Last week during the King’s Day celebrations the Dutch dressed up in orange, the national colour. Orange is also one of the two colours in the logo of Vivir Juntos. The other Vivir Juntos colour is light blue, which is the dominant colour in the Nicaraguan flag. So the Vivir Juntos colours symbolize the Dutch-Nicaraguan connection.
As many of you know, Vivir Juntos was set up nearly three years ago in order to raise funds in support of our work in Juigalpa through the Ruach Foundation which was established some months after the work got off the ground in Juigalpa. Ruach is responsible for the direct implementation of the work in the community home and the activities centre, and it uses the same colours in its logo for the same reason.
So it was no surprise that the same colours were also on display in the Vivir Juntos/Ruach stall at the flea market in Ter Aar in the Netherlands on King’s Day. The stall was set up by Laura who did an internship in Nicaragua some time back and we became ‘her family away from home’. We have remained good friends ever since and she still has a soft spot for Nicaragua. Out of the blue two days ago I received a ‘whatsapp’ message and photos from her. “Surprise, surprise! We have raised a pleasing amount of money for you!” at the event she had helped organizing. Isn’t that moving?
Sale
Laura’s sister and a friend have for years run a stall on the annual flea market on King’s Day in their village. Every year they select a worthwhile charity that will benefit from the sale of commodities that they have collected or have made themselves. Without announcing it beforehand they decided that this year’s profits would go to the Ruach’s community home!
Because of their sales experience and help from family and friends who donated commodities, Laura, her sister and two friends set up a stall early on King’s Day, together with fliers and other information about Ruach.
Laura wrote: “It was a cosy sociable day, with special orange Dutch cakes and nice contacts with people. We met a woman who was browsing the market to buy small gifts that she was going to deliver to poor people in Morocco. So she benefited two charities at the same time. We also talked to a couple who were very interested in Ruach as they themselves had been working in Tanzania. I was really moved by a very old man on his scooter. He carefully selected two candle holders of €0.50 each and insisted on paying double the amount ‘for the community home’.
So, that day funds were raised for Ruach in a creative manner, and our work in Juigalpa received a lot of welcome attention among a wide public. Laura adds: “We were able to tell many people about your special and important work! And it’s our pleasure to transfer the proceeds of our sales to the Vivir Juntos account”.
To Laura, Marlies, Audrey en Janneke, we say “Many thanks that you have shown us that ‘together we can make a difference’. Thank you for your commitment and we hope your initiative will inspire others!”