Lizzy Leigh. The service was in the Balboa Union Church, which she attended a lot, switching from St, Lukes to Balboa Union and sometimes to St. Mary´s a Catholic Church nearby. She often went to two of these on a Sunday. Her ashes are in a simple metal box under the veil. (If you click on the pictures they will enlarge.)
The service was at Balboa Union because the Episcopal Cathedral is getting a new roof. Lizzy is holding John about 29 years ago. Mary, her daughter, pulled together a lot of pictures which were stuck to a large bedspread downstairs in the parish hall.

As you can see the church was full - I estimate between 400 and 500 people. For about 40 minutes before the service were a number of musical offerings, solos, choir and instrumental, celebrating Lizzy´s contributions to music, choirs, helping young musicians.
The Episcopal Bishop of the Diocese of Panama was the celebrant. Rev. Michael Dresbach helped plan, coordinated, and preached the sermon. We sang a number of wonderful hymes: What is This Place, My Life Flows On, Earth and All Stars, Come My Way My Truth My Life, Come Down O Love Devine, Sing My Tongue the Glorious Battle and All Creatures of Our God and King. (You can look them up by name using Google.)
At the commendation of the body, the Bishop asked us to applaude her into heaven, like an applause for an encour. For the Prayers of the People, all of the members of her family got up and each one read a section. The service ended with the choir (Cantemus) and instruments proforming Worthy Is the Name of the Lord, from Handel´s messiah. Lizzy´s sisters Martha and Kate and her daughter Mary joined the choral group. One the left is her sister Martha and on the right Kate.

Elizabetth Leigh (Lizzy)

2008-09-15T13:15:00.004-06:00

My very good friend Elizabeth Leigh died Saturday morning of heart failure. She had been in the hospital in intensive care for more than 4 weeks. Here she is sitting in her living room. Lizzy was a singer and played the Viola. She sang in just about every choir in Panama in the more than 30 years she had lived here. She was also active in The British Aid Society which provided care and visits for, at first, elderly Afro-antillians and later anyone who had no one to care for them. Lizzy was know for her extra delicious baked chicken and here she is showing us the one we are about to eat. You can see from the background that her house was full of a great variety on wonderful thing. Books and baskets and carvings from wounan indiginas were one of her joys. She acted as a middle person for the sale of indiginous arts and crafts - always paying up front.

. Here she is at her dining room table. Her husband, Dr. Egbert Leigh, (a senior scientist at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute here in Panama) is in the background. Lizzy and Bert and their Children Mary and John have been my extended family for more than 20 years. I learned a lot from lizzy - a lot of practical things. One was how to pick up a snake without getting bitten. This lesson was when a small BOA (12 to 15 inches) fell from a rafer under her house where a group learning basket weaving was working. Unter her tutaledge I have also learned to make delicious chocolate sauce from scratch.

She will be greatly missed by her friends and colleagues.

Multiplication

2008-09-10T19:52:00.002-06:00

Three primary school girls are playing a multiplication game found at www.multiplication.com. It is a really fun and effective way for kids to practice. Here they are playing the video game the can play after answering 15 facts correctly.
Another picture of the same thing.
Guissell is concentrating on doing long division. The format for division is always 3579 : 16.

Birthday Parties at the home.

2008-09-10T19:12:00.004-06:00

Tuesday was Enibeth´s 10th birthday.
Although we celebrate Birthdays all together every month sometimes a girl´s godmother will get a cake for the very day. This is very typicle of birthday cakes here. You can see the basket of recycled candles. I will give Eni a picture of the cake and one of the pictures below. Turning 10 means some new challenges for her. She will now wash her own clothes by hand and also learn to iron and be responsible to iron her school uniforms and dress for church on Sunday. Here she is with all 10 candles lit. On her right is the director, Elba Flores, and next to her is Guissell and the left is Mari Isabel who shares the same last name but is not closely related. Next to her is Evelia. This year Eni has mastered the multiplication tables.
Here is the whole gang - just about. The adult on the right is one of the House Mothers or child care workers. She grew up in the home and is now studying in the University at night.
The three in the blue shirts are in middle school or junior high - grades 7,8,9 and the two with while shirts and blue ties are in High School. To the right is our secretary Beni, who also grew up in the home. She too is going to the University at night. Our well liked cook is on the left, nearer to Eni and the other woman does the laundry - sheets, towels, Sunday clothes and mends. She also washes the youngest kids clothes.
Here she is making a wish! If you make a comment I can show it to the girls and also they can use my blog to answer through comments.

Get to know the Girls´ Home

2008-09-07T18:51:00.003-06:00

The introductory sentences for this blog are at the end. I haven´t acquired all of the skills of puting a blog together. Here are Maria and Stefani on the swing set. In the background ate the windows of the youngest girls´dorm and the stencil flowere, beed and butterflies adorning the wall. (You can make the picture BIG by clicking on it.) The door on the left leads into our computer room.
The front part of our busito (a 15 pasenger van into which we can get a lot of people). The director of the home is on the right. Next to her is Evelia, then Stefani and Maria. They are about to leave for school. All are in the afternoon turn of school. They do homework in the morning.
Graciela by the door leading to the Parking lot.
Posing in front of our sign are Maria, Rosa, Guiselle, and her sister Stefani. Afternoon school is from 12:30 to 5:30 - 6 for the oldest girls.
Here is a view of the porch where the girls do homework and also hang out and play. Behind it is the the classroom where most of the girls have a desk and do their homework. This year only 4 girls really study independently!

Here are some pictures of the home itself. I took them for a report the director was making for MIDES - minesterio de desarollo social - which over sees us.

pictures

2008-09-06T12:57:00.002-06:00

Here are the girls in our dining room. It is probably breakfast since they have bowls and their blue plastic glasses. Pro niñez bought us the tables and chairs a couple of years ago. Some of the old ones could have been from the very beginning of the home 87 years ago.
This is Maria - our newest girl. She is 11 and in third grade. She came with a lot of medical problems but we have worked on a lot of them and are continuing to do so - so she is much better!
Four of the primary girls ready for school and posing in front of our sign.

Now I can use pictures again. My new computer (the first one I have owned) is great. I love it.

I´m back in Panama.

2008-09-05T11:19:00.002-06:00

I have been back in Panama for about 10 days and I have been really busy. This week is take kids to the Dr. week. Graciela had her monthly appointment of control and an appointment with a cardiologist. (She is our young woman with kidney failure.) He hemoglobin is going up ' from a low of 5 it is now up to 10.4 ' this is due to a new manufacturer of the medicine she receives to help her make hemoglobin plus a lot of iron tonic. Her heart is ok but is somewhat enlarged because of the severe anemia. I saw her school grades today and they are good 'basically as they always are.

Yesterday was take 3 adolescents to their monthly psyquiatric appointment. The Dr talks to one of them alone and then works with the three together. He also saw our newest girl and he says that she appears to have some syndrome. We are working with her on various medical fronts and she is growing and doing better. Even though she is overage (11) to receive the special nutrative crema (a drink) he was able to get her 6 one pound bags. She will get it twice each day with extra milk. She is gaining weight but is not getting taller as yet.

The last Sunday I was in Philly I had a chance to preach about my work here and got some deeply appriciated donation. Also the Sunday School at my home church is going to try to raise some money each month to buy more fruit.

I bought a new computer (my first - a laptop) and think I will be able to add pictures to my blog again soon.

Blessings, Sue

Hi from Philly

2008-08-18T18:59:00.003-06:00

I am part way through a 2 week vacation in Philly. It is nice to be here and things are going well. I have spent time in a book store almost every day. There are a number near where I am staying - Barnes and Noble, Boaders, the Penn Bookstore (also a Barnes and Nobel but geared more towards a university community). I have shared meals with a number of friends and spent today with my oldest grandson (Saveen, 12). We ate Korean food, went to The Academy of Natural Sciences (visited the butterfly house and a exhibition on the work of Gregor Mendal - who discovered genetics. He was very interested in the latter. At the museum bookstore we got a small 3-D puzzle of a dinosaur with 20 pieces which I needed help help with. After that we had icecream and then played farkle - a fun game using 6 dice. I am going to try to get some pictures on line.

GRANVENTA de PATIO *** PATIO SALE

2008-08-08T16:25:00.002-06:00

Yesterday and today a number of us prepared for the Giant Garage sale. Not in a garage but in the parish hall Saint Paul's. There were a number of volunteers and we unpacked, priced, hung up (after a church member putup some wire for us to use).

The big sale is tomorrow and I'll write about it later. I have a lot of pictures --- so hope to be able to get them posted soon - I just need a little help!

Good News

2008-08-06T14:47:00.001-06:00

Today was Graciela´s monthly appointment and good news - her hemoglobin is increasing. Now it is 9.8 - it was down to 5 once and 6.2 more recently and she had to have two blood transfusions. Now with a different brand of one of her important medications she is making her own hemoglobin again.

I have lots of pictures but need some help in getting them into the computer - so please be patient.

