Isabel Alemán Calderón had been a student with Empowerment International for seven years (photo/ Kathy Adams)

NICARAGUA (EI)

Empowerment International Inc. (EI) is greatly shocked and saddened by the tragic accident in which Isabel Alemán Calderón, a student in EI’s programs, drowned in the Laguna de Apoyo during a cross-cultural excursion on March 27, 2013.  EI extends its sincere condolences to the bereaved family and friends of the victim, and conveys its sympathy to those who witnessed the event.

This incident occurred in a swimming area supervised by the Red Cross during the Semana Santa holiday week.   A sudden drop in the established swimming area created a strong undercurrent, which pulled several swimmers into deeper waters. The majority were able to swim to safety, though Isabael was not able to regain her footing. EI staff and students participated in rescue efforts with the Red Cross, though the turbulent conditions of the water that day made it impossible to save her life.

As an immediate step, EI has convened a meeting with the parents of program students, in order to facilitate social dialogue amongst its constituents to explore possible avenues for improving and strengthening excursion and program safety measures for all programs and clubs administered by EI in the two communities supported.

On a long term basis, EI is exploring the possibility of launching a collaborative NGO Safety Program in Granada that will address safety best practices in the educational and non-profit sector. One of the most important components of this initiative would be supporting other Nicaraguan based NGO’s to make improvements in Occupational Safety and Health conditions, including adequate water safety training for staff and students alike.

Isabel with her little sister (photo/ Kathy Adams)

EI  hopes to learn from the conclusions reached by the committees instituted to investigate this incident.  All findings will be used to identify ways to better improve the lives of students and their families, in order to continue to remove the barriers to education and self-fulfillment in Nicaragua.

Empowerment International offers community-based, holistic educational programs to children and their families in two extremely impoverished communities in Nicaragua. This is done through daily home visits where parents are encouraged to send their children to school and are mentored on how to enhance their children’s education. Also during these visits, counseling and emotional support are provided to help them find solutions to barriers, physical or otherwise, that prevent children from attending school and reaching their potential.

Empowerment International has been working in Nicaragua since 2004 and has reached an annual school retention rate of over 94% in both of our communities since 2008.  As of 2013, there are now more than 340 students participating in our program.

NICARAGUA (EI)

Empowerment International Inc. (EI) esta muy conmocionados y entristecido por el trágico accidente en el que Isabel Alemán Calderón, estudiante en los programas de EI, se ahogó en la Laguna de Apoyo durante una excursión inter-cultural el 27 de marzo de 2013. EI expresa su más sentido pésame a la familia y amigos de la víctima, y ​​transmite sus condolencias a las personas que presenciaron el evento.

Este incidente se produjo en una zona de baño bajo la supervisión de la Cruz Roja durante las vacaciones de Semana Santa. Una caída repentina en la zona de baño establecido creó una fuerte corriente subterránea, que extrajo a varios nadadores en aguas más profundas. La mayoría fueron capaces de nadar hasta llegar a un área segura; sin embargo, Isabel no fue capaz de recuperar el equilibrio y salir. El personal de Empowerment International y los estudiantes participaron en las labores de rescate con la Cruz Roja, debido a las condiciones turbulentas del agua ese día hizo imposible salvarle la vida.

Isabel with her little brother (Photo/ Wes Lum)

Como medida inmediata, Empowerment International (EI) ha convocado una reunión con los padres de los estudiantes del programa, con el fin de facilitar el diálogo social entre sus constituyentes para explorar vías de posibles mejoras y reforzar las medidas de excursión y un programa de seguridad para todos los programas y clubs administrados por la organizacion en las dos comunidades que EI apoya.

Sobre una base a largo plazo, EI está estudiando la posibilidad de poner en marcha un Programa de Seguridad con las ONG en Granada que se enfocara en mejorar las prácticas de seguridad en el sector educativo y sin fines de lucro. Uno de los componentes más importantes de esta iniciativa  es apoyar a otras ONG con base en Nicaragua, para hacer mejoras en la seguridad y condiciones de salud, incluyendo entrenamiento de seguridad en el agua para estudiantes y personal.

EI espera  aprender las conclusiones alcanzadas por el comité encargado para la investigación de este incidente. Todos los resultados se utilizarán para identificar formas de mejorar la vida de los estudiantes y sus familias, con el fin de seguir eliminando las barreras a la educación y la auto-realización en Nicaragua.

