Luna Maya $55,000 pesos
The Luna Maya birthing center provides prenatal, birthing and post partum care to poor single women from indigenous communities. The goal is to improve the long term health of both women and children. A small grant from Amigos helps to provide care, including instruction in infant massage.

Sueñinos $30,000 pesos
Sueñinos continues to expand its work with young impoverished children from poor urban neighborhoods. The focus is on early childhood education and development, a program which supplements the weak public school experience. While work with approximately 50 children continues at the Sueninos Center each afternoon, Amigos is also helping to fund a program with 4 to 8 year old children in the primary school in colonias in San Cristobal. In addition to enhancing the classroom environment with fresh paint and decorations, the Sueninos pilot program is being conducted two hours for three days a week for eight weeks and includes improving motor skills, the teaching of sharing responsibility and the joy of reading. Sueninos’ self measurement of performance process is a model for all NGOs to follow.    

Germinalia $50,000 pesos
Originally started three years ago as a program to fund college scholarships and mentoring to students from remote mountain villages, student participants have grown from 50 to nearly 400 young people and has been adapted for high school and secondary school children, as well as for some non-students. The program has evolved from one-on-one academic tutoring to workshops on artistic expression, reading circles and math reasoning. A prime emphasis now is on increasing motivation and learning how to learn.
Germinalia’s success has had a snowball effect with its rapid growth coming from participants encouraging their friends to join. The leadership has started to explore ways to share with other service providers in the San Cristobal area and additional funding sources have been sought to help manage the growth.

Madre Tierre Mexico, A.C. $130,000 pesos
This is a grant to expand the health work in 42 communities of the Sierra Madre region of Chiapas devastated by two recent hurricanes. This year, MTM will train more health promoters to work in these communities. And the health clinic is in the process of completion with the help of this funding.

Melel $45,000 pesos
$45,000MN grant for a new project which will provide scholarships and guidance to promote school attendance for children, aged 5-17 from marginalized communities around San Cristobal.

Hogar Comunitario Yachil Antzetic, A.C. $40,000 pesos
This grant is to assist in the continuation of a project entitled, “Las Orugas,” an educational program for existing young children of expectant single mothers. Teaching takes place with the mothers and children together, as well as with children-only classes. The objectives of the program are to motivate children to develop mutual respect and avoid confrontation; to teach mothers to effectively handle motherhood and avoid violent behavior; to create a harmonious living environment after the new sibling is born; to create a mutual understanding of children’s rights.

Amigos de San Cristobal, A.C.
November, 2008

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