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19 January 2011
Our New School "Escuela Proyecto La Esperanza" - The Grand Opening
We are delighted to announce that our new school opened its doors for the first time on Monday 17th January 2011!
Our new purpose built school is located on the La Azotea in the valley of Jocotenango just three kilometers from Antigua. The new site replaces our current primary and secondary schools in San Felipe and Jocotenango which we had been renting since 2008. It is big enough to educate up to 650 children, has 20 classrooms, a computer lab, an audio visual room, library, kitchen, psychology room and much more! The Azotea complex is set in beautiful green surroundings and will also provide the children with access to a sports field, something we haven't been able to provide before.
The opening ceremony saw the new school packed with; children and their families, Foundation staff from Guatemala and the UK and many other friends and supporters of the Foundation. The day was incredibly emotional which reflected in speeches made by; Founder and Chairman David McKee, Amy Holly (who has recently joined the Guatemala Team), the British Ambassador to Guatemala Julie Chappell, Director Patty Castillo and also in particular Nancy Galvez Ramos who has been with the foundation since 2004 (when she was 5) who gave an incredibly polished speech to the 650 present - very impressive!
Another exciting development for the Foundation sees two of our ex students joining our staff in Guatemala. Cindy Alejandra, Benitez Castillo graduated in business administration and joins us in an administrative capacity and Cesia Noemi, Acajabon Oseida graduated as a primary teacher and is teaching our 3rd grade.
We are so excited to be able to help each child at our new school reach their full potential and break free from a life of poverty and we are committed to making our children part of a real centre of excellence.We couldn't have done this without our supporters - Thank you so much to everyone that has made this dream a reality and in particular: Colin and Marie Goodall, Hero Investments, St. James’s Place Foundation, The Premier League, The Allan and Nesta Ferguson Charitable Settlement, Open Gate Trust, the British Embassy in Guatemala, Rufford Maurice Laing Foundation and WEP. Also a big big thank you to Ricardo Pokorny and Katie Cunningham who sold us the plot of land at the La Azotea at a massive 75% discount, and to architect Pierre Turlin who worked tirelessly at a hugely reduced rate. And of course all of our regular sponsors and donors, without you none of this would have been possible.
To see Revue Magazine’s (Guatemala's English-language magazine) article on the opening ceremony click on the following link: http://tinyurl.com/5r3k67s