Fire Cat

2008-08-03T16:36:00.001-06:00

To see a picture of Fire Cat do back to my January 1st entry.

Fire Cat

2008-08-03T16:36:00.000-06:00

To see a picture of Fire Cat do back to my January 1st entry.

Back from Bocas and more

2008-08-03T16:13:00.002-06:00

Friday morning, still in Bocas, I went to a beautiful, new , botanical Garden and had a great tour with the owner and creator. You can enjoy it too: www.botanicalgardenbocasdeltoro.com It was a wonderful two hours because it is a beautiful place with 40 varieties of heliconia, lots of different ginger plants, lots of palm tree from around the world - including 4 or 5 travelers' palm which are 4 years old. We saw monkeys. Another great thing was that I learned that I can make a two hour slow walk, some of open ground, up some hills and down, using my cane! That is like opening a new world for me. (the cane is for my aching knees).

I got back to the hotel before 11 and had a quick lunch from the gourmet shop next door, showered, checked out, and headed walking to a water taxi that would take me to Changuinola in an hour. I now can consider doing something in a boat. The trip was delightful, through an inland waterway - not bumpy. It left me at Finca 60 - that is a banana finca - and then I took a taxi to the airport. Graciela and her mother showed up in pleanty of time and then came two or three brothers to send her aff back to Panama. I got a promise form Roberto (brother closest to her age) to come back with me to Panama City in January to talk to her doctor and have some preliminary tests to see if he could be a candidate to donate a kidney to her. Pray for us.

Yesterday, Saturday, was fairly regular. I often help a university student with English on Saturday afternoon - and I did this day too. Went out to lunch with a friend and then drove to Gamboa to vist the friends I aften visit on weekends - the Leighs, their three cats and two dogs, and my special cat friend, firecat.

Today was church. Next Saturday is our big Patio Sale - aimed at providing clothes for the people who live in the neighborhood and the people who part of our food for the hungry program. We gave between 20 and 30 people a snadwhich, juice and cookies to have for the supper on Sunday. They get a bag of food on the 4th Sunday. They themselves help with the distribution of the food and also with packing the bags on the morning of the 4th Sunday. Several also help out on Sunday morning mopping up spills, sweeping, and moving things in and out of the kitchen. One of the youth group makes the sandwiches and another woman packs the juice and cookies in a bag to give out. Today when wecame down from the service I couldn't find the juice and cookies and said to my friend who packs them ' someone stole the juice and cookies!' She said no, she had hidden them (in the oven!).

Water Taxi and Butterfly Garden

2008-07-31T11:26:00.003-06:00

This morning after a breakfast of hot choclate, oange juice, fruie and eggs scrambled with bacon (this is part of my room at El Hotel Bahia) I found a water taxi and went to a near by Butterfly Garden. The day is beautiful and sunny. It was marvelous walking through the garden house and have colorful butterflys flitting around. I got some pictures and will try to post some eventually.

Tomorrow I am going to do something adventurous. I will take a small boat (18 seats) from Bocas to Changuinola - arriving there at about 1:30. Then I will meet Graciela at the airport aand we fly back to Panama at 4:40. Thats the plan si Dios quire.

I am back!!!

2008-07-30T09:46:00.002-06:00

Greetings from Bocas del Toro in Western Panama. Yesterday Graciela and I flew to Changuinola in Bocas de Toro province so that she can visit her family at her home for 4 days. Her mom and brother Roberto were at the airport to meet her and after exchanging greetings they went off to shop for the food she needs - and the rest of the family can enjoy. I will meet her in the airport Friday about 2 and we will fly back to Panama and her dialysis machine. Right now I am on Isla Colon in Bocas Town staying at an historic hotel and enjoying having time to do different things. I will leave by boat for Changinola abot noon on Friday.

This week and next the kids are on school vacation. School is half over for the year (March to December) so many are visiting family and some are staying at the home.

I have recovered almost completely from my breast Cancer operation and treatment. I still have to have followup appointment (rest of my life) and am taking tomoxifen for the next 2 or 3 years - with very few side effects. Dry eye is one and I use artificial tears for that. I occasionally have a hot flash.

At the beginning of June I had a new experience. On Monday morning my heart started to beat very hard and I had pain in my jaw, neck and shoulders. I drove to the Diocesian office and the Bishop and a very nice young man -Oscar - took me to the emergency room and ultimately I was in the semi intenisve car unit ar Hospital Santo Tomas (a hospital for people with few resources and one that has very up to date heart equipment) I only stayed in the SICU for 12 hours and was moved to the cardiac floor and ward at 4 AM! I then stayed 4 days, stopped taking a lot of the medicine I have been taking and getting some new ones. I am doing very well and have most of my energy back.

At the home I continue doing primarily two things besides being a general backup help. Those are taking the girls who are sick to their appointments and taking accutely sick kids to a nearby clinic. Most of our appointments are at Children's Hospital, Cerro Batea Health Center and occasional others. Graciela has a monthly appointment at Childrens for follow up of her chronic kidney failure and one of our new girls this year has had a lot of appointments with various disciplines since she came to us with a LOT of untreated medical problems. At Cerro Batea, one of the Ministry of Health centers 3 young adolescents see a Psychiatrist once a month and several have been tested by the psycholgist. Getting up early is a part of some of these appointment as it waiting. I always take something for me to do and also something for the girls.

The home is doing well but along with the rest of the world we are experiencing higher prices and therefor less spending power. If you feel like supporting our work get in touch with me by leaving a comment or writing to me.

In August I am going to Phildelphia for two weeks and looking forward to it. I shall enjoy the bookstores, museums, seeing my grandchildren and son, watching the olimpics on TV.

Recently I added to our library (kids library) by buying a nice lot of books on sale (10% to 70% with a few doller books thrown in) at my favorite chain of books stores here Hombre de la Mancha. We have a inpressive but messy library and the kids do a lot of reading.

A few musings on Sunday

2008-04-13T17:45:00.002-06:00

Recently I visited Evelia's teacher - Maestra Ana. This yesr she is teaching 1st grade. The two years previous she taught 3rd and then 4th grade. She has had some of our girls who needed a lot of good support and she did well with them. I asked her how she liked teaching 1st grade and she said it is very busy. She likes Evelia and wants to keep her in her class although Evelia has a lot of learning differences and seem to me to be functioning on about a 3 year old level.

Last Wednesday I took her to have the first part of an IQ test - by a psychologist with the Ministry of Health. While waiting I took out some photos I had of some of the girls to show her and Guiselle (who was my assistant - helping me with Evelia who might wander away while I am paying the bill). I was astounded that Evelia could not say the name of most of the girls! I knew her expressive vocabulary was small but thought that after living a year with us she would be able to say their names. So, in the next couple of days I did a little "testing" and found that she knows all the girls' names when asked to give me the picture of "Jane" or to point to one of them. So I am going to try out deemphasizing saying the answer and let her choose it by pointing and then repeating the the name after I say it. In the year she has been with us she has not learned to say the correct name of a color when asked. Maybe we can get further along by emphasizing a moter response (pointing). Another very weak area for her is anything with a pencil - although she has learned to color, so that writing the answer isn't an option. I'll keep you informed.

Many of the youth who go to St. Paul's Church are from the neighborhood so very few go on to university after high school. Our priest, Glenda, asked me to help one young woman who is going to the U and who is struggling with English. We have set up an appointment for Wednesday at 3:30. If this works out she and I will have made one of the first steps towards having homework help at St. Paul's.

Blessings, Tia Sue

Update without pictures

2008-04-11T10:01:00.002-06:00

We have a new staff member and one more girl has been added to the roles. Sra Carolina is working out well as a child care worker replacing Sra Secundina.

Our new girl is Maria del Carmen. She is 10 - almost 11 - and is in third grade and a good student. She came to us with a lot of medical problems so the last couple of weeks I have been focused on taking her to appointments as well as a taking a couple of others. The infections that she had are cleared up thanks to modern medicine and morderm medicines. Now we are looking into other medical issues. We have done the priliminary stuff at Childrens Hospital and she started with a Cardiology Apt. on the 22. She is cute, bright and personable and is doing well in school.

