Buy a Book, Build a Library

Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the western hemispere (Haiti is the first). Most people have very little money, the schools are poorly funded, and there are only 13 public libraries in the whole country! My goal is to establish a library in the area of San Juan de Concepcion/San Marcos. I was fortunate enough to spend my summer in this area studying Spanish at the La Mariposa Language School and volunteering with a group of elementary students. Out of this experience came the idea of returning to Nicaragua to establish a community library. Working with the staff of La Mariposa, we would like to create a library collection of 1000-1200 books. This may not sound like many books, but to a community that has no access to reading materials, this can be a big step forward.  I will be working in partnership with La Mariposa and helping to train someone there to continue to run the library, once it is established. Our vision for the library will include a place where children and adults can come to read, take classes (English) and a resource center for local teachers who are so in need of materials. I hope all of you realize what your generous gift can mean to a community ready to read! I have included a link to the Mariposa school so that you can see some of the other wonderful things they have been involved with over the years. If you have any questions, ideas and would like additional information, please feel free to contact me via email.  Gracias, Alan