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O u r H i s t o r y |
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This history was written by and is from the point of view of Stuart O'Grady.
This will attempt to outline our history over the last few years. At various points during the text, we will give you an opportunity to choose from one of several options that we had at that point in our development. This document will attempt to put things as plainly as possible at critical points in our history. Some times we made good decisions but a lot of the time we made poor ones. One of the things that allowed our group to survive through the first two years was the ability to change our direction rapidly and admit to our mistakes. Although, this tends to focus on us, we are indebted to many people: Ana María, Marielos, Normand, Hilda, Doña Nubia, María Luisa, Peter Tobin and countless others for their assistance in the year.
Stuart phones Rob and they both agree to join together in an informal arrangement to take on a project in Central America.
Email flies back and forth between Stuart and Rob on the setup of the project.
Stuart phones Ana-María and she gives him permission to head down.
Stuart meets Rob for 1 week in Vancouver.
Stuart meets Peter Salama in an Airport and talks him into going to Centro de Estudios Pop Wuj. They build latrines and go to educational forums which are part of the intensive program offered by Pop Wuj. This is an excellent program for anyone interested.
Stuart arrives in Managua with broken Spanish.
Stuart begins teaching a few kids a day in after school classes. These classes are designed roughly. Kids claim that they are bored after practicing their multiplication tables for four straight hours.
Program is redesigned so that there is some time for play. FOG raises $12000 Canadian for El Recreo (this does not go immediately to El Recreo but more on that later).
More teachers are brought on to assist. The program hits 20 students. We do not believe that it can grow to be larger. Play times are officially set for 1 hour after two hours of study. We think that the maximum number of students is around five per teacher (more on this later). Stuart starts to design a health insurance program which uses elements of micro credit with subsidies so that people can go for community visits.
House in El Recreo is bought by FOG. FOG starts contracts with Cantera and Oxfam. English courses start in El Recreo.
Education program starts in the morning in addition to the one operating in the afternoon.
Rob arrives from Vancouver. He plans to continue Stuart's work in El Recreo.
Stuart returns from Managua to Canada.
Dave and Gretchen join the project.
FOG starts a review of its funding policy. Close to 60 children are now in the education program.
FOG gives a total of $24000 Canadian to El Recreo.
Stuart and Rob celebrate Christmas in El Recreo.
The Supplementary Education Program hits 100 children.
Rob ends his involvement in the education project, ending over 15 months of FOG involvement. FOG holds its first gathering in Toronto and invites Ramin to join the ranks of core members. Fifty people show up for the party in Toronto.
Rob starts to help in the library and teaches children how to play chess.
Ramin begins to look for a project in Nicaragua to work on.
Rob returns to Vancouver. Stuart arrives in El Recreo to work in the project a second time.
Rob returns to Canada.
Ramin leaves to study Spanish in Pop Wuj.
Ramin arrives in Santa Rosa del Peñon to work with the community there.
El Recreo initiates a new eyeglasses program, receiving donations of old eyeglasses from North America to match the glasses with what the people need in Nicaragua. Stuart is trained, along with six local community members, by opticians from Spain.
Stuart completes his second volunteer stint in El Recreo. He also gets married and returns to Canada.
Ramin's sister, Sarah Kamal arrives in Santa Rosa to volunteer for two months.
Ramin's completes more than a year in Santa Rosa, but on a sad note as Hurricane Mitch devastates the country including Santa Rosa. Ramin delays his departure by several days to help bring in some emergency supplies.
Also in October, El Recreo begins its first computer classes. Some of the computers were donated by FOG and FOG supporters.
FOG supports the construction of a pre-school (Arco-Iris) in Reparto Schick.
FOG supports the construction of a new children's library in El Bosque, a community of displaced people created after Hurriance Mitch.
Joanne Gillies arrives to volunteer in Santa Rosa for five months.
FOG's scholarship program is initiated in Santa Rosa and Reparto Schick.
Berj Bannayan arrives to volunteer in Santa Rosa for one year.
Fair Opportunities Group
This page last modified on 24 Aug, 2002
Inquiries about this page should be directed to the
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