Health
Seeing is...Learning
How can you learn to read if you can't see the words on the page? This was the problem for many adults in the village. To address this part of the literacy issue adults faced, we brought hundreds of prescription and reading eye glasses to Santa Cruz. An eye doctor visited the village to ensure that people got the best match for their eyesight.
Dental Hygiene
The precious little girl in the photo to the right is an example of the need for dental hygiene. Many children's permanent teeth become rotted at an early age, and it's such a simple problem to fix!
Our team wrote a fun song in Spanish about the importance of brushing your teeth twice a day and explaining how to do it correctly. We sing it every year so they remember it, and we give each child a toothbrush and tube of toothpaste and let them practice. It's hysterical to watch - and so cute - because they don't want to stop!! We send each child home with their toothbrushes and paste and a chart so they can mark off each time they brush their teeth. When their chart is full, they can bring it back to the teacher and get another brush, paste, and chart from the supplies we leave with the elementary school. We also give toothbrushes and toothpaste to each child that goes through the BizWorld store.
learning to brush, rinse...
...and spit
Respiratory Diseases and Burns
Other serious health issues came from the open fire pits women cooked on inside the home. The smoke stayed in the house, building up creasote on the walls and ceilings. Not only was the creasote build up an extreme fire hazard, but many small children suffered severe burns from falling into these fires.
The smoke-filled air also caused a lot of eye and lung irritation. Respiratory illness was common and many people would died from it during the winter months.
Our team helped with the answer to these health issues -- installing safe and efficient wood-burning stoves in homes. The stoves are vented, taking the smoke out of the home, and the cooking surface is high, so children don't get burned. To us, the stoves didn't cost much, but for the peope of Santa Cruz, who didn't have much money to begin with, the cost was high. Our team subsidized the cost to make them affordable on even the most meager budget. And we helped install them over several summers.
One other benefit of the stoves is that they are more efficient and environmentally friendly than open fire pits. Families spent a lot of time searching for fire wood, stripping forests to get it, or they would have to buy wood at a cost that was too high for most. The new stoves use much less wood, preserving the forests and saving families a lot of time and money. Almost every home in Santa Cruz now has the new stoves!
Hugo, on the right, is learning to read with his new glasses
a beautiful child, but with a mouth full of cavities
Pretty happy with his new toothbrush and paste
While this indoor cook fire is up high enough to be safe for small children, you can see the kind of smoke that remained in the home.
This indoor cook fire is more typical and was directly on the ground and accessibly to small children.
The new stoves are safe, environmentally friendly, cost effective and save time.
