One child dies somewhere in the world every five minutes from preventable causes, mostly related to violence.Exposure to that violence can cause deep and long-lasting emotional scars in those who survive. In Central America, the fear of violence has recently driven thousands of children to drop out of school and to make the dangerous journey toward the U.S. border.The UNICEF report, titled “Children in Danger: Act to End Violence against Children,” highlighted Central America as one of the most dangerous places to be a child with El Salvador having the highest rates of child murder in the world, followed by neighboring Guatemala.“Schoolchildren and teachers live in fear of murder, theft and extortion. School attendance is among the lowest in Latin America, and violence is one of the main reasons...One in three Salvadorean children in year 6 of primary school report having been robbed in the past month and four in ten report being bullied,” the report said.Much of this violence comes from armed drug-dealing gangs — often comprised of other children — who adopt a “join or die” approach and sometimes kill others if they refuse to follow.Violence in this region has driven thousands of Central Americans, many of them children, to flee to the United States — often traveling alone. A large number of them arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border this winter, and many of the children picked up by immigration services are still in detention centers across the United States. For the last eleven years the leaders of Madre Tierra Amor, in partnership with La Casa Organica, achieved measurable success by educating children in El Salvador.In 2008 we decided to open La Casa Organica for Salvadorean families. This project shares the wonders of organic farming as an alternative lifestyle to counteract organized crime.Today El Salvador experiences some of the highest murder rates in Latin America. In the past three years nine students of La Casa Organica were killed and one is missing as a consequence of this wave of violence (three boys from the picture are dead). Many of our own students have also decided to make the dangerous journey toward the U.S. border, ending up in concentration camps.Imagine that you are a child and have fled unimaginable violence and crossed entire countries alone, only to find that your right to request asylum requires that you first survive a camp more closely mirroring a place for interned prisoners rather than for children.You will not be provided schooling, classes of any kind or books. You will spend the next few months with thousands of other children, wondering if and when your childhood will be returned to you.According to The New York Times, this is the reality for some 13,000 Central American migrant children being held in detention centers across the country. As the Trump administration ramps up the construction of tent camps, what remains clear is that the big business of detention centers for migrant children will only continue to grow. Few safeguards are in place to ensure the health and well-being of those children.What makes this particularly pernicious is that the children at the center of this story are fleeing the gravest situations imaginable. Our goalAt La Casa Organica our goal is to make sure that no child in our area drops out of school and decides to make the dangerous journey to the U.S. border.La Casa Organica empowers kids to create environmental and social solutions. We are working with communities to promote responsible land and resource management through environmental education. We teach our students English, French and computer skills so they have better chances to find a job. We provide a space for an exchange of ideas and a discussion of life subjects to bring them new perspectives.We seek acknowledgement from local families as a serious source of support, education and inspiration for their children.We also want to continue offering them new life experiences such as yoga classes, healthy cooking, music, arts and crafts.They deserve a better life.Any amount of monetary donation is welcome. We are highly honored and obliged for the support you offer.Your generous donation will go a long way towards helping us end child migration in our area as we will be able to reinforce our educational programs.Thank you! in advance. Together we will make a real difference in the lives of the kids we serve. For more information regarding La Casa Organica, please check our website www.madretierraamor.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOGJFBkfUNs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNFrWyF4VVs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2sKWA-ZlxM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKZEg0daMX4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwxalUfjm2o https://www.facebook.com/…/vb.1005534075/10206195332694689/…Thank you in advance for your donationsMauricio A. MontanoFounding Director
