Tinkerbells Magic
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jul 7, 2002
- Messages
- 19
VERY SORRY FOR THE DELAY IN GETTING BACK TO EVERYONE...
To start with, a warm thanks to everyone's enthusiasm regarding reaching out to the poorer children of Cozumel whose families cannot afford to send their children to school and often rely on them to help the entire family survive.
I have been working on the answers to the posted questions and here is what I have found out:
1) Chrysalis is a well respected, effective, non-profit organization whose members are ENTIRELY volunteer. No one holds a paid position.
2) There have never been "enough" donations made, to date anyway, that would require them to funnel excess to other areas, though they would be more than willing to do so. To date, they have NOT been able to send every identified child to school for lack of funding. They sorely need assistance.
3) Here is the part I hate to mention. I feel so bad for all the kids that want to particpate, including my girls. YES, there is a customs issue if one walks off with a suitcase. My girls are so bummed. There is a chance you might be stopped and charged almost equal to the cost of the items you brought with you. A good chance that it is too much of a red flag.
Answers to this problem: (Choose what works for you)
1 - Shop cheaply at the Dept Stores used by the locals (vs. the tourist ones that charge higher prices). The San Francisco local market, on the northwest corner of Avenue Juarez & Ave. 30th and the Chedraui grocery market ,across the street from Plaza Las Glorias and next to the Convention Center, have been suggested. Fill a backpack you buy or bring with you folded in your day backpack from the ship and drop it off at any of these locations:
The Cozumel Putting Course, located at Calle 1 Sur and 15th Ave
Plaza Sol Jewelry Store next to the Barracuda Hotel on Avenida Rafael Melgar
2 - Carry a backpack with you with used clothing and school supplies, off the ship with your day items. I AM NOT ADVOCATING THIS. Just passing it along as it has worked for others.
3 - The most effective way is to donate money. This way the child gets exactly what they need. Unfortunately, this limits families who have children who want to participate.
Our kids have decided they want to donate a backpack each and want to fill it with supplies, adding their own personal touch so it is fun to open for another child. They want to be a part of the choosing themselves with minimal parental involvement. (This way they still feel it is THEIR project and they in fact have the power to make a difference.) In our case they will be using their chore money and mom and dad will match that same amount they work for. Plus we will make our own donation separate from them.
We spent a lot of time trying to figure out what to do. We almost gave up and then decided that wasn't the example we wanted to set either. So we came up with this. I wish it could be made simpler, but I don't know how to streamline this with the customs issue. Any suggestions are welcome!
Thank you to everyone for jumping right in. We have gotten several e-mails requesting more info. and been told of many children ready and eager to chip in. In fact some had already started their packing for trips MONTHS from now! HOW TOUCHING! Our girls started jumping up and down hooting and hollering when they first heard from other families that their kids were choosing what to pack and give too! They were SO excited by the fact that other KIDS were doing it!
Following this post directly, should be a copy of one of the Chrysalis Group pages that should answer most other questions. Even more info. on them is available by accessing travelnotes.cc
Any questions, I PROMISE TO GET BACK TO YOU SOONER! I was slow getting all the information checked out. If I missed anything, please let me know. Sorry for the LONG post.
God bless!
Sincerely,
Liz Brody and family
