A jovial sister with her frog umbrella.
The sisters of the orphanage with the greenhouse contractor.
Some of the girls at the orphanage.
A clean and tidy dormitory.
Orfanatorio Casimira Arteaga, Aguascalientes, Mexico
The city of Aguascalientes is much larger than expected-about 700,000 people. On my quick trip to see the last of The Ripple Effect's sponsored projects for 2007, I was hosted by locals Ana (who volunteers at the orphanage) and Ovaldo. They showed me around the charming Colonial old town, which is largely preserved yet bustling.
The orphanage, spanning an entire city block, is surrounded by a tall stucco wall, painted a pastel green and splashed with graffiti. There is only a very small sign, in keeping with the nature of the program. On the day I visited, there were only a dozen young girls present, as school was out and many of the girls had gone away for the season. We made a quick tour of the dining and kitchen facilities, as well as viewing one of the dormitory rooms. The entire campus is bright and cheerful, a look that extends to the girls faces. There was clearly a lot of love between the girls and the Catholic nuns that run the orphanage. When I praised the Mother Superior, she was quick to reply that the nuns felt they received even more in return from the girls than they gave to them.
We then went outside to see the site of the proposed plant nursery. It's within the high wall, and is open with great sun exposure, and is perhaps 1.5 acres in size. The sisters have made great strides in their planning for the nursery since I last spoke to them. They have hired a company to construct a greenhouse, complete with an irrigation system. They have made contact with a number of plant wholesalers that they'll be able to sell to, and they are working out the marketing details such as which species should be grown and so forth. They also have plans to hold several fundraisers each year, where people from the community may come and purchase plants. There is no doubt that this will be a great project, as it creates a wonderful sustainability that The Ripple Effect applauds. From the income from wholesalers, to the therapeutic effects of gardening for the girls, this will be a wonderful benefit to these orphaned girls.