School is starting its second month. We have 2 in first grade, 3 in second, 2 in 3rd. These girls all need a lot of supervision and help to do their homework. All our girls go to school in the public schools nearby. We also have girls in every grade from 4th to 10th. I do a lot of help with math and have mastered it up through 7th grade ' which is not high enough to to help Yanitcia with Algrbra II. We do have a group of students doing their social service work on Saturdays and they are a big help. The two in 10th grade take French as well as English and one of the teachers who comes with the girls from LaSalle, speaks French and is helping them

Tia Sue

Social Service Work

2008-03-22T10:27:00.004-06:00

We are blessed with many 11 and 12th graders doing the required 80 hours of social service required of every student in Panama. Yesterday we started with a group which worked with us last year when they were in 11th grade. They are from La Salle a private school and they like to have me speak to them in English. Now in 12th they are back for 8 weeks and each have one or more girls assigned to them. These pictures are from another group of social service students from a different school who were with us in February. In this picture a student is working with Kenia on practicing the multiplication tables.
Here Sinilda is working on reading or math. She is one of the two girls (sisters) who attended school last year as the first women in their family to go to school. Both did well in school and are now in 2ond grade. There is no (or possible only a very small chance) that one of them could skip a grade to bring her up closer to her age peers. This year her older sister is sending her girls and boys to school with money she makes by selling me backets and masks which I then sell to people visiting the church here.
This young women is working with Evelia. Evelia has some learning differences. After 3 weeks she had learned to print the first two letters of her first name - and that is quite an accomplishment.
Here Graciela is improving her skills in writing paragraphs and in understanding what she reads. She is in 6th grade this year and again I am helping her with math. While I was visiting my dad in the last three years of his life I set about reviewing arithmatic and basically I have mastered it up through 7th grade plus a very little bit of beginning algebra. Yesterday I helped Graciela with subtraction with natural numbers (the ones we count with) because she had to understand some properities of subtraction. One is that if you add the difference (that is the answer) to the smaller number you will get the bigger number. This has a special name in Spanish. The second is that if you subtract a 0 from any number the difference (answer will be the number you subtracted from) and right now I can't remember the third one but when I have the book in had I can explain it!

The last week was very full and we received a new girl into the home who is Maria. I will post pictures and introduce her soon.

Tia Sue

Palm Sunday Pictures

2008-03-22T09:40:00.005-06:00

Here we are Palm Sunday getting ready to bless the palms outside the front door of Saint Pauls. Read the entry made last week that tells about Palm Sunday without pictures.
If you click on the picture and make it big you will notice that both people have palms and the policeofficer has a pink paper which invited all in the neighborhood to Celebate Easter with us. WE also had a two motercycle escort and at least one of them had his palm and paper on the back.
Here Reverenda Glenda is giving palms to a neighbor and if you look carefully the neighbor who lives upstairs has lowered a rice bag on a rope and Glenda is inserting palms and pink papers. The two youth are members of St. Pauls. The young man in yellow has finished training to be an acolyte.
This young man is happy to receive his palm.

Here you can see the length of the procession. The man at the back is bringing up the rear.

Valentine Mural

2008-03-21T10:36:00.003-06:00

This is the mural that the girls made for Valentines Day using the new and old Sizzix (A MACHINE TO CUT VARIOUS THINGS into great designs. They also did a couple of heart projects that I had suggested. That day or the day before they all learned to fold a piece of paper and cut out a heart. We start with magazine pages for practice and then use the colored paper. Click on the picture to see it BIG.

Palm Sunday at St. Pauls and after

2008-03-16T19:15:00.002-06:00

Sorry no pictures tonight but I have a lot so they will come later.

Our Palm sunday service began with blessing of the palms and then a procession around two blocks of the community. We had extr palms to give out to people passing by and pink flyers to invite people to our Easter Celebration next Sunday. The youth and many others were very active in giving out palms and many youth and I gave out the flyers too. Taxi drivers were stopping to request palms; one man ran dow srom the second floor to get two; at another apartment a family lowered an empty rice bag on a rope to haul up palms. There were many other similar stories. We had a two motercycle police excort with at least one of the moter cycles with a palm leaf attached to the back with the pink flyer. I have many pictures.

We arrived back at the church and contined the service with a traditional reading of the passion story. We have trained some new acolytes and they (6) ranging from 12 year old or so to one in the tercera edad (older). They will all serve next Sunday.

After the service we had our breakfast as always and gave sandwiches, cookies, and juice to those of us who wouldn't have dinner on a Sunday evening, something that we do every week. There are 3 or 4 of us to make sure this happens for about 15 to 25 people each Sunday.

The third Sunday of each month it is my turn (as a vestry member) to help could the offering money - so we did that.

Then I bought a cell phone card (to add money to a cell phone) for a sick friend so she could make as well as receive calls. I also took her a bulletin and a palm.

Next was lunch and the restaurant was uncharactically packed at 2 PM. I singed up for a table for 1 (frequently I go to this restaurant (Pencas) by myself and enjoy lunch and reading La Prensa, one of the news papers here. Today while witing for a table I started a conversation with a English speaking man and his wife. She had worked -voluntered - at an orphanage in Bolivia. After they got a seat they realized I was alone they can back and asked me to join them and I had a delightful lunch. We exchanged e-mails and phone numbers.

Next on the list was a visit to a nursing home where a member of St. Pauls (almost 88) and a friend (81) live. I took them crosses made from palms. We sang, I told them about the service, we did a short form of evening prayer. They both speak English (and Spanish) but do have many visitors or other people to speak English with. While there I made a new friend Tony Lee, who speaks Spanish and is younger but probably had brain damage or is retarded. He will have to become one of the people I visit.

By now it was 5 so I drove back to Gamboa to visit my friends human and animal (cats and dogs)

Pictures will come soon.

Tia Sue

Another treatment notice

2008-03-16T19:09:00.003-06:00

Friday I had an appointment with my oncologist - a wonderfull doctora whom I like very much. I thought we were going to talk more about the "after radiation" treatment - but the tamoxifen treatment (1 pill a day for 2 years followed by a change in medication) began Saturday. The most obvious to everyone side effects are hotflashes, a lot of sweating and suddenly turning red. Turning red is the one that interests me the most so I will let you know when that happens. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

I'm ready for radiation therapy

2008-03-12T17:03:00.002-06:00

Today I had two tatoos and a mold made to hold me in the right position for the upcoming radiation therapy. It will start MOnday and then M-F for 6 weeks at 2:30 PM. To celebrate this, after a talk with a friend by phone, I went to Crapes and Waffles (it is here in Panama) and had a passion fruit drink, a super salad and some almond ice cream.

Pictures first day of school.

2008-03-11T13:50:00.002-06:00

This is a typical school - all public schools are apinted like this. This is not a school where any of our girls go. It is in the middle of banana plantations in Bocas del Toro. If you click on the picture it will enlarge. Most of the primary school girls lined up for the usual picture. Starting at the left: Graciela (6th), Sini (2), Chochi (2), Karla(1st).Guisel (4), Estefani (2) Eni (4) Evelia (1st), Johana (5th), Dona (6th). Missing is Kenia (6) who was washing the lunch dishes.
Here are Guisel and her little sister Karla with a Evelia in the back seat of the van. The are the last kids to be delivered to school because if they were the first group they have too much free time!
Yanitcia ready for 10th grade.
Yeri ready for 10th grade.

Missing are the Jr. high kids - I'll post them later.

First day of school

2008-03-10T17:54:00.004-06:00

Sorry no pictures tonight! Today was the long awaited first day of school. All our girls go to school for the afternoon session after doing their homework in the morning. That session, vespertina, starts at 12:30 and ends at 5:30 for primary school and 6:03 for secundary school. All of the primary girls in regular classes - the majority - went to school in their new uniforms (donation), new shoes, and with one notebook and a pencil or pen depending on the grade. Many of the girls have the same teacher they had last year - which is good in all cases. For the first time in their school carera Johana and Kenia will be different classrooms - in 5th grade. Both of these girls are excellent students.

The Jr. High girls didn't have school and probably wont all week because the parents of the morning session had a big demonstration and blocked a major highway - so classes are cancelled at Leon A Soto Jr. High at least until next week.

We have two girls entering 10th grade (highschool or segundo ciclo) The have new uniforms and also. Both said that the first day was good. They were in different schools last year and are good students. Yeri, now 15, has been with us since she was 18 months old and so has spent her entire school carera with us. Yanitcia, also 15, started first grade with us and also is a good but somewhat rebellous student. She has a gift of drawing.

After several years of looking I found dry erase pens in all the basic colors. Since the K to 2 kids get home an hour earlier than the others we had fun with them - having the kids write the name of the color. Just by having this short fun activity I now know the Estefani and Chochi (second grade) need to practice writing the letter Z (in cursive - they write in cursive from the start), practice woords with Y and LL which make a very similar sound and start to learn the words that start with B and which start with V (which basically have the same sound in spanish. Vaca is cow and verde is green.

Hope to post some pictures tomorrow or Wednesday. We still don't have internet at the home.

Visit to Bocas - part 3

2008-03-05T17:02:00.003-06:00

This is the school where Graciela went to school before she got sick. Other of the family have attended here as well. SHe has one younger brother who goes to 6th grade here this year.
Let me introduce Roberto, Graciela's brother who is one year older than she is. He is 17, is going into 10 th grade, likes math and received a years average in math of 92.
Graciela's older sister who is 34 and did not have the opertunity to go to school. Her kids are in school though.
The very best thing that could happen for Graciela is that a relative give a kidney. The family nad I had a talk about it in the airport. The first thing I told them was that we each (most of us )have two kidneys that that giving on to Graciela would not mean that they would die. We talked about that imn detail and about what the first steps would be to give this gift of love to her. Roberto is interested to see if he is a match and he asked me to take this picture of the book I gave them. Click on the picture to make it bigger. Pray for them both.

