Bridges & More Newsletter # 5: 4/6/07
Greetings from the USA.
Life is sure easy here! Cars start every morning, roads are paved, stores have parking lots, you can buy anything you want at the click of a button, lights illuminate at the flick of a switch…I’m in danger of growing lazy. It’s a good thing I’m going back on May 1, hopefully with taxes and all other USA business squared away!
The first thing I noticed on getting home to Cape Cod was how quiet
and brown it is here. My ears have grown used to a cacophony of river, birds, insects, howler monkeys and the sound of small creatures scurrying over the corrugated metal roof; my eyes to a riot of greens and reds.
The last newsletter was well over a month ago. Much has happened and much has changed in my apprehension of what Bridges & More can and cannot do in San Josecito. But before going into that, I want to report the biggest change: Julie Rich, Todd Schwebel, and their two children Zino (7) and Freya (5) from Truro, MA arrived in Josecito in February, and have since been working tirelessly on various projects. Julie has employed her artistic talent to help make signs for Oro Verde, the local ecotourism business run by San Josecito’s Duarte family. She put in long hours preparing for the local fair to pay for the new church the community is building. For me she has been the voice of reason and hope, telling me when I’m doing too much, helping me focus on one or two things at a time, always there to lend a hand. And Todd: in addition to refurbishing the small house they occupy, Todd has helped me with my car, built a desk in my kitchen where I can do the work of Puentes y Mas, put up my hammock, helped troubleshoot problems in my new solar electric system, and built tables for a project I’ll be describing below. Thank you Todd and Julie!
Now, about those bridges…we may have to change our name to just “& More,” or (my sister’s suggestion) “No Bridges But Lots More.” It looks as though the municipality is finally going to build that bridge they’ve been promising for ten years where the main road meets the Morete River. It will be a small bridge for cars, and they don’t need our help! I like to think that our presence and the hope & confidence we were able to give the Nunez family, along with visits to the municipality to request accountability, at least partially account for this development. But it may have happened anyway. The important thing is that the bridge should be ready in six months, and that will be in plenty of time for Stephen Nunez to start school next February.
The other bridge project was to allow the Isidro Nunez family access to the road, schools, and hospital. After the first meeting of Puentes y Mas (B&M’s sister organization in Costa Rica) it became clear that the family needs a bridge for cars if they are to remain on their land: Dona Ester is just not capable of that slippery, muddy trek down the hill to a footbridge in the winter rains. Bridges & More was able to offer an architect and engineer from University of Costa Rica, and a small amount of money for this bridge, though we could not finance the whole thing. Unfortunately legal questions involving easements have complicated things, and Isidro has chosen to finance the bridge himself by selling lots on his property. We wish him well.
SO! With no bridges to build we find ourselves in an excellent position to move on to the “& More” part of our tasks. The new sister organization, Puentes y Mas, is beginning to take on a life of its own: in addition to Bridges & More's stated goal of providing loans for small local businesses, Puentes y Mas voted at its first meeting to devote some of its efforts to protecting the community’s Morete River. This river is a real jewel, filled with large fish and fresh-water shrimp, deep cool pools and rushing rapids. As nearby land has been bought and developed, careless construction of roads and home sites has caused a tremendous amount of earth to be washed down the surrounding hills into the river, reducing its size and compromising its purity. Additionally, construction crews from other areas have been imported, so word of this lovely river and its resources has spread far and wide among Ticos. As a result Rio Morete is in danger of being over-fished, and illegal methods (including harpoons, nets and poisons) are being employed by visitors from other areas.
At the suggestion of Alvin and Luis Nunez, Julie made signs to put at the main entrance points to the river. These signs prohibit undesirable and illegal activities. Puentes y Mas held a community meeting at which the residents began to organize a widespread effort to protect the river, including trips to the police and Environmental Ministry (MINAE) to request patrols and support. Additionally, Bridges & More helped the community pay one of its residents (Geovanny Nunez) to patrol the river during the crucial week of Semana Santa (the week before and including Easter).
