Bolivia Parkinson's Disease & Covid-19

My name is Cristina Chamberlain. I am an American working on a small family farm in the Andes of Bolivia. Terracotta , our farm, is located in the Quechuan village of Yotala, 15 km south of the historic capital city of Sucre, made famous for its resounding cry of “Liberty” from Spain in 1809. As a family, we have operated a small international decorative tile business for over 20 years.

 Unfortunately, in 2010, my father, Jock Chamberlain (now 76) was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) by the Veteran’s Administration of Bath, New York. PD is a neuro-degenerative disorder of the central nervous system resulting from the gradual reduction of dopamine by the brain, for which there is still no known cure. Dad’s projected decline coupled with the economic recession of 2008, sparked the need to downsize the company and find a healthy, less-expensive platform from which to operate. This became my versatile tile studio, Incantti .

Terracotta was the perfect place for my Dad’s health, located in a sunny valley, full of fresh air, surrounded by nature, far from the hustle and bustle of the city and ideal for growing an abundance of organic fruits and vegetables. After many trials and errors, adopting the idiosyncrasies of another culture and acquiring a practical knowledge of farm life, we are proud to produce a variety of foods, which not only helps to sustain the Chamberlain family, but also provides a fitting ambiance for our farm-to-table, country style restaurant and our 4 family B&B style bungalows which we successfully opened four years ago with the help of a small construction loan from a local bank.

 My parents have been married for 41 years. My father is a lovable “Gringo” from Boston that married the quintessential brown-eyed Latin beauty, my Mom, Ana Maria (68). In their younger days, they were an adventurous couple enthralled by the excitement, friendliness, and noble hierarchy of values inherent throughout Latin America. They have always dreamed of retiring in Bolivia, Annie’s home.

 Dad’s PD began to reveal its devious attack as the years progressed, manifesting itself with slowness of speech, nervous tremors, dysfunctional equilibrium and signs of impaired cognitive recall. To fight back, Dad began to write a book entitled The Adventures of Jock & Mr. Parkinson which relates, in the first person, what it’s like to actually battle Mr. P for dominance over the bodily functions which we all tend to take for granted. The book encompasses both the emotional triumphs and humiliating failures of the prolonged war; fought with weapons of diet, sleep, exercise, mindfulness, and social interaction and awarded with medals of confidence or scars of social isolation. The book is targeted to the 60,000 new cases of Parkinson’s diagnosed in the US each year, and contains 5 years of research, lessons learned, tips and tricks, a glossary of terms and the practical tools of alternative medicine ranging from physical therapy to the microbiome, cell plasticity and the generation of mitochondrial brain energy.

When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, Bolivia went into strict quarantine (now our third consecutive month), leaving us no recourse but to close the restaurant,  shut down the kilns of Incantti and pay the our employees salaries due.

The cold reality is that Bolivia has not flattened the curve yet and, pending Presidential eleciones, threatens to complicate economic recovery for, at least 6 months to a year leaving us between a rock and a hard place. Leaving me no other recourse but to reluctantly sever non-essential workers and support those families that we have trained and have been so loyal to us over the years.

 Just as the Farm was hitting stride in its 4th year of existence, the Covid-19 Pandemic hit us below the belt …like the rest of the world and forced us to reevaluate our reality.  We know that the restaurant, tourism & hospitality industry have been hit the hardest and will take the longest to fully recover. Having a crowded restaurant would be a total irresponsibility and put my father’s life at risk. It is impossible for anyone to predict what is in store for the future.  Sitting still and doing nothing will guarantee losing the farm.

The solution, if we can count with your support, is to help my father to finish his book and self-publish. We calculate this will take a minimum of 6 months. Your support will give us the vital oxygen to survive.  We have the responsibility and legal obligation to pay our 12 employees their 5 month’s severance, get our bank loan up to date and pay ongoing utilities. 

 The idea that my father’s efforts could be our tool to simultaneously survive this pandemic and boost Dad’s self-confidence would be our little miracle!