Meet Crystel

2008-03-05T16:51:00.004-06:00

This is Crystel in the blue dress. Her sister Johana is trying to have her close her mouth for the picture but she didn't get the idea. Although her cerebral palsey is mild and she hears and understands she doesn't talk.

You may remember that I have talked about Crystel, a now 5 year old with mild cebral palsey. I have know her for two years. She was in a special school of kids with CP last year and will start again next week when school starts here. Her sister Johana lives with us at the home and another sister is in 12th grade this year and I hope will go on to the U. All three girls are part of my ministry of education for girls. After a lot of talking on my part and showing her much older half sister (with whom she lives) how to help her learn to be independent she now dresses and undresses, feeds herself, walks up and down stairs with no help, can get on and off her bed, play, run etc.

Our Swimming Party

2008-03-05T16:29:00.004-06:00

Here are several of our girls enjoying the wonderful pool at Tia Norma's house in coronado.
Graciela enjoying the hamock and the gazibo. For lunch we had fried chicken, rice with chicken - later they had ham and cheese sandwiches, cookies, burundanga (junk food).
Our cook, Sra. Elvira and new childcare worker, Sra Maria.
Evelia in the shallow pool with a beach ball. It was punctured by a spiny plant later.

The Girls' home is my home again

2008-03-04T20:05:00.002-06:00

After more than two months away (look at an earlier blog to see why) I have returned to live in my little room at the girls' home. I have my bed and pillows all set up and the room is full of stuff much of which I am going to move to an alternate place more accessinle to the girls and staff. More later.

Wonderful Swimming and Picnic

2008-03-04T19:59:00.002-06:00

All of the girls and much of the staff went to Coronado where Norma, a long time member of the board, has a beach home - a bit off the beach but a wonderful place to have a picnic and for the girls to swim all day in tje kidney shaped pool. No picts because I could't get them to load up tonight. We arrive about 10 and by 10:30, after reminding them of rules of the pool and rules of the house (e-g- if you walk in the cut grass you must rinse your feet). Everyone was very cooperative and we had a really great time. I will try to post some picts tomorrow but I am not going to stop writing because the up load doesn't work.

More Bocas del Toro

2008-02-28T11:52:00.002-06:00

This is the path approaching Graciela's house. We walked in for about 10 minutes from the road. After we got everything together in Changuinola - finding her brother at Restaurante Lissett where two brothers work, resting, then buying food for Graciela and her family while she was there as her diet is restricted (kidney failure), we got on a bus headed for Almirante which would pass the school and a store at Loma Muleto. First we had to cross the bridge over the Changuinola river. This is a one lane bridge which has railroad tracks on it as it serves both vehicles and trains. The bridge is old and the boards that serve as the road bed are moveable. The government is building a new bridge beside it. We then reached the school and got off. Her two youngest brothers ages 11 and 13 were waiting at the bus stop. I think they had not seen eachother for 5 years.
The walk was medium difficulty with a few places where I needed help - around a muddy spot, jumping over a stream and walking across a log over the stream which you can see in this picture! If you click on the picture it will enlarge and you can see the house, Graciela and Beni (secretary at the home). Her mother was back helping me - but I made it with little trouble.
Here is a chicken - it belongs to the youngest of her brothers Oiden - he is very proud of it. In the blue/green chair are chocolate seed - Cocoa.
Here I am looking up to the house which is on stilts. The baby is one of her nephews and the others are brothers. Later I sat in the hammock. One brother demonstrated for me how to sit into it and as you can see in the previous posting I did! The little boy is sick with diarrea and I told the family how to make rehydration drink -- in a glass of clean water put a palm full of sugar and a three finger pinch of salt.
Here is the baby again. Also one of his uncles!

More this weekend.

Tia Sue

A bit about Tia Sue

2008-02-28T10:46:00.003-06:00

Hi, here I am sitting in a hammock at Graciela´s house in Loma Muleto, Bocas del Toro province in Panamà. I have not written in my blog since early January - but I have been busy. Towards the end of November I had a slightly late but routine mammogram. In the right breast image was a suspicious spot so that the next week I had an ultra sound. The results a few days later suggested a biopsy. That day I went to a specialist in breast cancer ( Dr. Godoy and his son Dr. Godoy) and had a needle biopsy. The doctors explained in detail what the options would be depending on various results. We did know that the mass was small. Those results didn't come out with a clear answer - so, after Christmas, on December 28 I had an outpatient needle directed surgical biopsy. The next day the diagnosis was a cancer. The followup of that was removal of lymph nodes from the right armpit. All 13 of them were negative for cancer. Since then all of the other tests and results have come out in the very best way; a small cancer (size of a pea), no spresd to the lymph nodes, progesteron and estrogen positive (this is good), some other parameter negative (also good), bone scan good, lungs clear, liver showed no cancer (but is fatty!)

I have received womderful support from people in my church, other missionaries, the Bishop and the staff and girls at the girls home. Clearly I am recovered from the surgery - as I made this trip. I am doing excercises. My prayer life has deepened. I now have an oncologist, a wonderful Panamian / brasilian woman, Dr. Picardí and a radiation therapist, Dr. Araruz. The next step is 6 weeks of radiation which will start next week or after. That will be followed by Tamoxaphen or one of the newer drugs.

I am moving back to live at the home this coming weekend.

I feel very blessed by the positive diagnosis (98% chance on no recurance) and by the many people who have taken me to the hospital, provided a bed directly after surgery, given me a place to live where I couold take it easy, talked to me.

I have also been doing a lot - some think too much - as you will see as you continue to read this blog.

Please keep me in your prayers and thoughts.

Tia Sue

Bocas del Toro

2008-02-28T09:55:00.002-06:00

On Tuesday, the 26th of February three of us at ther home got up early - at 4 AM! These included Graciela (the teen who has kidney failure and does paretineal dialysis every night), Beni our secretary and myself. We had been looking forward to this day for a long time as we traveling to Changuinola in the province of Bocas del Toro so that Graciela could visit her family, visit her home in Loma Muleto, and stay there two nights. (Occasionally she can skip dialysis for two nights - which made this trip possible.) We arrived at the airport at 5:30 AM and left in a small plane (anout 25 passengers) at 6:35. The flight is a little over an hour to Bocas island where most passengers left. Then there was a 10 minute flight to Changuinola where we were met by two wonerdful members of the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguartion, Eunice and Isabel. Graciela's mother showed up a bit late and then we went off to the Church. On the way we passed the restautant where one of Graciela´s brothers works, stopped, met him and left her mother and her for a while.
The foto above is Changuinola airport.

Here you can see Graciela (red shirt) at her house her two younger brothers (one is holding her nephew) and behind is an older brother and his wife.

There is more to come!

Epifani

2008-01-07T13:35:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful Epithany service at St. Pauls. It included the confirmation of 22 or maybe 24 kids who have been having classes with Walter Smith and others for a long time. Many of them know me by name and call me Tia Sue because I have been sitting with various groups of them on Sundays and helping them follow the service and learn to be quieter - especially during the eucharist. Many (most) of the kids are from the neighborhood of the church - which is really great.
Each kid needed to have a god parent from the congegation. On the 30th one of the boys came up to me, greeted me, kissed me on both cheeks and asked me to be his godmother. At practice on Saturday we were sitting together and he asked me if I would 'look pretty' the next day. After explaiing that I am 'a little like a nun' (because I dress simply and don't use lipstick) I assured him yes. I borrowed earrings from Jo Ellen and a necklace. I think I passed. His sister who was his community godmother was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt with firworks on it!

The service lasted for 3 hours. Bishop Julio was his old self (he has been sick). After the service there was a ligt lunch planned but the food never arrived this time! (At a December event it arrived 3 hours late.) We had something for everyone however. Yasuri (one of the neighbort hood young women who was confirmed 2 years ago and I made the sandwiches for our feed the hungry project and we gave them out after the service discretely in small bags. They get a sandwhich, juice box and cookies.

Today is a holiday (on a Monday instead of Wednesday). They call it una dia feriada puente when they celebrate a day on other than the date and it is close to the weekend. January 9th is Dia de los materes - when a number of students was killed while raising a panamanian flag in the then canal zone.

Tomorrow I am going to youth camp for one day to get Graciela set up with her dialysis machine and her diet (no salt, no phosforus, little liquids).

Tia Sue

Our next to last Christmas Party - part I

2008-01-03T14:24:00.001-06:00

Each year, Sandy Vasque, who grew up in the home a while back and is now retired from working for Copa Airlines, gives a wonderful fiesta for the girls at her home. This is fiesta 2007 the Saturday before Christmas. (The last Christmas Fiesta for all of the girls together was the next day at church.) Here they all are in her patio getting the party off to a flying start. The girl in red with braids is Pati, the daughter of Mariela Martinez, who grew up in the home and who works for us now while she is finishing the University at night. (When she came to the home at age 10 she had not been in school enough to learn to read!) Mariela is one of the adults there with a black and light blue shirt. The woman in green near Pati is Judith Hernandez, one of our child care workers. At the end in red is Sandy.
Maria Isabel, her sister Sinilda and Johana waiting for the dancing to start.
Karla practising the split.
Santa, Sandy and Genesis. Each girl received 3 or 4 gifts bought especially for them by one of Sandy's friends or coworkers.

