Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – In the heart of Volcanes, one of the poorer colonias of Puerto Vallarta, an after-school program provides opportunities for its children – the Volcanes Kids Education Program. This initiative has been instrumental in shaping the lives of countless students, offering them a pathway to a brighter future through education. However, to sustain our impactful work, the program urgently requires your financial support.
SUMMER CAMP 2024
In the face of significant funding challenges for our Volcanes Kids Education Program (VKEP), we are proud to have successfully launched our Summer Camp on July 15, running for two enriching weeks. The entire Volcanes community – parents, teachers, students, and local supporters – rallied together, recognizing the camp’s vital role in providing a safe and engaging environment for our children, especially with many parents working and students at risk of being unsupervised.
The camp operated daily from 9;00 AM to 1:00 PM, with nearly 200 children participating each weekday. We started the day by offering breakfast from 8:30 to 9:00 AM, followed by four hours of diverse and engaging activities. These activities included arts and crafts, board games, computer classes, music and band sessions, tree planting, and sports on our newly renovated soccer field.
The success of this camp was made possible thanks to the generosity of local Volcanes stores that donated food, parents who organized fundraisers, and the dedicated mothers who volunteered their time to clean classrooms and prepare meals. Our committed teachers also played a crucial role, providing the necessary materials and energy to make the classroom activities a success.
During the second week, we had the privilege of collaborating with Fundación Crecento, one of our esteemed partners in the youth empowerment program. They delivered an outstanding curriculum focused on essential values such as teamwork, responsibility, and perseverance. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Fundación Crecento and especially to Daniela, Fernanda, and Yuri for their kindness and dedication.
As always, the camp was a tremendous success, bringing joy and valuable experiences to everyone involved.
NEW SCHOOL YEAR SEPTEMBER 2024 – JUNE 2025
Looking ahead to the new school year, our goal is to provide a stable and enriching environment for our students, similar to the pre-pandemic years. The success of our Summer Camp gives us hope for the upcoming academic year, which will run from September 2024 to June 2025.
Due to limited donations during the past two school years, we will delay the start of some after-school programs until the second quarter of this year. However, the core classes in the VKEP program will continue as planned, with our six returning teachers leading classes in Computer Science, English 1, English 2, Library, Spanish Reading and Writing 1, and Spanish Reading and Math 2. We expect to enroll between 300 and 400 students in the program. Additionally, we are revising our Music-Band Program, which is expected to commence by the second quarter.
WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT
As we have highlighted, the past two years have brought significant financial challenges. While three major donors have pledged ongoing support, covering about 40% of our annual budget, this is not sufficient to meet our needs. To bridge this gap, we urgently need the support of small to medium-sized donors. Your contributions are vital to sustaining and enhancing the VKEP program as we embark on a new school year. Every donation helps us provide a better future for our students. Click HERE to make a PayPal donation to support VKEP in creating opportunities, building futures, and changing children’s lives for the better.
ABOUT VKEP
Volcanes Kids Education Program is an after-school program that centers on education in the community of Volcanes. We provide English, computer, music (35-member orchestra), and Spanish basic reading-writing skills, as well as, basic math, for over 400 students. We have a scholarship program with 100 students enrolled, and 20 who have graduated from university, four of them working in our program, six of them helping in other capacities.
We also have a variety of clubs with different interests led by volunteers from the community, such as Book Club, Cooking Club, Arts and Crafts Club, Butterfly Club, and Sports Club. We also provide adult education through INEA (GED) for students who for some reason did not finish their primary and junior high school.
If you want to know more about our programs, or how you can help, please contact us at mayrafumerton.vkep(at)gmail.com, or visit volcanesproject.com.
