Stories from Fe y Alegría in Canto Grande, Perú

Miguel is in the third grade of primary school, and is a beneficiary of the Fe y Alegría project. Miguel had many difficulties reading and writing. During the pandemic, Miguel had many challenges attending his online classes. At home, he had no internet, and during those two years, Miguel lived with his brother at his grandparents’ house. His mother was in a women’s prison, and couldn’t support her son. Miguel’s older brother tried to help him, but it was difficult because he had work. When Miguel returned to school in 2022, he was below the academic level of his classmates. Not knowing how to read, write, or recognise a letter of the alphabet, Miguel felt very sad and discouraged. Once the project team found out about Miguel’s situation, the social worker from the Fe y Alegría project visited him to assess him and provide support. The project invited Miguel’s mother to bring her son to the project office for psycho-pedagogical support.

‘Initially, it was complicated because I work very early; I leave at 5am and return in the evening. The project insisted that I bring my child to the office, so I decided to work half a day to send Miguel to his learning therapy classes in the mornings. After therapy, I would return home to cook, and again, at midday, I would pick him up for lunch and then return him to his classes. Sometimes I was too disorganised and felt that I couldn’t do it alone, but the project also spoke to my son’s father, and we organised it between the two of us, even though we are separated, so that he would also support me in dropping Miguel off or picking him up from school. My son and I had a very difficult time and without the help of the project, it would have been almost impossible to make progress, especially in the learning process. One of my son’s most significant achievements is that he now knows how to read, write and recognise the letters of the alphabet; he is still not at the level of his classmates, but the teacher has informed me that my son has made progress and I thank the project for supporting me so that my son can grow and improve his learning.’ - Miguel’s mother

The Fe y Alegría project assists over 1,400 primary and secondary school students with academic and psycho-social support in the San Juan de Lurigacho neighbourhood, which is an area of high poverty in Lima. This is one of many stories of how this project impacts the community. We thank Misean Cara for their continued support of the Fe y Alegría project.