Primir Puesto

2008-01-03T14:07:00.000-06:00

Please meet Maria Isabel Cabrera who achieved the highest academic average for the school year 2007 - just finished. She had 4.7 (5.0 is the higests). Her grade average is equal to 94. Maria Isabel is 8 and with her sister Sinilda 10 she just finished first grade reading and doing addition and subtraction. Sinilda has an average of 4.6.
The are Embera Indians and are the first girls in their family to ever go to school. Their 22 year old sister Doralinda has also taken this year some classes in reading in a program to wipe of illitriacy. When the girls joined us last February neither could draw a picture, write and they could count by rote to 5 and knew some of the colors. We gave them a crash course in pre-kinder and kinder - much of this thanks to one of our monitoras (child care worker) Judith.

Fire Cat

2008-01-01T12:56:00.000-06:00

Here is fire cat just a few days ago sitting in the sun. He has grown to be a really big cat.

His eyes are yellow just as in the picture. He looks a lot like an angora and thinks that he is a dog - at least he plays rough with the dogs, eats dog food and rests with them.

Feliz New Year!

2008-01-01T12:45:00.000-06:00

No pictures for this but you can conjure up 12 grapes (with seeds). Eating 12 grapes at midnight while the clock strikes 12 is a custom here and also save the seeds and count them to find your lucky number for the year. My lucky number is 34 - which is the sum of two prime numbers 17+17. We didn't exactly eat them at midnight and there was no clock to chime the time but Lizzy and I ate and collected the seeds. We also had Champaign at dinner. I went to bed after grape eating and woke up to hear the fireworks and the Dreging Division of the Panama Canal make three loud toots at midnight.

Today seems like a dry season day - wind, sun and few clouds in the sky. I like Dry Season a lot but this year it is predicted to be a rainy Dry season.

Another picture of Santa

2007-12-21T15:45:00.001-06:00

And a mix of staff kids and our girls.

Our Christmas Party - Thursday

2007-12-21T15:12:00.000-06:00

All morning has been preparation for this party - our party at the home. There were lots of gifts for the girls as several churches collected gifts as well we received gifts from a couple of other groups that work with us and the First Lady's program sent a gift for each. While we prepared in the kitchen were roasting a turkey and a ham (donated), special rice, salad with apples and some other things. Just as we were ready to eat it rained very hard. Here to of the child care workers are covering the gifts.
We had 6 tables as all of the staff were there and their kids under 12. The flowers were saved from the 15th birthday celebration! The youngster mugging from the end of the table is Mariela's almost 5 year old. We used disposable plates left over from the 15th birthday [arty - a good idea, although this day we had water from the taps so cleanup was easy. (Today, Friday, we are without running water. Water is only available from one tap. We also collect rain water to flush the toilets.) After we ate the main course we got potato chips and other burandanga.
Here I am as Santa with Pati (Mariela's daughter) and Evelia. Esther, grinning at the left was my helper. Every girl received 5 or 6 gifts - a nice mix between clothes and toys.
Here I am without my cap. It was very hot with it. Behind us is the chapel, TV space and study space for the oldest who can study independently.
Here they are with their gifts and gaft certificated for $10 each that they can spend in Titan, a store where it is possible to buy a lot for a little. This morning after the graduation I took 4 to Titan to shop. It was a first for Rosa Mari. Her sister Yani helped her and she was able to sign her name with just a little help from me.

More to come over the weekend.

Graduation today

2007-12-21T14:42:00.000-06:00

This is Yanitcias Graduation today. She graduated from 9th grade. I am 99% sure that she is the first person in her family to graduate from 9th. Maybe her father graduated from 6th but I am not sure. He can read and write. We arrive a few minutes late for her to march in but were there for the important parts - the most important the certificates (I think the word Diplomas is for graduation from High School and College.
Here some kids are receiving deplomas and as they come down friends and relatives are taking pictures and giving gifts.
Here Yani is receiving her certificate. Her sister Raquel and friend Leonela from the home have roses and flowers to give her.

Here we are after the ceremony. Each of us had a raspado (shaved ice with sweet flavored syrup and condensed milk - 25 cents each. Yani has two sister at the home with her. They have been with us for more than 9 years. The only family members who attended were those sisters. Even though her family lives not far away they all said they couldn't come. At the right is Rosa Mari, her younger sister at the home and next to her in green is Raquel, also her sister. Claro, the one with the 'diploma' and in uniform is Yani. She has 4 siblings older and 4 or 5 younger than Rosa Mari (11).

Tia Sue

THURSDAYS CHRISTMAS PARY PART II

2007-12-13T17:27:00.000-06:00

Here are Evelia and Sini. Notice how we made Evelias too big shirt fit better.
In the background Evelia is conversing with the bear. She couldn't carry on a conversation in March.This could be her fist Christmas Party. Santa gave everone a big hug after giving out the gifts. The clown is there animating the entire party
Clown is checking to be sure that Graciela had behaved well this year.
Every girls also got a bag of personal care items.
Some of the girls put together a coreografi to one of the traditional Panamanian carols. We have a lot of these red T-shirts (sueters here) that say Telethon 20-30. Each year the 20 club raises money for an important social service (building a new maternay hospital, installing a 911 system) and we received these as a donation.

What a great party!

CHRISTMAS PARTY TIME

2007-12-13T17:03:00.000-06:00

Just as the people from Phizer started arriving I had to take cookies to Sinildas school since her school party was today. By the time I got back face painting had started. This is Estefani. This party, which they give every year , is especially nice as each girl is invited to write a letter asking for three different things and also what she she would choose to ear from Pizza to MacDonalds.
Here is Dona showing off her face painting. The wite ribbon around the banister is a leftover from the 15th birthday party.
Daliana, Dona's sister.
There were lots of traditional Panamanian Party games with loud music and a lot of yelling and screaming. Santa was there and you can see the Clown in the background. The people from Phizer bring their own children. A few years ago one of the children had such fun that she asked to have her birthday party at the home instead of McDonalds and we did.
Slight blurry photo of the girls eating. For all of our staff and the staff and kids of Phizer we had a turkey and ham dinner with a delicious salad and special rice and semi-traditional potato salad.
I say semi-traditional because what I think of as traditional potato salad here is rosy pink with beets.

More pictures in another entry.

English Teachers give us a Christmas Party

2007-12-12T15:45:00.000-06:00

The English Tachers of the San Miguelito school area gave us a Christmas Party last Thursday. Several of the teachers had taught some of our girls. Various teachers played games with the group - in English- such as fruit salad, head and shoulders. They had ampel snacks and a cake and soda and each girl received two gifts. There was also distribution of clothing.
Here is the gift table. The girls are in the background choosing clothes.
Here is Maria Isabel with her gifts. She always looks very serious when I take a picture.
This is the entire group. That is Karla posing in the front. Evelia was with her dad - because it was almost mothers day weekend. He came to visit with her because her mother isn-t in the picture.

Our Christmas Tree

2007-12-12T15:18:00.000-06:00

Here are Carla and Maria Isabel helping choose the tree - a small tree from Canada - at a local Super Market - El Rey - the KING. We are outside and the young man behind is one of the store helpers. The smell of the needles is wonderful. I have a small branch near my bed.
We arrive at the home with the tree. The dog is Manchita - which means something like spotty. Her English name is Blackears. She is very attached to me and always greets the car when I drive up. While we were getting the tree Evelia and Estefany came home from school early. After setting it up we began to make decorations. The first project was paper chains.
As you can see the paper chains are not in evedence. I heared that they were damaged when the tree was moved. Maybe Evelia and Karla had a tug of war with them. Click on the picture to see the decorations more in detail. Many were made by the girls yesterday. The two young women are Rosalia and Eveliana. They asked me to take two pictures so they could each have one. They don-t know a lot about digital cameras!

Tomorrow we will have our second Christmas Party, given by the staff of Phizer here in Panama. One wonderful thing they do is ask each girl to write a letter naming three gifts they want and also what they would like for lunch from MacDonalds or another place. I will tell you tomorrow.

School is over for the year on Friday. Summer is coming but we still will have a bit more rain before then.

Blessings, Tia Sue

Mothers' Day

2007-12-09T15:22:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was mothers'Day in Panama. It coincides with the fast of the immaculate conception and is a big holiday and also an official national holiday. All of our girls went to vist their families or friends of the home. I spent Friday night at the home and it is very quiet and peaceful there. The two dogs are always very happy to see someone. I think that Canella is too old to jump on me but manchita (spotty) just wiggles all over and jumps. We have had our first Christmas party - given by the public school English Teachers of San Migelito (the educational district we are in). Several of the teachers played games (in English). One was familiar Head and shoulders - to a different tune. Another was Fruit Salad with a peppy song about cut cut cut the apples etc. then FRUIT SALAD of 4 (where the players get into groups of the indicated number). The teachers gave out clothes and each girls got a gift. I have some pictures which I will post durig the week.

