The last labor survey in Panama revealed that some 50,000 children under the age of ten have dropped out of school in order to work. Poor urban children wander the streets shining shoes or selling flowers and candy, while those from impoverished parts of the countryside are usually found working on sugar cane plantations, or picking rice and coffee in the fields. One of Global Education Fund's partner in Panama, Casa Esperanza is an organization that makes a tremendous difference in the lives of these children.
Casa Esperanza, founded in 1992, is an organization created to find alternatives for children who are working, panhandling or hanging out on the streets. They have seven converted houses located around Panama City that support the nutritional, educational, health, sporting and personal and social developmental needs of kids. The Global Education Fund is partnering with Rotary Club President in Panama Franz Garcia de Paredes and Casa Esperanza to build literacy centers in these "houses". Ramon Aleman of Casa Esperanza says that this book shipment from Global Education Fund will help promote their model to use education to rescue children from a life on the streets.
Our other partner in Panama is Casa Hogar Piedad, an orphanage with about thirty children who have been abused and abandoned. In May 2002, a multi-disciplinary team of volunteers from Airline Ambassadors and Global Education Fund helped Casa Hogar Piedad by painting, installing electrical light fixtures, covering windows with screens and delivering a shipment of much needed Spanish children's books.