AHAH Monthly Program Update - Mexico (March 2021)

MEXICO EARTHQUAKE RELIEF UPDATE MARCH 2021

TOTAL PROGRAM IMPACT

247 34 1,701 2

STUDENTS IMPACTED

VOLUNTEERS

VOLUNTEER DAYS

SCHOOLS IN PROGRESS

Current Activities It’s been one month since our DM12 volunteers engaged in their first day of site work and great progress has been made at both Paulo Freire Secondary School and Vicente Guerrero Primary School. The footings, which form part of the foundation of the new buildings, are complete, and our teams are preparing to pour the grade beam, which are concrete beams designed to act as horizontal ties between the footings and columns.

Off-site, our team has been finding creative ways to engage with the local community whilst adhering to COVID-19 safety measures. One of these exciting new initiatives is the pen pal program, “Buscando Un Amigo”.

Students are matched with an AHAH team member so they can write letters to each other, providing an opportunity for volunteers to practice their Spanish and for the children to practice what they’ve learnt in their English classes. The letters are posted in a mailbox at the school entrance.

Read more about our Mexico Program in this local news article.

Community Stories “As a former student of Vicente Guerrero, and now as a mother of a third grader, the rebuilding of the school and all of the work that the organization is making means a lot to our communities. It gives us hope and relief to know that our kids will be able to continue their basic education without the fear of an accident happening due to the damage that the earthquakes made since 2017” - Beatriz (Betty), Community Member Photos: (top) an aerial view of the team working on the foundations of the new office and WASH block at Paulo Freire Secondary School, (left) community member Betty.

Learn about our programs at

allhandsandhearts.org

Disaster Profile In September 2017, one of the most lethal earthquakes in Mexican history hit close to the southern state of Chiapas, with a devastating magnitude of 8.2. Just 12 days later and a few hundred miles away, a 7.1 magnitude quake rocked central Mexico, toppling buildings, breaking gas mains, knocking out electricity and sparking fires across the city and other towns in central Mexico.

Our Work Our efforts in Mexico began in March 2018 in El Jicarero, Morelos, where we partnered with Happy Hearts Fund (now All Hands and Hearts Mexico) to reconstruct and retrofit two primary schools. Since then, we’ve run two volunteer programs in Oaxaca and have rebuilt another four schools, including playgrounds, libraries and WASH facilities. In addition to our construction work on the schools, our teams collaborate with local partners to identify Renewal Projects with an aim to build community resilience. To date, we’ve implemented a community Disaster Risk Reduction Training program, reactivated a community waste management system and piloted an agricultural education program. In 2021, we’re excited to be working on Escuela Secundaria Paulo Freire and Escuela Primaria Insurgente Vicente Guerrero in Oaxaca.

About All Hands and Hearts We effectively and efficiently address the immediate and long-term needs of communities impacted by natural disasters. We communicate directly with local leaders and community members and then deploy our unique model of engaging volunteers to enable direct impact, helping to build safer, more resilient schools, homes and infrastructure.

We have earned a 4-star rating by Charity Navigator for the seventh year in a row. This year only seven percent of rated non-profits received this distinction for financial and operational efficiency.

Photos: (top) volunteers tying rebar, (middle) completed foundation slab of building L at Vicente Guerrero (bottom) some of the team hand-mixing concrete.

Our Partners

info@allhandsandhearts.org (508) 758-8211