Childrens´Hospital Visit

2007-12-05T19:31:00.000-06:00

Last night I read in the Miami Herold that Childrens´Hospital here is almost completely shut down so since Graciela had her appointment today I called her doc.

This is the 30th day of a medical doctors and dentists strike - the ones who work for the government and the ones we use for the kids. Graciels's doc is on strike but he saw her on the ward because she has to have her blood chemestry checked once a month. She is high in Phosporus which is the hardest to control. To help control it she has to take 3 calcium tablets immediately before she eats. These combine with phoporus (to make calcumphosphate I guess) and thus it doesn't get into her system. These appointments are long because we have to wait for the results of the test and have to be there early (6:30) to draw the blood. I learned a lot more about the treatment of kidney failure today!

Today was the last day of her mother's visit and after the appointment we took her mom to the National Bus Terminal so she could start her long trip back to Bocas del Toro.

Tomorrow all of the girls go home or visit a friend of the home for Mothers' Day which is a BIG holiday here on December 8th. We will then have 3 days off - if everything works as hoped.

I am off to bed.

Tia Sue

Suspension from school

2007-12-04T16:16:00.000-06:00

One of our younger girls arrived home yesterday with a note from her teacher saying that she scratched a classmatesfacejust under her eye with a pencil. It caused a scratch and didnotdamage her eye - but it was close. The teacher asked that we take proper measures. After a talk with her and deciding that she was not going to have any pink cake for dessert I though and thought. I knew that if an older girl did this she would get a suspension. So, the girl got ready for school and I told her ¨I don't know if the school will let you stay today". We went in and I requested to talk to the principal. Before the girl came in I told him what happened and I asked for an official suspension of one day. He wrote one out stamped it and told her not to hurt classments. I told her that she couldn't goto school. As we were leaving she asked me " who is going to eat my snack?" I said " I don't know".

Usually at the home someone who is suspended has to work all afternoon. When we got back I announced that she was suspended. Everyone reacted appropriately and we sent her off to work with woman who cleans. Being very concrete and firm has worked well with her before.

I wonder if I am the first missionary to ask for a suspension for of her kids.

Tia Sue

Quinceañeras

2007-12-02T18:00:00.000-06:00

Here are Graciela and her mother - whom she hasn't seen since April. She is one of the 5 girls from the home who celebrated their 15th birthday this year. Here in Panama the 15th birthday is the BIG one and we had a fabulous quinceañera party last night. There were a lot of people there and these are just some of the pictures that I will post eventually. All 5 of the girls were dressed alike for the start of the celebration which was a mass.
Here is Daliana and her escort entering the home after they changed into their party dresses. Each choose the color of her dress. They were made for them by a modista (dressmaker).
In this picture are Yanitcia (green), daliana, Graciela and Leonela with their escorts. Two of the escorts are sons of the cook and one of our child care workers, secundina.
Another view of the same five girls. The guys' ties match the dresses. This is a really authentic Panamanian 15th birthday celebration.
Yeribeth is in orange on the far right. She has spent almost all of her life with us (since 18 months) and she does have contact with her brothers and sisters and her mom.

quinceañeras

2007-12-02T17:04:00.000-06:00

I have some pictures of the girls getting the home ready for the ig party we had last night! We will see what comes up - but tomorrow or tuesday there will be more picts. In the top pic some of the girls are painting. Below, our two youngest are helping unload the 'legs' of the table. The one in front is Carla.

Independence day from Spain - 1821

2007-11-28T13:44:00.000-06:00

Today is the last holiday in a month of holidays. If you want to learn more about Panama´s two independence days check out www.padremickey.blogspot.com.

We had a fun time this morning - I taught the girls to fold paper and cut a star. We started using magazine pages so as not to waste paper and then moved on to paper, glitter and glue. Raquel, who is in 8th grade also showed them some nice Kirigami she learned from one of my books. I am dreaming of having a christmas tree decorated only with things the girls have made! School is about over - so there will be more time to do arts and crafts and I have a number ready.

This evening 10 or 12 of the girls, the ones 12 and older, are going to a dance recitle. (My English spelling is getting worse and worse.) I am going with the Sr. Pancho, our driver is driving. It starts at 7:30, lasts quite a while and then we are going out for Ice Cream.

The younger kids will watch TV!

Tia Sue

Graduation is coming

2007-11-26T13:25:00.000-06:00

Yes, graduation is coming but this first picture is Sinilda, who has jsut learned to read this year with our two kindergarten kids. She was reading to them but I didn't get a picture of that as Evelia wanted to be the center of attention. Karla and Evelia are holding their babies. Sinilda and her sister Maria are the first woman to learn to read in their family.
Graduation from 9th grade here includes each student painting a picture an a school uniform shirt and then getting autographs. This is Leonela with hers.
Yeri showing off her shirt. Yeri has lived at the home for almost all her life. She is 15 and graduating from 9th grade. I have the reading book she learned from in 1st. grade.
Leo with the autographs. She said there was not enough room to fit all of them.
Estefani, Maria Isabel, Evelia and Guiselle (Estefani's older sister) and others waiting to go to see a movie last Saturday.

School is over on the 14th of December and the graduation at 7AM on the 21. We have two big events before that - a quincenera next Saturday (watch for pictures here) and a concert on the 19th. There will also be Christmas parties, our Christmas party and more.

Tia Sue

Thanksgiving Sunday

2007-11-18T17:12:00.000-06:00

This is a busy weekend for me. It was Thanksgiving at St. Pauls and we had traditional decorations of harvest time: Palm trees, papaya, pineapple, granadilla, banana, platino, suger cane and some corn. All of this bounty will be picked up by the girls' home tomorrow - that is where I live and work.

We will have a wonderful abundence of food for in additon to this food from St. Pauls' we will receive Thanksgiving Sunday Decorations from several other churches. You can see pictures of the decorations at www.padremickey.blogspot.com.

Tia Sue

Maybe this is why I am blogging less!

2007-11-11T17:38:00.000-06:00

Apologies for being a slow blogger - but we have had a very busy and tiring last few weeks and with 25 girls this year and the average age lower things are much busier.

I have three girls who I have taken the responsibiity for see to their health/mental health. One is Graciela the young woman (15) who is on dialysis, one is a a 13 year old who has some mental health issues and the third is 8 and has some skin problems that have to be cleared up before she can have some sores in her mouth cauterized - a day surgery proceedure. Graciela has a monthly appointment and we have to be there at 6:30 so she can have blood drawn and the doc can see the results before we leve - 8 or 9 hours later. She usually has a cpiple of other appointments on the same day as we have to prepare a special diet and she has a lot of warts on her hands and wrists which are getting treated now. I am always worn out on the day we have to get up at 5 to be there on time. The mental health appointments are usally set for 8 or 9 - but any blood tests that have to be drawn while the child is fasting are early. I have not had a lot of success getting any of the girls appointments all on the same day - and in some cases that might turn out hard to manage because of the size of the hospital.

We also have more kids who have missed out on a year or seveal years of school - and most - maybe all of them need extra help - especially in math and often in Spanish. Right now I am working with 4th graders on correct use or the regular verbs (ar, er, ir amor, comer, vivir for example) in the present , past and future. In math subtraction when there are 0s in the number being subtracted from are a challenge. By third grade (the end) the kids are expected to know the multiplication tables thru 9 and be able to do multiplication with two diget numbers. And then there is short and long division, decimels, fractions (adding, subtracting etc.), and basic geometry. So I am busy.

I'm busy at St. Paul's as well. We have a good, enthusiastic and talented priest in charge - and this year many things have changed - not to the liking of all. We started feeding hungry people at the start of the year and that has grown. It is so nice to come down from the service and find 4 youth making the tuna sandwiches to feed the hungry. I put all the stuff to make them with out before the service. Some of them help me give it out. I started haveing a group prayer today. We started out using two cans of tuna a week and making 12 sandwiches - next week we will have to go to 5 cans of tuna and three loaves of bread! They also get a package of four cookies and a juice box. There are three families included, a number of people who are homeless and some others who are living on the edge financially. It has been a year since we first statred considering this and I have to write a report for the vestry meeting next week. We also give out bags of basics to these same people on the 4th Sunday. We also give 6 bags of basics to 6 others in the congregation. We prepare them and someone who knows who needs them gives them out. The bags for the people who have no place to live are the most challenging because it is hard to find food that doesn't need to be cooked, that they can open, and that is nutricious.