Empowerment International ofrece programas comunitarios, educativos, integrales a los niños y sus familias en dos comunidades muy empobrecidas de Nicaragua. Esto se hace a través de visitas domiciliarias diarias donde los padres están invitados a enviar a sus hijos a la escuela y reciben orientación sobre la manera de mejorar la educación de sus hijos. Asimismo, durante estas visitas, asesoramiento y apoyo emocional se proporcionan para ayudar a encontrar soluciones a las barreras, físicas o de otro tipo, que impiden que los niños asistan a la escuela y alcanzar su potencial.

Empowerment International ha estado trabajando en Nicaragua desde 2004 y ha alcanzado una tasa de retención escolar anual de más del 94% tanto de nuestras comunidades desde 2008. A partir de 2013, en la actualidad hay más de 340 estudiantes que participan en nuestro programa.

Juan Jose and his family are contracted to make these mats and for each one they receive 25 cents, in a day they make 20 mats. We broke them up into two groups, and they had a litte contest to see who could make one the fastest (mothers against daughters). Everyone had a lot of fun and a lot of appreciation for Juan Jose and his Mom. A side note: In return for their time we will be setting them up so they can work for themselves instead of their neighbor, earning at least 30% more! Amazingly to do this it will cost $40.

The road to Santa Ana can quickly turn into a river

Santa Ana de los Malacos is located about thirty minutes from the EI activities center. As the crow flies, the community is only about ten minutes away, but it feels like another world, remote and rural. Much of the time is on dirt roads, which  vary greatly depending on weather conditions. I´ve had the opportunity to travel to Santa Ana every Tuesday since I arrived in Granada mid-September. The journey is always an adventure. The first time I visited Santa Ana, it started to rain around 2 o´clock in the afternoon. We quickly packed up our things and dismissed the kids from tutoring. Even with our fast response to the rain, the dirt road out of the community was nothing but mud. We slid and spun like we were driving on ice, but we made it out without getting stuck.

Dusty Santa Ana (dry season)

Carla navigating through mud to do her home visits

Santa Ana is home to 102 kids, about 80% of whom belong to Empowerment International’s programs. The rural nature of the community is such that these children mingle with turkeys, cows, pigs, and horses on their daily walk to the one-room school house located at the entrance to the community. Most of the parents who work, work in the campo or agriculture fields that surround the community. This could mean sugar-cane, peanuts, or wheat. If you are lucky enough to visit the community of Santa Ana, you will notice that the atmosphere is much more quiet and calm than that of Empowerment International’s urban barrio. But the reality of the houses and family situations are the same as in Granada. The importance of education, the struggles of impoverished families and their deep appreciation for Carla´s visits and EI´s support are apparent and ever present.

About the author:  Sarah Bertman is an Amigos Gap Year volunteer.  She speaks Spanish fluently.  She also teaches English and helps to coordinate projects and activities with the students.  She is planning to begin University in the next year.  EI is especially lucky to have her as a volunteer.

Colby Brown and Michael Bonocore with EI students. Photo by Kathy Adams

In a back to back two-weeks trip handled by The Giving Lens, an organization that leverages the power of photography through partnership with non-profits, children were to go on a furious picture-taking spree. But this was to be no ordinary clicking of cameras; with them would be many of the world’s best professional photographers ready to hone their skills and teach them the fine nuances.

It was no wonder then that in the first week of July, when The Giving Lens team began the trip, the kids quickly began learning the good shots from the better and grew in confidence in their own craft.

The photography team encouraged the students to use creative angles and unusual subjects; they corrected their techniques and encouraged their passion. They took them to places where stunning vistas abounded and set their cameras at points where the visions would become exceptional. The kids accepted their mentors with smiles, hugs and cheers; they welcomed them to their houses, shared their stories, brought their own brands of energy to the expedition and went on to impress everyone with their beautiful and heartfelt shots. By the end of the trip, several participants of the photography trip had sponsored students from EI.

Michael Bonocore with EI kids. Photo by Josh Pollak.

Michael Bonocore, one of the photographers from the team spent the two weeks in Granada and along with The Giving Lens and fourteen photographers helped teach photography to the children of Empowerment International.

