Around our Barrio, cont'd.

A few regulars at the Wednesday morning Breakfast Club

On Wednesday mornings Lynn and I walk about 6 or 7 blocks to the La Salette church.  After Mass we attend an informal breakfast of coffee, tea, bread and warm milk at the priests' house  Mostly this breakfast is a time for fellowship.  We talk about our activities and what we plan to do.  Left to right in this group photo are Lil (Maryknoll sister from Louisville, KY, a vet of the SOA protests, with years of service in Peru and Bolivia), Adrian (a lay Franciscan who sings well, usually heats the milk for breakfast, and recently said he wants to start learning English), Willa (a Maryknoll lay missioner from the United States and a 3rd-year law student at Notre Dame specializing in immigration law), Padre Juan Francisco (a La Salette priest originally from Boston who speaks very good Spanish and always makes everyone feel welcome), Padre David (also a La Salette priest but from Tareja, Bolivia, incredibly always in a good mood, and a specialist at delivering homilies that draw in the whole congregation), Maggie (a Maryknoll sister originally from Tanzania who runs the apoyo escolar program at the comedor and school behind the La Salette church. She's experienced at keeping order among the children, and she welcomed Lynn to help her), Lynn Myrick (a multi-talented FMS lay missioner who loves the children and works in the apoyo escolar program in the mornings on 4 days each week).

Lynn and I on either side of Sister Jacqueline

After breakfast, Lynn and I meet with Sister Jacqueline of the Hermanas Misioneras del Santisimo and several young students who also wish to learn English.  We use the same textbooks for the course as we do for the men at Carcel Abra, Top Notch, and we progress at a rate comfortable for them.  In the few months that we have been meeting with them, they have gained confidence.  Their pronunciation has improved, and it's amazing to see how at first a sound seems difficult to produce and then suddenly they get it right. They especially like to hear songs with words in English.  This is a good break from grammar. When we can, we try to provide them with a copy of the song lyrics so they can practice after class and form questions about the meaning of particular phrases.

Padre David with the children at almuerzo

The apoyo escolar program at La Salette Church has been run by the La Salette order for about twelve years.  Before that it was run by the Franciscans. In its present form children can attend before or after school, depending on whether they attend school in the morning or afternoon.  After completing school assignments, they have a light meal of freshly baked bread, soup, and a drink such as api.