School will be over for the year in about 4 weeks - December 14th. We have one girl (Eveliana) finishing 6th grade. She has done well this year and is studying independently. This is the youngster who I taught to read 4 years ago. We have three who will graduate from 9th grade. Yeribeth (who has grown up at the home from age about ), Yanitcia (also with us a long time - all her school life) and Leonela ( she has been with us for Jr. High). We have a concert later in December, our Christmas Party and others and then all of the girls will go somewhere for the holidays and the first part of January. January will bring the Diocesian Youth Camps as well.

No photos today because I am using a MAC and my memory stick won't fit!

Tia Sue

News from the Home

2007-11-02T12:54:00.000-06:00

Here are some of the girls jumping rope in our patio. You can see that they have worn a bald spot in the lawn.

Now that I have learned again how to do this there will be more news. This month of November is the month of patriotoc celebrations such as indipendence day, flag day. All of the girls are visiting someone for the log weekend. They are returning Monday evening.

School is almost over / there are only 6 or 7 weeks left. All three of the first graders are reading and doing addition and subtraction.

Love, Tia Sue

A little news

2007-09-02T16:50:00.000-06:00

I spent last weekend at wonderful Canopy Lodge in el Valle celebrating my 67th birthday, enjoying many beautiful birds and very good food. Our director has returned from her vacation so we are working as a team again - whew. I still have not mastered putting in a photo but there is one in my August entries. We are busy. Having 25 girls (17 are in Primary school) is a lot more responsibility and work that the 18 we had last year. At some points I am helping 4 or 5 kids at the same time - each doing something different. They learn to wait. Good news: Rosa has begun to work with me while I am working with other kids at the same table. This means that I can give her a lot more help. Last week she learned to know when she needed to borrow in subtraction and when not! She is also reading and was reading out loud from a 1st grade reading book - the beginning - we have waited for this for a long time. She is 11 and her mental age is 6 to 7 and she is learning the things a kid of 6 to 7 would be learning!! Our little Evelia is a handfull and when the director cme back Rosa told the directort: "When I was two and I did something wrong Tia Sue put me in a chair. You need to do that with Evelia". I have been using that technique and others and Evelia is making a lot of progress.

Blessings, Tia Sue

Monday -school pickups

2007-08-20T19:43:00.000-06:00

I was the driver to pick up the primary kids from school today - which takes most of the afternoon. Tehn I worked with Rosa Mari on counting 2 by 2 to 20 and do subtraction with borrowing. After that it was Genesis and ordinal numbers and then Dona and simplifying fractions.

Graciela had an appointment with the nutricionista today which went well. Tomorrow I take Maria Isabel to the dermatologo.

I am learning how to give injections. A new skill.

Tia Sue

A weel later..........

2007-08-19T16:53:00.000-06:00

Things are good at the home. The girl I spent the night with at the hospital last Saturday has some more tests and she has a stomach acid problem. We will continue to work on this. She is taking some acid reducer and an antibiotic and is on a very restricted diet!

I have a new cat friend (Luna walked away on day about a month ago and didn't come back) and a new car! The cat is Fire Cat and is wonderfully soft and affectionate. The car is a Kia Picanto - a small silver hatch back with power steering and automatic shift which is makeing my left knee better with no clutch and the power steering is easier on the shoulders.

Last Sunday was the anniversary of my 10th year here as a missionary. I didn't get to church to be blessed as I spent until 2AM at Children's Hospital with one of the girls - a fitting way to celebrate 10 years!

There was little school last week as Wednesday was the celebration of the founding of Panama City in 1519. After helping a lot of Primary students learn about this event I will not forget that Panama means an abundance of fich, butterflies and the Panama Tree!

Saturday moring was the last Saturday of Social Service work from girls at LaSalle High School (Colegio La Salle) and they had a moring of games, dances and more games. The game 'pull up the yuca' in which a girl grabs a post and holds on very tight and then others form a line behind her and try to break her hold on the poll. Evelia (oe of our 5 year olds) loved it. Karla (the other 5 year old) wisely stayed on the sidelines most of the time. Yuca is a root vegtable and is hard to pull up! It is what tapioca is made from.

Rosa is learning to read along with three others beginning readers!!!! Among them the teachers are using 3 different methods of teaching so that they all need a different kind of help!

Blessings, Tia Sue

Sunday News

2007-08-12T18:46:00.000-06:00

I spent a lot of last night at Children's Hospital with one of the girls - something I have done quite a bit over the years. She felt bad all day but didn't tell anyone until about 8 PM - so we ended up getting back at 2AM! I have slept a lot today. She has gastrites. I will have to look into things a bit more tomorrow.

A new cat has entered my life. He is an adolescent and is a gold tabby. He has been here just a couple of hours and is rubbing against me, purring, eating, drinking and has used the cat box. He has been in a loving home for the past 2 months and was clearly a pet when he was found at the ministry of health buildings - he had a collar and had already been castrated. I have not didcovered his name yet!

My wonderful cat friend Luna who was with me almost 10 years left the house (he was an indoor and outdoor cat) and didn't come back about a month ago. I have many wonderful pictures of him with my new digital camera.

I'll try to report again soon and also get some more pictures on.

Blessings, Tia Sue

Hello again!

2007-08-10T18:05:00.000-06:00

Hi - Here is my first picture on the blog! This is almost all of the girls (three were at acolyte training) with the La Salle students who had been doing 80 hours (quite a few Saturdays) of social service at the home on Saturday mornings. They help girls with home work of learn things they missed at some point in the past - many to do with arithmetic. We have another group now who have three Saturdays left.

I am learning how to put more pictures on and will write more later!!

Blessings, Tia Sue

More Report Cards

2007-06-28T16:53:00.000-06:00

It has taken a long time, since the first bimester ended the 18th of May,but we have 23 of the 24 report cards. Yesterday and today I went to the Primary School Republica de la India to get the cards from the 6 of our girls who go there. Sinilda and Maria Isabel, who when they came to us in January needed to learn how to use all the tools of school in a crash pre-school and kindergarten course have done very well in 1st grade. Their teacher had nothing but good things to say about them and their grades were fine. They both can draw well (and neither could draw anything when they first came)and one teacher mentioned the delicate drawing that Maria makes. As a reminder these two girls are the first women in their family to ever go to school!

Enibeth´s teacher´s (3rd grade) first comment was that she is in the clouds all the time, isn't paying attention. This is similar to much of her behavior in the home. She doesn´t want to study. Here grades were mediocher - but with no failures. ( My English spelling is getting worse and worse).

This afternoon my friend Amando built a duo-decahydron out of paper so I would know how to do it. The way we made it it looks a lot like a sphere. Two of the kids in 9th grade have to build a cone, cylinder and a sphere. Dr. Math tells me that it is not possible to make a sphere from paper. I found two ways, but the thing we built today really had 20 triangular sides, but becasue each side is a triangle within a circle and the edges are folded out it looks really sphere like.

Graciela needs glasses. She has been having a lot of head aches and finally yesterday I took her to an opticion and it is quite likely that her astigmatism in her left eye is causing some or all of the headaches. She should get her glasses next week.

Today I received the report cards of one in 4th grade and two in 5th. We have one more to get - 8th grade - but I would probably faint if she had a failure. That means that only one of our girls had any failures for the first bi-mester.

Estefany has improved a lot in reading - she is 9 and in first grade and has some learning challenges in language (but is better in math). I have worked with her almost every day and she is reading a lot of words and writing them too. I make a lot of vocabulary cards with the word on one side and some kind of little picture on the other side. The beginners can read the word and then check to see if they are right or they can look at the picture and write the word.

Estefany qualifies for special ed help because of her age and difficulties. The best part of this is that she will get a speech and language evaluation as well as eye and hearing test - free. God surely had a had in this as the director and I and Estefany were at the offices if IPHE (Special Ed) trying to get her inscribed and while the director was talking to verious people with no progress, one of the social workers there saw Estefany and I in the waiting room and started to talk to us. I gave a pitch for why I wanted Estefany tested and we received an immediate visit with the speach and labgusge person, got Estefany enrolled (even though she was born in Costa Rica and has no Panamanian identity numer) and an appointment both for vision and hearing.

More later. Tia Sue

This and that

2007-06-20T18:42:00.000-06:00

Little Evelia is learnng / some things good and others we wish she wasn-t learning. She was pulling books off the book shelf this morning and one of the girls called to the child care worker, Judith. Mrs. Judith, Evelia is pulling books off the book case. Very clearly Evelia said / Shut up! *(all was in Spanish of course). On the other hand she can now put together the farmyard puzzle with no help / it is a one piece per hole in a nice farmyard scene / but this is progress. She is also using the lego type big blocks and building things. And, tonight I was very happily surprized. I was playing a picture bingo with Estefani and her older sister and had Evelia on my lap. She actually was able to spntaneously name a picture of a shoe on one tile! This is real progress from 3 and 1/2 months ago when she could-nt name objects and I wasn't sure how much she could see.

This morning I helped a ninth grader in spanish! She is studying poetry and she didn't understnad what she was susposed to do. She needed to learning what various conventions poets use were / each had a name *such as using opposits, describing some thing using other things "the sheep looked like a cloud with little feet' and then after reading some lines of poetry by Panamanian and other Central american poets look at the underlined section and identify what convention the poet was using.

