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| Children having a quick snakc at SOS Bolivia. Photo from SOS Archives |
April 4, 2011: Staff members from SOS Children’s Villages in
Bolivia have set up five emergency child care centers to ensure the health and safety of children whose families were left homeless by last February’s devastating landslide. Heavy rains brought on the destruction, which wiped out whole neighborhoods in La Paz, one of the country's capitals.
Some 800 low-income families were left with nothing after the disaster. With their children cared for by SOS professionals, parents are given the time and peace of mind needed to rebuild their homes and livelihoods.
SOS is caring for fifty children in each of the five locations. The SOS child care centers are located within government-provided emergency shelters set up across the affected areas.
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| Children reading at a school in SOS Bolivia. Photo from SOS Archives |
SOS Has Long History of Helping the Most Vulnerable Recover
Bolivia’s February 2011 landslide was one of the worst in La Paz’s history. La Paz is built on steep mountainsides, so landslides are common. SOS, in Bolivia since the 1960s, has been on hand for more than four decades to raise vulnerable children and provide emergency help after natural disasters.
For instance, after the May 1998 earthquake that rocked the Department of Cochabamba, SOS created six temporary centers to care for disaster orphans. In 2007 and then again in 2008, SOS ran temporary community centers that provided regular meals and medical care to children whose homes were washed away by floods.
SOS has nine Children’s Villages in Bolivia and a host of youth facilities, schools, vocational training centers, and clinics. Because of the organization’s significant experience in caring for Bolivian children, following the February landslide, Bolivian government officials put SOS in charge of coordinating emergency efforts for affected children.
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| Two boys at the playground in SOS Bolivia. Photo by Benno Neeleman |
Engaging Children While Parents Get Back on Their Feet
At the five SOS emergency child care centers, staff members from other SOS facilities in Bolivia are volunteering to engage the children in fun, educational activities. They also monitor the children’s health and make sure they are well-fed. Meanwhile, SOS is working closely with the government and other NGOs to identify and register families in need of support to ensure that help goes to the neediest.
Support SOS in helping the families devastated by natural disasters like the La Paz landslides by becoming a Global Village Builder. Just $12 per month can provide a loving home for children around the world.
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