Here you can find the contribution of the Colegio Sinodal da Paz. It is written in English
Colégio Sinodal da Paz – Novo Hamburgo – Brazil
First task: Our school is part of a diaconal institution. The Associação Beneficente Evangélica Floresta Imperial (ABEFI) is a large institution, which houses 12 social and educational institutions. One of them is our school, Colégio Sinodal da Paz. In our school there is a volunteering group with students and teachers who do voluntary work in social institutions. The institution called “Ação Encontro” is served by the volunteer group.
Second task: “Ação Encontro” (Action-Encounter) is a sister institution of our school, which is administered by ABEFI. Ação Encontro assists children and adolescents in situations of social vulnerability. Children who study in schools in the morning go to Ação Encontro in the afternoon. And the children who study in the afternoon, go in the morning. There they receive protection care, food and various workshops, such as dance, music, bakery, judo. ABEFI and all institutions are linked to the Lutheran Church. The work is special and important because these children are helped in their education, as they run many risks in life, as they live in precarious situations, where families have few financial resources. Many people in the Live your Faith group are part of another group, the volunteer group. And, this group developed many actions, as we will see below.
Third task: The volunteer group worked during 2022 at Ação Encontro. We did math and Portuguese teaching activities for the children of Ação Encontro. Groups of 3 to 6 students from Sinodal da Paz went weekly, in September, October and November, to help the children of Ação Encontro with their schoolwork. We held two birthday parties for the children of Ação Encontro. Many children do not have birthday parties at home, so the party at the institution was very meaningful. The volunteer group also carried out a campaign to collect school materials for the year 2023. We managed to gather 30 school material kits, where each kit costs an average of 20 dollars. Many families of Ação Encontro children receive between 100 and 150 dollars a month, which is not enough to cover all the family’s expenses. Thus, we help these families a little with a fundamental item for the education of these children.
