I am proud to finally announce Operation Esteli 2016!
While this may come later in the year as hoped, I don’t think I need to remind any of the guys that have been around a while what a wonderful project this is and all the great things we accomplished as a community during the past 2 years.
Those of you who have joined within the last year or so and not aware of Operation Esteli, please peruse the subforum threads and particularly the announcements listed below to get up to speed.
OE 2014: http://www.botl.org/threads/botl-gives-back-operation-esteli-2014.73575
OE 2015: http://www.botl.org/threads/operation-esteli-2015.80233/
Why Operation Esteli? The answer to that question is the same as in previous years. We as a community want to give back to the people of Nicaragua. The people of Esteli have provided us something that brings us much joy and happiness, that provides common interest, which has led to people on this board making friends around the globe, attending HERF’s, chatting, etc. on a daily basis for most of us.
While Estelí enjoys relative prosperity compared to other regions in Nicaragua, poverty still reaches and impacts the population. Almost 25% of the people in Estelí live in extreme poverty by the definition provided by the World Bank (less than US$1.25 per day). Many of the impoverished work in the city´s cigar´s factories. The impact of poverty is evident in the poor standard of education and the proliferation of unsuitable housing/shelter that line the residential neighborhoods in the area. In Esteli the school day is only 4 hours long, and provides only minimal educational opportunities to children.
The Estelí Education Center, which OE 2016 will support, provides refuge and opportunity to children living in the city and surrounding rural areas. The center offers support for children in two key areas:
· Primary Education/Education Enrichment: Provides academic support and extracurricular opportunities for children and adolescents to reinforce important subjects like reading and math. The program also includes teacher training and/or technical assistance, distribution of school supplies, and parent engagement.
· Food Security and Nutrition: Seeks to improve the nutritional levels of children and increase the food security within communities through the provision of daily school lunches, school/family garden assistance, and community workshops.
The Esteli Education Center, is managed and operated by Fabretto, a Spanish charitable foundation that was formally founded in 1990 as the Fabretto Childrens Foundation in the US, and has had a presence in Nicaragua (through its founder, Rev. Rafael Maria Fabretto) since 1948. Partnering with Fabretto brings BOTL and MPI experience and expertise in Esteli that simply cannot be matched anywhere else. We are proud to be working with them at the school. The Fabretto staff in Esteli are wonderful people, dedicated to making a difference in the lives of children.
In addition to the programs above, we introduced our own initiative with the OE Scholarship Fund in June.
You may read all about that here: http://www.botl.org/threads/botl-and-mpi-announce-the-operation-esteli-fabretto-scholarship-fund.86882/
Our goal
This year is about refocus and sustaining our pledges. Money raised will be used to enhance education, provide food, provide shelter for children and further extend their education via scholarships. Our community is full of the most kind and generous people on earth. I can think of no greater purpose for us to come together as a group and focus our energies than to improve the lives of children in Nicaragua.
The 5 ways to support OE 2016
- Direct cash donation http://microprojectinitiative.org/donate (use the 2nd donate button listed on the page designated for OE16).
- Donate item(s) for auctions/raffles Please contact @BradMc
- Purchase a t-shirt https://www.booster.com/operation-esteli-2016
- Purchase the El Güegüense Short Lancero by Foundation Cigars http://www.botl.org/threads/foundation-cigars-el-g%C3%BCeg%C3%BCense-short-lancero-oe.87748/
- Spread the word in person and via social media (see below)
- If you can help with donations of cigar and cigar-related items for either auction or raffle, please get in touch with @BradMc
- Be proud in wearing the OE16 t-shirt where all proceeds raised are donated to Operation Esteli.
- Support Operation Esteli by purchasing El Güegüense Short Lancero by Foundation Cigars. All proceeds from the sale of these cigars will be directly donated to MPI by Foundation Cigars.
- SPREAD THE WORD! The more people that know about this the easier it will be to reach our goal, and accomplish the mission of improving lives in Esteli. Tell your friends that are not members of this board. Tell the people you talk to at your B&M. If you know someone in the cigar industry (whether they are a blogger, run a review site, work for a magazine, make cigars, sell cigars, or anything else) tell them what we are up to. SPREAD THE WORD… the more people that know about this.. the easier it will be to reach our goal, and accomplish the mission of improving lives in Esteli.
Operaion Esteli social media
http://facebook.com/operationesteli
http://twitter.com/operationesteli
http://instagram.com/operationesteli
About MPI
Those who are not familiar with MPI, please let me quote our charity administrator @mdwest
Please subscribe to this thread for updates.
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