Here are his thoughts eighth day into the trip -

“The last 8 days have changed my life forever. I came to Granada, Nicaragua expecting to take a ton of photographs and help teach the children of   Empowerment International photography. Simple right? Not so much. Little did I know what really awaited us here on the ground. I did not expect to establish such a personal bond with children who live completely opposite lives of most of the people reading my words now (as well as myself) are used to. We don’t speak the same language. Most of our communication doesn’t require us to speak the same language. The connection we have made transcends language.

They let us into their homes, which for about 70% of the local population, is nothing more than a couple of dilapidated walls, and some very old cots that the family members share. These families make no more than a couple of dollars a day, and the children, when not in school, are usually working for the family, trying to bring in that one extra dollar that might just help them buy more rice for tomorrow’s dinner. Most people who visit Granada, Nicaragua will see the beautiful churches, the Old Spanish Colonial buildings, and the street markets. They will never see the real Granada. The Granada that is filled with amazing people, who, despite not having any luxuries a lot of us enjoy, still value family, friends, their heritage and are proud of who they are, despite what they do not have.

When I finally leave, I will think of these children, this city, and these people everyday for the rest of my life. They have made such an impact on who I want to become as a person. They will make me think twice before I complain about my ‘problems’ back in the United States. The only problem I have now is that I do not get to spend every day of my life with the children who have changed me forever.”

Michael Bonocore and 19 years old student Jeaneth from EI.  Photo by Melissa Palomo

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In Nicaragua 50% of the kids that start 1st grade never finish 5th grade. It is our goal to make this percentage drop significantly.

$30/month is what it takes us at Empowerment International to put a child in school. If you would like to help a child stay in school and get better life, please click on the link below or contact us -

Anielka did not have to brave her tremendous odds to stay with Empowerment International’s program for six years. Like so many children in the community where she grew up, Anielka could have dropped out of school and continued the life of dependency and poverty. 

But she did not give up. She worked with EI through all her life’s ups and downs. The result is a confident young girl sure of her life plans and dreams.

Anielka recently did EI, her parents, her community and herself proud by graduating from her High School. She will now attend University where she plans to study Business Administration

In fact, not only is she building her own future but also helping many other children with theirs. She is a tutor in EI’s after-school tutoring program where she helps her neighborhood children with their studies. And she also wins biking races as her pastime.

In his beautiful video for Empowerment International (EI), Brad Allgood, shows how a girl who considered herself “timid” is now the president of EI’s mountain biking club and the first member in her family to graduate. Anielka never expected herself to finish school, let alone dream of college. But she is well on her way.

Like she says in the video, “We do not always have solutions ourselves.” Anielka took EI’s help and is now spreading the message. As you see her confidently teaching other children and speaking about her hopes, you realize that Anielka has found her new world – one where she is a confident, expressive and without fear.

EI is proud to have a kid like her.

As we close this year on this happy note, we at Empowerment International hope that you stay with us through our journey with many such kids who fight similar or, often, worse odds to continue their education.

For the last three years Empowerment International has proudly maintained more than a 92% school retention rate. Many of our students are now in University, balancing family’s monetary burden while handling their demanding schedule in college. In fact, we are now looking forward to our first University graduate.

Wishing you all Happy Holidays and a New Year full of dreams and successes!

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In Nicaragua 50% of the kids that start 1st grade never finish 5th grade. It is our goal to make this percentage drop significantly.

$30/month is what it takes us at Empowerment International to put a child in school. If you would like to help a child stay in school and get better life, please click on the link below or contact us -

Filed under: 2011 program, barrio, education, empowerment, Graduation, Nicaragua Program ]]> http://empowermentinternational.org/2011/12/15/year-of-dreams-and-successes/feed/ 0 KathyAAdams 385162_10150454092654344_42357679343_8406431_1915043370_n Facebook:Share del.icio.us:Year of Dreams and Successes Digg it:Year of Dreams and Successes reddit:Year of Dreams and Successes Stumble it:Year of Dreams and Successes furl:Year of Dreams and Successes Bookmark and Share Donate at Change.org http://empowermentinternational.org/2011/10/07/my-camera-my-world-see-the-world-through-childrens-eyes/ http://empowermentinternational.org/2011/10/07/my-camera-my-world-see-the-world-through-childrens-eyes/#comments Thu, 06 Oct 2011 19:07:45 +0000 Empowerment International http://empowermentinternational.org/?p=1475 ]]> What do kids view in their daily lives? A little girl at the gate, a dilapidated doorway, a grinning old lady, a man working on a sewing machine, silhouette of a father and child.

