October 18, 2012 We started the morning with a trip to Santa Clara. There we met with the leaders of the White Dove School, who showed us the growing campus of a bilingual, Christian school. We also watched with joy the kindergarten children, when asked in English, writing their names and performing simple addition for us at the board. We also watched third graders, again given instructions in English, reducing fractions and solving equations. We also met with the leaders of their parent’s organization. One of these ladies said her family moved to Santa Clara in order to place their child into this school. Another family moved their child from public school, placing the child in second grade rather than fourth. The child is now well beyond the level of those in public schools. These families are very pleased with the opportunity this school is presenting to their children. About noon we continued to Acequia, where HAF had paid for desks. The teachers there fed us lunch to show their gratitude. This is a large school which teaches first through ninth grade. They have eight teachers and an impressive amount of activity going on. There is a room with computers and the solar system is painted on the walls. They are in progress of adding toilets, which has been partly funded by the red cross. Next we went to Las Dantas, to look at a village which has asked for help on a water project. This village is way up in the mountains at the end of the poorest road we have traveled so far. To begin the trip, we had to ford a river, which in times of heavy rain prevents travel by the road. The people in the village were very excited to have us come because no one from another country had ever visited the village. There are fifteen families in the village and they all come to get water at a spring. They have one small dam to collect drinking water and a lower pool is used for washing their clothing.