Preschooler Profiles
Our Monso Chi Esuelita or Little Kids Preschool is the building block for our other educational initiatives. Take some time and enjoy getting to know our preschoolers before your visit! Here is our version of Facebook with some information about them. They all look forward to spending quality time with you.
Keyvin
Keyvin is an outgoing three-year-old and one of our newest students at Monso Chi Escuelita. He may be one of our tinier preschoolers, but he definitely has the most spunk and will be sure to keep you on your toes!
Alonso
Alonso, a little boy of few words, but will win you over with his sweet demeanor and a hug. Also a new addition to Monso Chi Escuelita, he is enjoying his first weeks at preschool!
Damaris
Damaris has one of the highest attendance rates of all our students and usually comes dressed to impressed in her cheerleading costume! Not only can she melt your heart with her smile, but also with her big bear hugs.
Joel
A model student with an uncanny ability to make any teacher happy with his enthusiasm and participation. He is a ringleader at Escuelita and will be sorely missed as 1st grade is around the corner.
Ixela
Doesn’t leave home without an awesome hairdo, Ixela started preschool in tears everyday and has since turned that frown upside down.
Lucho
Every Escuelita in the jungle needs a Lucho: blonde haired bundle of fun and charisma to swoon all the ladies. Lucho is the son of Henry and Margaret; our program partners who also run La Loma Jungle Lodge in Bahia Honda. He brings an infectious energy to Escuelita and sports an english accent with a Panamanian twist.
Abelino
Our resident artist with a knack for everything related to drawing, painting, or puzzles. Abelino’s english vocabulary boasts perfect pronunciation.
Jose
Will not leave home without his gel and has recently been sporting a comb. With ear piercing screaming ability he can be heard across the bay during sing-alongs.
Mayeli
Her mom Delia always makes sure she comes to school looking like Rapunzel everyday. As Joel’s sister she is also a teacher’s favorite with her good behavior and eager participation.
Jennifer
Known for her huge smile and beautiful dresses. Very shy, but her smile will melt your heart.
Cindy
Known for her love of the playground and being a great older sister to Heidy. She is also a huge fan of singing head, shoulders, knees, and toes.
Heidy
Known for her caring nature, love for muffins with icing, and pig tails. She adores her older sister and is really starting to come out of her shell.
Josef
Known for always wearing his awesome checkered shoes, a pair of jeans, and belt. A carefree and goofy preschooler who can be a trouble maker at times.
Hector
Affectionately known as Hectorama this charming and sensitive little guy gives the best hugs in town. For the first few months he came to preschool with his older sister and sat on her lap crying. As you can see things have changed, he has a love for the pirate costume, can bust a dance move in return for raisins, and knows how to get his brush on!
Yamilka
Yamilka came to Escuelita timid and shy, but now is a standout in the classroom. She proudly tells everyone in English, “I am Yamilka”. This beautiful three year old lights up the classroom with her smile or in this case her karate moves on the beach.
The People of Bocas del Toro
Bocas del Toro and its people are unique and colorful. From the indigenous Ngobe communities where we volunteer, to the local community of lively, fun-loving Afro-Antilles’ friends there are a number of unbelievable cultural experiences to be had when joining us.
NGOBE BUGLE PEOPLE
The indigenous Ngobe people are a primitive group of isolated villages living in the mangrove forests of Bocas del Toro and the rest of the Ngobe Bugle Camarca in Panama. Their days consist of fishing, farming, and caring for their large families. Their traditional and primitive lifestyles is a huge contrast from the vibrant, loud tourism boom occurring all around them. They are tranquil and soft-spoken with warm smiles and big hearts.
There are a number of issues these beautiful people face everyday from unsafe water and malnutrition to being overshadowed and unable to adjust to the changes around them. Clean water is an obvious need for everyone in Bocas del Toro and the Ngobe suffer from many illnesses among the children. Many of these children will miss weeks/months of school due to illness. Malnutrition is a concern for the children in the communities we work in as many children only eat the food provided during school.
The education provided to the children in Bahia Honda is only offered until the 6th grade at which point their only option is to pay for transportation to continue education. Due to tuition and transportation costs there are only a few children from these areas who continue their education in high school because of the distance to town. The community of Bahia Honda is fifteen minutes by motor boat to school, which would take two hours by cayuco or cost a student ten dollars a day equal to a typical day’s pay. This simple transportation issue prevents many of the Ngobe students from getting the education they deserve and desire.
PEOPLE OF OLD BANK