Another idea arose from the Puentes y Mas meetings: Isidro’s and Ester’s daughter Milena is a high school student with much undeveloped artistic talent. Her paintings of the brilliant natural world around her are vibrant and joyful. She wants to go to a university to study art. Alvin Nunez suggested that we North Americans might find places where Milena could display (and perhaps sell) some of her art work. Julie and I were able to find two venues for Milena’s work, and I have been working on publishing a card to accompany the work. Julie suggested that, as paintings are hard to sell, Milena might be willing to paint things like chairs or tables for tourists to buy. The day I left I found Milena and her brother Danilo on Todd and Julie’s porch sanding little tables that Todd had made. I put in an order for the first one! And today I received a letter from Julie to say the tables are complete and they look fantastic, and they’re considering making some benches as well. These will be offered for sale at a local Eco-Fair/Earth Day Festival to take place on April 22.
The clay oven idea has found a home! Guiselle Nunez grew up in the Guanacaste Province using a clay oven, and is thrilled at the prospect of building one near her home. When I left Costa Rica, Todd was seeking the best place to buy the necessary brick, and he and Zeno were testing the local earth for its proportion of clay to silt and sand. I’m waiting to hear more!
Our first small business loan was to Beatriz Picado to finish her organic nursery of organic vegetables and medicinals. Julie has spent many hours with Beatriz preparing the beds and putting in irrigation hoses. I’m attaching a picture of the nursery as seen from the road—if you look closely you can see the little plants are growing happily now in the earth.
Ideas for the future:
Julie and Todd will undertake a recycling initiative.
Guiselle Nunez continues to hope for a meeting with Carlos Rojas from San Jose to learn what’s involved in growing orchids in vitro for export. Meanwhile Carlos, in addition to his three jobs, uses his medical laboratory and his home to breed and grow orchids. This is the same Carlos who found architects and engineers for the bridges, and helped me sort through my ideas about producing biodiesel.
Tom Hemeon from Lancaster visited for a month in February and March. He has a beautiful mountain retreat (Finca Santa Lucia) up above where the river crosses the road. He has offered his place for an art fair to raise money for the community.
And the bamboo: I’m still hoping we can organize a bamboo construction-learning project with Martin Coto and Grace Lizano. Alvin and Umberto Nunez have both expressed interest in learning this craft. As well,
Todd is a talented builder and he too wants to learn to build with bamboo.
This letter has grown long!
Thanks to all of you for your interest and contributions. I hope to hear from you—please feel free to share your thoughts and ideas!
Pura Vida!
Elizabeth
Greetings from the USA.
Life is sure easy here! Cars start every morning, roads are paved, stores have parking lots, you can buy anything you want at the click of a button, lights illuminate at the flick of a switch…I’m in danger of growing lazy. It’s a good thing I’m going back on May 1, hopefully with taxes and all other USA business squared away!
The first thing I noticed on getting home to Cape Cod was how quiet
and brown it is here. My ears have grown used to a cacophony of river, birds, insects, howler monkeys and the sound of small creatures scurrying over the corrugated metal roof; my eyes to a riot of greens and reds.
The last newsletter was well over a month ago. Much has happened and much has changed in my apprehension of what Bridges & More can and cannot do in San Josecito. But before going into that, I want to report the biggest change: Julie Rich, Todd Schwebel, and their two children Zino (7) and Freya (5) from Truro, MA arrived in Josecito in February, and have since been working tirelessly on various projects. Julie has employed her artistic talent to help make signs for Oro Verde, the local ecotourism business run by San Josecito’s Duarte family. She put in long hours preparing for the local fair to pay for the new church the community is building. For me she has been the voice of reason and hope, telling me when I’m doing too much, helping me focus on one or two things at a time, always there to lend a hand. And Todd: in addition to refurbishing the small house they occupy, Todd has helped me with my car, built a desk in my kitchen where I can do the work of Puentes y Mas, put up my hammock, helped troubleshoot problems in my new solar electric system, and built tables for a project I’ll be describing below. Thank you Todd and Julie!
Now, about those bridges…we may have to change our name to just “& More,” or (my sister’s suggestion) “No Bridges But Lots More.” It looks as though the municipality is finally going to build that bridge they’ve been promising for ten years where the main road meets the Morete River. It will be a small bridge for cars, and they don’t need our help! I like to think that our presence and the hope & confidence we were able to give the Nunez family, along with visits to the municipality to request accountability, at least partially account for this development. But it may have happened anyway. The important thing is that the bridge should be ready in six months, and that will be in plenty of time for Stephen Nunez to start school next February.
