04/23/08: 2008 Youth Ambassadors
The
2008 Youth Ambassadors have returned to Nicaragua
eager to share their experiences with their fellow
Nicaraguans. While in the U.S. they enjoyed a full
itinerary with a tour of Washington, D.C., a meeting
with Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, visits to
Wisconsin schools, colleges, and libraries,
presentations by musicians and authors, and
home-stays with Wisconsin families. Below are photos
of these young role models as they got to know the
people and places of Wisconsin and the U.S....
Photo Slideshow
Thank you to the local schools who chose to participate in this wonderful program:
Whitefish Bay High School
Appleton West High School
Menomonee Falls High School
Nathan Hale, West Allis High School
Stevens Point Area Senior High School
More information about this project is available on the
Youth Ambassadors Project
page or by going through the Cultural Diversity page under Programs
What Happened To The 2007 Youth Ambassadors?
The 2007 YA's are going above and beyond in fulfilling the hoped for expectation that they would return to their country as an active volunteer and rejuvenated member of their community. Coordinating with our Managua staff, the outstanding group of youth who traveled to WI last year, continues to amaze us with
extraordinary volunteer efforts …..
· Translating and helping to Coordinate the
Baseball Workshops in 3 communities in Nicaragua
· Translating & volunteering with the 2008
Learning Center Trek workshops
· Initiating Community service projects such
as:
One Hope Else (school supply distribution)
· And probably many more activities and projects we have yet to hear about
08/09/08: 4th Annual Fiesta Nicaragua
We
will have traditional presentations from dancers of
Palo De Mayo, Customs Dresses, La Gigantona (The
Giant Woman) and a taste of great cuisine: the
famous Gallo Pinto, Nacatamal, Vigoron and others.
In addition, you will dance to the beat of live
music! It is a day for the whole family and a
celebration for all! You will have the opportunity
to learn about all of our current and past
successful projects, partner cities in WI and
Nicaragua, and the opportunity to become an active
member!
For more information contact
Omar
Barberena-Fiesta Coordinator
When: August 9th,
2008
Where: 2nd and Florida
Milwaukee, WI
07/30/08: Wisconsin Swings for Nicaragua
The
3rd Annual Wisconsin
Swings for Nicaragua Golf outing will be
held at the Winagamie Golf Course in Neenah, WI.
This Big Cup event will use the scramble format.
The $50 entry fee covers green fee, use of a gas
cart, and lunch. Prizes will be awarded. A silent
auction will also be available. All proceeds go to
W/NP.
04/05/08: Esteli Ambulance Delivered and In Use
Click
here for full story.
03/29/08: The next W/NP Quarterly Meeting is June 21st. For time and location information and to make your reservations,
click here.
03/08/08: Sports Initiative Update....
We are setting up the site visits for our 5 Nicaraguan sports coaches & community leaders who will be visiting WI in July as they explore all levels of baseball and youth sports in general.
If you know of a community organization, teacher, coach, school or anyone who would like to showcase and share how their program operates, either on the field or off, please contact us now:
wnp@uwsp.edu
(Phase II focuses on providing the participants with a broader vision of how organizations in the U.S. respond to challenges of resources and engaging the community. In addition, it will give them an opportunity to build personal relationships with youth sports leaders and youth sports organizations that will be valuable assets in the years to come.)
09/04/07: Hurricane Felix - They Are Still Feeling The Effects - DONATE NOW TO RELIEF EFFORT
HURRICANE FELIX HITS NICARAGUA - Nicaragua has a history of natural disasters from hurricanes to earthquakes. The recent Hurricane Felix brings back to mind the devastation of Hurricane Mitch back in 1998. While not as severe or deadly, it still is difficult to see these small, rural, poor communities struggle to survive against these devastating odds. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION AND HOW YOU CAN HELP.......
More information about this issue here.
03/01/08: Travel Opportunities
Interested in traveling? Visit our Travel Opportunity
page to find out more, or go directly to the page by clicking here.
03/01/08: Volunteer
For anyone interested in volunteering or current volunteers, the volunteer
page is now available. For current volunteers, a form to log
your time and expenses is available for download at the mentioned page. The page is also accessible from the
Involvement menu as well.
03/01/08: Scholarships
To learn about W/NP's Scholarship program,
click here.
03/01/08: Map updates
Map of Nicaragua and links to current projects. Click
here
or go to Site Map.
02/25/08: Bike/Hike 2007
A huge Congratulations! to Carrie Massnick, grand prize winner of
Bike/Hike 2007. Carrie won the new Lime bicycle donated by Trek
Bicycles.[Excerpt taken from Ivy Farguheson article for The
Marshfield News-Herald] "Massinick, who rode 103 miles in
October, approached friends, family and neighbors about donating
toward the fundraiser. She also did her part to educate them on
the Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partners by placing informational sheets
about the programs in her thank-you letter to her sponsors. 'We
had three objectives for this event. One was to raise awareness
about the organization. No.2 was to raise funds. No.3 was to
give people a specific way to become involved in the
organization and support,' Wiza said. 'Carrie really achieved
all three of those objectives.' " And thank you to all of our participants in Wisconsin
and Nicaragua who made the Bike/Hike 2007 a terrific success!
This will be an annual event, so look for upcoming information
on the 2008 Bike/Hike to Nicaragua!
02/23/08: Update on the library projects in Nicaragua
February 23rd was an exiting day on the island of Ometepe....as we celebrated and introduced the opening of the newest W/NP Lending Library
Special thanks to all who helped to carry the books down, and also to the schools (Ben Franklin & PJ Jacobs Jr. Highs), Altrusa International, and the many, many individuals who so graciously donated the reading materials for this initial collection to start the library!!
If you would like to help us to give the gift of
reading, please consider sharing or purchasing Spanish
reading materials, or making a donation for the purchase
of books, to help build the library collections, just
drop us a line at wnp@uwsp.edu
Or contact us if you would like more information on the lending libraries. Thanks to your support, the libraries just keep growing and growing.
02/18/08: Shawls of Love
The participants on the Learning Center Trek hand delivered the beautiful Shawls of Love, sent by the Wisconsin women who were able to have a part in the
VOICE (women's leadership) project by making a hand made shawl for a woman in Nicaragua.
(Validating Our Initiatives and Creating Equality)
01/28/08: Eye Glass Mission
Over 1800 pair of glasses were fitted in the communities
of Boaco and Las Lagunas in January.
01/01/08: Have you renewed your W/NP Membership?
Help us to reach our goal of increasing memberships this
year by 50% - do it now at :
http://wnp.uwsp.edu/involve/member/member.htm
Student $10 Individual $25 Family $30 Group
$100
Life Member $500
Wisconsin/Nicaragua
Partners of the Americas
Nelson
Hall, Room 129
1209 Fremont Street
Stevens Point, Wisconsin 54481
715-346-4702
10/17/07: VOICE Project
This month we are kicking off the VOICE Project (Validating Our Initiative and Creating Equality). The goal to develop a sustainable learning program for upcoming leaders in Nicaragua. A better future for all involved using proven empowerment tools, mentors, and networks will be explored for building team skills, overcoming barriers, and making lasting contributions to their communities.
Thirty women from Nicaragua will be selected by an application process to participate in the program - the Nicaraguan VOICE participant application is available in both
English and
Spanish. Also, for more information on the VOICE project
click here.
09/04/07: Maiz Project (Corn Project)
Current information about the
Maíz
Project and a report on the participating communities.
01/22/07: Previous Postings
Past news can be found in Previous Postings.
Notice: We highly recommend Internet Explorer for full
viewing capabilities.