You would be surprised at what Empowerment International’s kids see in their Nicaraguan neighborhood. Forty of some of these best and brightest photos taken by kids ranging from 11 to 19 years, have been exhibited in Denver.

These limited edition photos will be open for auction for one day only on October 8, from 6:30 PM to 10 PM. You can get the tickets here. The proceeds of the auction will directly benefit Empowerment International kids.

Kathy, EI’s founder, had noticed children’s enthusiasm for photography a few years back and since then has made several efforts to keep their spirit up. Every year, EI kids get their most cherished lessons when a photographer teaches them the intricacies of taking good pictures.

These kids now take photos that impress even professional photographers!

So do remember to view their bright photographs at Root Yoga, Denver in Mi Camera, Mi Mundo (My Camera, My World) – an exhibition and auction of photography – on October 8. You even get to meet the young photographers via Skype!

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In Nicaragua 50% of the kids that start 1st grade never finish 5th grade. It is our goal to make this percentage drop significantly.

$30/month is what it takes us at Empowerment International to put a child in school. If you would like to help a child stay in school and get better life, please click on the link below or contact us -

Filed under: 2011 program, empowerment, Exhibitions, photography ]]> http://empowermentinternational.org/2011/10/07/my-camera-my-world-see-the-world-through-childrens-eyes/feed/ 1 KathyAAdams Girl in the doorway Alicia Fox Photography Facebook:Share del.icio.us:My Camera, My World Digg it:My Camera, My World reddit:My Camera, My World Stumble it:My Camera, My World furl:My Camera, My World Bookmark and Share Donate at Change.org http://empowermentinternational.org/2011/06/21/join-the-ei-family-a-donor-and-retired-teacher-shares-his-ei-experience/ http://empowermentinternational.org/2011/06/21/join-the-ei-family-a-donor-and-retired-teacher-shares-his-ei-experience/#comments Mon, 20 Jun 2011 11:13:23 +0000 Empowerment International http://empowermentinternational.org/?p=1417 ]]> My third trip to Nicaragua in February 2011 felt like a homecoming. This trip, as I walked down the rutted, muddy streets of Barrio Esperanza, a poor neighborhood in Granada, I was accompanied by a group of older students from the area. My Spanish was improved enough from the year before that I could listen to them talk about what they were doing or planned to do after high school graduation.

Anyelo was a softspoken star among the graduates. He is studying to be a pharmacist, while also returning to tutor younger children in his neighborhood as a way to pay back what he has been given by Empowerment International. He and other kids like him are dedicated students whose parents or who themselves never could have envisioned a life beyond poverty before Empowerment offered them encouragement and support.

The EI model makes sense to me, a retired teacher.
Help children get to school with the required uniforms and supplies.
Work closely with their families, who often have little or no education and who rely on their children to help earn a living for the family, often at the expense of school attendance or completion beyond the elementary grades.
Provide after-school tutoring programs, conducted by both staff and some of the older students.
Engage kids in extracurricular activities that promote health and self-confidence. Connect graduates with higher education and training opportunities.

One goal of the Empowerment program has been to simply keep kids in school, and for the last two years they have been able to do that at a rate above 90%, despite the pressures of poverty and culture that pull about half of all students out of school after the primary grades in the country as a whole. I saw those pressures in the small rural schools I visited on my first trip to Nicaragua in 2005. Students there were eager to learn. But isolation, parents’ lack of education, skepticism about the value of school, and only intermittent contact with a supporting nonprofit all combined to make it difficult for children to stay in school.

EI, on the other hand, has been successful because staff live and work in the communities they serve.  Daily contact with students and families make the difference.  That was very apparent as children and parents came out to greet our group of students and EI staff members as we walked through the Barrio.

Our family’s involvement with EI started on the recommendation of a friend, Morgan Smith, in 2008.  After meeting founder, Kathy Adams, at a celebration and fund-raising event in Boulder, Colorado, we began sponsoring students in Barrio Esperanza.  For a modest monthly contribution, we were assured that these children would have the support they needed to stay in school and to develop academic and life goals.  And that has been the case.

Plus, EI has been wonderful about negotiating letter writing between us and the students we sponsor.  The icing on the cake is that I have been able to visit these children and their families twice, now.