After that came Dona, in 5th grade, puzzled about Statistics / most specifically bar graphs. In her class room the kids don't have math books so she had copied everything that the teacher had written on the board and was confused / I would have been too. I found a math book that taught the same material, we made a bar graph together / she had a little quiz and did well.

She was also studying for an English quiz on some kinds of food / which included, boxes of cookies, a dozen eggs, a carton of milk, as well as orange, meat etc.

That gives you an idea about some of the things I do daily!

More later

Tia Sue

Fathers Day

2007-06-17T20:36:00.000-06:00

The girls are all visiting family or friends of the home. At St. Paul's we had a wonderful and typically Panamian celebration. We honered 4 men who have been fathers in the church for many years but who are elderly. Cecil Haynes worked for the Panama canal for so many years that he received special recognition from President Clinton for being the person who work for the US Federal Government for the longest time. He is 93 now and still going strong.

One of the other honorees, now blind, used to play his harmonica at church for peoples birthdays and special days. He gave use to nice harmonica renditions.

The girls will return tomorrow morning.

Tia Sue

Fathers' Day is coming

2007-06-14T16:30:00.000-06:00

All of aur girls are going to visit somewhere for the fathers´day weekend. And the very best is that Evelia's dad is coming from Yavisa in the Darien to see her - the first time since she joined us in March. She is five and has talked to her many times on the phone. He is going to be very surprised I think because she is talking a lot - and wasn't very much when she came. She is also more healthy and she has more energy as her hemeglobin count has improved.

Since I've been back I have been developing a 'program' for her and for Carla (our other 5 year old). I pick out and put in a folder 3 little projects - coloring, cutting, pasting etc and one of the girls who have little homework work with them on these for an hour then Guissell reads a story to them. She is in third grade and her teacher suggested that she read outlound each day. After that they go with some age appropriate toys to play in another area and they have one girl with them, since they are still developing play together skills. This has cut down on screamng and tantrums a lot!

Tia Sue

We are making progress in reading

2007-06-12T13:45:00.000-06:00

Just before I left for my vacation in May I realised that Estefani was not catching on to reading. I though that during the month I was away this might happen but when I got back June 1st she was more confused than before. So, I started an immediate attempt to help her. Basically she had not caught on that the letters were the clue to what the word was and not the expression on my face. She said a word and looked at me expectantly - the word was almost always not what was written. I tried with letters on little pieces of heavy paper - but the confusin continued. Spanish is almost 99 percent phonetic and the kids start by learning the 5 vowel sounds (there are only 5 - one sound for each vowel - a bit different than English. After they learn them consonants are added one at a time. She knew the sound for the consonants well but when it came to the consonants, even when we were concentrating only on M, P and L she was confused. My first plan with the letters on heavy paper was a bust - but I tried another approach - first teaching her that at this point each consonant need a vowel next to it and then lots of practice. Today she was able to read correctly 10 or 12 words (all nouns) using the letters M-P-L-S- and N abd then write them. We have a little pile of cards with a picture on one side and the word on the other. Today Maria Isabel (also in 1st grade) joined us and she did well too. The words are mamá, papá, luna (moon), puma (the animal puma) mapa (map) etc. This is a real break through for her. She is one of the girls who has been/is being tested and as I though she is very weak in verbal skills. On the other had she loves numbers and is doing beginning addition and subtraction.

All the girls are going somewhere for Father's day so the home will have no one but myself and the dogs for 48 hours. A number of the girls don't have dads as part of their lives but will enjoy a visit with relatives, with one exception - and she has a nice place to go visit.

More later, Tia Sue

Friday is our BIG ironing night

2007-06-08T17:15:00.000-06:00

On Wednesdays and Fridays the girls have to iron their school uniforms and the dresses that they will wear to church on Sunday. All but 4 of the girls can iron their own things - that includes Johana and Kenia who are 9 and in 4th grade. Every wednesday they iron two white blouses of their school uniform BUT on Friday they have to iron 3 blouses and two skirts as well as their Sunday clothes and for the acolytes their robes. Since each girl has 5 school items and we have 24 girls at the least we iron 120 things. 4 of the older girls iron the clothes of the 4 youngest.

I have been working hard with Estefani (age 9 in 1st grade) with beginning reading and I think we are making some progress. She doesn't have a big frown on her face and I have finally found a way for her to practice where she can have success a lot of the time. I don´t like having the kids fail over and over nor practice things doing them in the wrong way.

This morning I spent a good bit of my time helping Genesis with division and then study for a quiz in Social Science - rivers in Panama and people and the use of natural resources. We made flow charts of what she was studying.

The teacher of one of our third graders suggested that she read outloud so we have done that the last two days. I think it will improve her reading. I also reveiwed the quiz book (the notebook in which they take all their quizes of one of out fourth graders and it is clear that she needs more help in learning how to study and studying - especially in Natural Science, Social Science and Spanish. They are all connected!

Next week I am going to Leon A. Soto Jr. HIgh (as they call it in English Class) to hear about our 6 girls there in 7th, 8th amd 9th grades. I have heard that one of our 8th graders is skipping classes and also not handing in her homework - so we shall see. Please pray for her (Raquel) as she presents us with a lot of challenges here as well.

Hope to write a bit more on the weekend.

Tia Sue

Just three days later and look all we are doing.

2007-06-06T17:41:00.000-06:00

It is Wednesday and the last thee days have been busy. We have one adolescent and a group of three primary students who are receiving grief counseling. There is a Foundation here that provides it and they are very good. The cost is very reasonable and those of you who have made danations to my work are helping to support this. We have a number of girls who have had either their mother or father die. Part of my work here is arranging this and taking the girls to the appointments. This week we had an appointment on Monday and another today - for the group.

Since on Monday the Oragization of American States met here in Panama there was no school for any of our girls. Since we usually don't have a child care worker during the afternoon school time (12 to 5+) it fell to the secretary, myself and Eva who washes and takes care of clothes. We ate lunch a little later. Then we had a siesta - on the bed and quiet. I was in the room with the youngest and next to the room of the next oldest and after a few admonishments things worked out. After that Beni (our secretary) made bracelets with the older girls and I did a play time and arts and crafts with the youngest. For snack time we had the birthday cake for the girls with birthdays in May.

Tuesday was a 'normal' school day. We did homework and reinforcement in the morning and all the girls left for school at noon as usual. Two came back because theirteachers weren't there and we worked hard to math and reading on the third and first grade level. Estefany (in 1st grade - but 9) is very good in math and we played a new game which involved adding and chance. It was possible to get a good score and then lose it all because it was temping to toss the dice again and a losing combination came up.

Today I worked with Graciela - our most recent additon studying science. She is in 5th grade. They are learning about diseases of the excretory system and hygiene of the same. Then off to the therapist with the little group. Also we started having several of the girls tested by a psychologist - these are girls who seem to have more difficulties in learning than some of the others. Two more will be tested on Friday. The psychologist comes here to do the tests.

Our director is in a week long seminar about raising resources for our kind of program. We had lunch together and she says the seminar is very good.

Then I went to one of the primary schools to pick up the first report cards of the year. We have 10 girls in this school, Arebe de Egypto, and the 8 who are above kinder received cards. All did did quite well. All with have an average of 79 or 80 and up to the high 90s. Johana and Kenia have 4th and 5the places in their classrooms.

More later.

Tia Sue

I am back in Panama

2007-06-03T17:40:00.000-06:00

After a very long time not writing and the entire month of May in Philadelphia (2 days in NYC) I am rested and back in Panama as of Thursday evening.

We are now 24 with the addition of Graciela, age 14 or 15 (I'm not sure) who has spent the last three years living at Children's Hospital here on peritaneal dialysis. Now she is living with us and has already spent a week in school. She is in 5th grade and although there was a teacher a the Hospital she is in the same grade she was in when she entered the hospital. I have already started to work with her on academics as she has a number of holes to fill - the multiplication tables (why can't we be born knowing them?) and other stuff in math - but she is eager to learn. While she was at the hospital the clothes she wore daily were hospital pajamas so it must seem very different to get up and dressed in regular clothing each day. She was presented a a new person at church today and psrticipated very well with a nice smile.

I went to St. Paul's, which is the church I attend, and was a usher. It was good to be back. Our Bishop was there and that is always nice. After that I went over to the Cathedral where the girls attend. It is the first Sunday in June so the service was bi-lingual and at 10 for everyone. The girls go to the 8 AM service usually. The girls all looked lovely and our two youngest Evelia and Carla - both 5 had on really precious dresses.

While in Philly I bought a digital camera (Canon) and the next step is to get pictures into this blog.

Tomorrow I resume taking girls for grief counseling. We have a number who have lost a parent. Right now a teenager is getting individual sessions and there is a small group of 8 and 9 year olds who have group therapy. It is my job to take them to the appointments.

Love, Tia Sue