The other bridge project was to allow the Isidro Nunez family access to the road, schools, and hospital. After the first meeting of Puentes y Mas (B&M’s sister organization in Costa Rica) it became clear that the family needs a bridge for cars if they are to remain on their land: Dona Ester is just not capable of that slippery, muddy trek down the hill to a footbridge in the winter rains. Bridges & More was able to offer an architect and engineer from University of Costa Rica, and a small amount of money for this bridge, though we could not finance the whole thing. Unfortunately legal questions involving easements have complicated things, and Isidro has chosen to finance the bridge himself by selling lots on his property. We wish him well.
SO! With no bridges to build we find ourselves in an excellent position to move on to the “& More” part of our tasks. The new sister organization, Puentes y Mas, is beginning to take on a life of its own: in addition to Bridges & More's stated goal of providing loans for small local businesses, Puentes y Mas voted at its first meeting to devote some of its efforts to protecting the community’s Morete River. This river is a real jewel, filled with large fish and fresh-water shrimp, deep cool pools and rushing rapids. As nearby land has been bought and developed, careless construction of roads and home sites has caused a tremendous amount of earth to be washed down the surrounding hills into the river, reducing its size and compromising its purity. Additionally, construction crews from other areas have been imported, so word of this lovely river and its resources has spread far and wide among Ticos. As a result Rio Morete is in danger of being over-fished, and illegal methods (including harpoons, nets and poisons) are being employed by visitors from other areas.
At the suggestion of Alvin and Luis Nunez, Julie made signs to put at the main entrance points to the river. These signs prohibit undesirable and illegal activities. Puentes y Mas held a community meeting at which the residents began to organize a widespread effort to protect the river, including trips to the police and Environmental Ministry (MINAE) to request patrols and support. Additionally, Bridges & More helped the community pay one of its residents (Geovanny Nunez) to patrol the river during the crucial week of Semana Santa (the week before and including Easter).
Another idea arose from the Puentes y Mas meetings: Isidro’s and Ester’s daughter Milena is a high school student with much undeveloped artistic talent. Her paintings of the brilliant natural world around her are vibrant and joyful. She wants to go to a university to study art. Alvin Nunez suggested that we North Americans might find places where Milena could display (and perhaps sell) some of her art work. Julie and I were able to find two venues for Milena’s work, and I have been working on publishing a card to accompany the work. Julie suggested that, as paintings are hard to sell, Milena might be willing to paint things like chairs or tables for tourists to buy. The day I left I found Milena and her brother Danilo on Todd and Julie’s porch sanding little tables that Todd had made. I put in an order for the first one! And today I received a letter from Julie to say the tables are complete and they look fantastic, and they’re considering making some benches as well. These will be offered for sale at a local Eco-Fair/Earth Day Festival to take place on April 22.
The clay oven idea has found a home! Guiselle Nunez grew up in the Guanacaste Province using a clay oven, and is thrilled at the prospect of building one near her home. When I left Costa Rica, Todd was seeking the best place to buy the necessary brick, and he and Zeno were testing the local earth for its proportion of clay to silt and sand. I’m waiting to hear more!
Our first small business loan was to Beatriz Picado to finish her organic nursery of organic vegetables and medicinals. Julie has spent many hours with Beatriz preparing the beds and putting in irrigation hoses. I’m attaching a picture of the nursery as seen from the road—if you look closely you can see the little plants are growing happily now in the earth.
Ideas for the future:
Julie and Todd will undertake a recycling initiative.
Guiselle Nunez continues to hope for a meeting with Carlos Rojas from San Jose to learn what’s involved in growing orchids in vitro for export. Meanwhile Carlos, in addition to his three jobs, uses his medical laboratory and his home to breed and grow orchids. This is the same Carlos who found architects and engineers for the bridges, and helped me sort through my ideas about producing biodiesel.
Tom Hemeon from Lancaster visited for a month in February and March. He has a beautiful mountain retreat (Finca Santa Lucia) up above where the river crosses the road. He has offered his place for an art fair to raise money for the community.
And the bamboo: I’m still hoping we can organize a bamboo construction-learning project with Martin Coto and Grace Lizano. Alvin and Umberto Nunez have both expressed interest in learning this craft. As well,
Todd is a talented builder and he too wants to learn to build with bamboo.
This letter has grown long!
Thanks to all of you for your interest and contributions. I hope to hear from you—please feel free to share your thoughts and ideas!
Pura Vida!
Elizabeth
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