This year, my visit really did feel like a homecoming. One of the students we sponsor, 6th grader Maria Dolores, shy but all smiles, invited me into her shanty and brought me a chair.  On the way to see her, I had passed her mother and father atop a horse drawn cart full of reed mats they make, on their way to Managua to sell them.

Maria and I had exchanged letters several times and so our conversation covered familiar topics – school and family and what she hoped for her future.  She couldn’t let me leave without a hug and a photo, many thank you’s and a promise to study hard.

A few hundred yards down the road, I stopped to visit another of our students, Katerine, a second grader, who came running from a friend’s house and latched onto my waist in a bear hug.  She couldn’t wait to show me her report card and a medal she had won in school.  The previous year just days before my visit, her mother had lost her job at a local maquiladora.  This year she was again without employment, but had been able to spend a few months working in Costa Rica. Life here is very difficult, she told me, but I know that Katerine will have better chances than I did.

EI’s programs are transforming lives in Nicaragua. My involvement with EI has helped me to understand how powerfully they represent a much-needed positive image of America-as partners in the construction of a better world. My wife and I support education-related non-profits in the U.S., but we are also committed to spending our time and talent abroad.

As travelers we know firsthand the importance of sharing our lives and stories with the people we meet. A world of strangers teeters always on the brink of misunderstanding and conflict. Even a modest effort to communicate with people beyond our own country helps us feel we can be at home anywhere.

Having seen their work firsthand I can say that Empowerment International is a trustworthy, effective organization. Even if you never have the chance to visit Nicaragua and its friendly people, you are making friends and representing your country by financially supporting EI’s work. If you are lucky enough to see that work in person, it will feel like a homecoming, not just a visit.

~ Alan Olds (Denver and DC)

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In Nicaragua 50% of the kids that start 1st grade never finish 5th grade. It is our goal to make this percentage drop significantly.

$30/month is what it takes us at Empowerment International to put a child in school. If you would like to help a child stay in school and get better life, please click on the link below or contact us -

Tobias, who is a teacher in Mühlematt-Schulhaus (Mühlematt School) in the city of Binnigen in north west Switzerland, was very impressed with EI’s work. He promised he would try to do something for EI with his class kids once he was back. And now, it’s not just his class kids but the whole school that is involved in raising funds for EI!

Till date the children have raised $962 and intend to continue doing the same. They are also sponsoring Ericka who is in 6^th grade and want to keep in touch with the kids through Skype.

Tobias started the Empowerment project by first informing all his colleagues in school and asking for their support. The response he got was super positive, thus making the project official. Next, he introduced the project to his students, showing them the pictures he had taken during his visit to Granada. He informed them about the problems EI kids faced and the possibilities they could have with better education. Their responses and questions showed real empathy and Tobias says that to see their emotions was often very overwhelming.

Each class signed a paper and the students put their signatures on it to express their personal support for this education project. Also, each class supported Tobias to build up a “Money-Meter”, which is a five-meter high construction made out of a giant plastic tube. This replaced the Christmas tree so everyone could see how much money had been collected.

In fact, so committed have the students become to EI’s cause that for the first time in school’s history, every student is working on the same project.

The money was raised through various methods like sandwich selling and sponsored running. There were also donations from individuals and the local church. For near future, the school has planned to put this charity project online on its homepage.

We are very grateful to Tobias and all the children who have been so supportive of our cause. These children have worked hard to help kids they have never met. It is amazing to see them being incredibly sensitive to the plight of kids living far away from their country. Here is hoping our Swiss connection gets even stronger!

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In Nicaragua 50% of the kids that start 1st grade never finish 5th grade. It is our goal to make this percentage drop significantly.

$30/month is what it takes us at Empowerment International to put a child in school. If you would like to help a child stay in school and get better life, please click on the link below or contact us -

Kids writing to their sponsors

Our office was a scene of organized chaos on the inscription weekend when we do all our school related preparations. Inscription time is when we update all data from the participating families, have parents and kids sign contracts for the new year, get kids to write to their sponsors and distribute school supplies to the kids for the year. The best part – this time our teenagers did most of the running of these activities.

And now let the school time begin! 

Children updating data

Shoes to distribute

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In Nicaragua 50% of the kids that start 1st grade never finish 5th grade. It is our goal to make this percentage drop significantly.

$30/month is what it takes us at Empowerment International to put a child in school. If you would like to help a child stay in school and get better life, please click on the link below or contact us -