CONIN

There is a Foundation in Argentina called CONIN (Cooperation for Childhood Nutrition). This foundation helps mothers of children between the ages of 0-3 become educated on how to nourish their children properly. I've been really interested in volunteering with this foundation because I think it's important to see all walks of life, and poverty I haven't really gotten to see face to face.

Yesterday, I went with 3 other women Volunteers to a home visit, where 2 mothers were seeking help from CONIN. When we arrived at their home, the 2 mothers were all smiles. Very excited to get some help with how to nourish their children properly. Both young ladies stated that they were very eager to learn how to cook for her children. The 2 women were friends.

• One of the young ladies had 2 children, one with Down's Syndrome... we learned the father moved to another city refusing to help any longer.
• The other young lady had 1 child, with a working father.

The first thing our leader Volunteer asked was, "Do you have light inside?" Can you imagine? Something we take so much for granted. Luckily, the government helps a little, and makes sure that there is electricity in the poor parts of the country... Thus, they had light. They also had a water faucet outside, also built by the government. We then entered their plywood home to address the living. The young lady with the 2 children's mother lived on the left side of the house, and there was a hallway to separate the two sides. In the hallway, there was a crib... because it was cooler there during the day (the hallway was open on both sides to let air through). Because there was no indoor plumbing, the was just a hole for their restroom. Their kitchen didn't have much, just a little plywood counter/table, with a little place to start a fire to cook something. No refrigerator, no stove, no running water... Nothing like that. Their home was really dusty, and didn't have windows.

Next we asked to see the other young lady's quarters. She lived in the back. There was no grass... just a dirt path. We saw that her bedroom was a little room, just for her bed, and her kitchen was another room with a big wooden cable wheel. No bathroom... nothing else.

These women didn't have much at all. I remember looking at their shoes and thinking that their shoes must be the most valuable thing they have besides their beautiful children. The baby with Down's was often ignored I noticed. Maybe it was the distraction of us being there. That was the part that made me sad... At one point, one of the Volunteers began to tear up because the little girl with Down's was left in the house while we were all outside.

Now that the Volunteers know what they have for means of living, they can educate them how to cook with what they have. The 2 young ladies will go to classes put on by the Volunteers of CONIN as much as they want. Volunteers will continue to make house visits to be sure they are making progress...

All in all, it was quite an experience... I wish I could help more, but I'm now going on vacations to Brazil, then moving to Chile. I'm definitely going to try to help with some organization like this in the future. I'll keep you updated...

Oh, and by the way, I took pictures of the lab today, here they are!!