Letter from the Exec. Director -
Well this is it! Fotokid’s 20th Anniversary this year. I thought it might be fun to include some excerpts from Newsletters past. I began writing the quarterly’s in 1996. I have also included some notes from my journals. Before I do that though I’ll briefly bring you up to speed on what’s new.
We have started the IRS process finally for our own 501 3c. For those of you abroad, this is our own Fotokids charity. We have been fortunate to be under the umbrella of the San Carlos Foundation all this time and it’s always been a good relationship.
Well, I’ve begun the paperwork and found I just can’t do it all. I need some help with this, so if anyone knows a lawyer that would help us pro bono or for a modest fee I would be eternally grateful. info@fotokids.org <mailto:info@fotokids.org>
This month I’m giving TED talk
June 11th, Craneway Pavilion, Richmond California –The conference starts at 1 pm but I’m the after dinner entertainment at 7:30.
It will be sent out live on the Internet! If I don’t stumble too much I will pass the link along. I’m kind of worried because it’s memorizing what has to be exactly 12 minutes, while showing slides and walking around. Lots of triple tasking for a rebellious brain.
I had a chance to visit Honduras this month and am very impressed with the way the older students have taken on the responsibilities of teaching and design. See www.guaruma.org <http://www.guaruma.org/> for photos.
Our design studio Jakaramba under the direction of Berlin is getting lots of work, and the crew seems very happy taking photos, designing logos ,short videos and movie scouting.
Our retrospective 20-year exhibit will be August 4th at ArteCentro hosted by the Paiz Foundation here in Guatemala City.
Okay here are the promised excerpts and I only concentrated on the positive ones because after all this is an anniversary letter.
Notes 1992-
CNN does a piece on the kids - the cameraman is attacked by a huge lumbering guy in the dump, “The Tractor”. A couple of the fathers run out of their huts to grab him as he bellows and looks totally drugged up.
The kids are each interviewed as to what they like to photograph.
They have to do a re-shoot, so they are asked the same thing the next day and they have had time obviously to think about it.
Miriam says, “I like to take pictures of accidents, like when there are ambulances and people are on stretchers.” (I don’t remember any like this!)
Adelso says, I like to take pictures of dead people (I don’t remember this either!)- Then Rember says, “I like to take pictures I think he Seño will like!” (So much for seeing the world thru his eyes)-
It’s a nice piece and the kids play it backwards and forwards about 30 times. They like it best backwards.
1998- we sent off photos to Tarawa, an island in the S. Pacific a cultural exchange focusing on what it’s like to live as a kid in Guatemala-
Edgar chose as his picture a couple of transvestites in front of the National Palace,
This from the 10th anniversary- I put this in because rereading the newsletters I realize I feel it is still a pretty good summation.
It has been ten years since I walked into Guatemala City’s garbage dump with a group of seven 5 to 10 year olds armed with 3 plastic cameras they shared to take pictures.
In those days the children’s houses were made of cardboard and scavenged tin. Mattress coils were used as fences and sewage ran down between the houses. There were three latrines that served 500 people each. Today, many of the families have houses of cement block and indoor plumbing.
But ever present is the cloying smell of burning plastic and rotting garbage. The stench is penetrating. I remember leaving the class and sitting next to people on the bus who would look at me then get up and move. I figured they were thinking, “ She doesn’t look like she would smell like that”
More than once kids were chased for their cameras, sometimes at knifepoint. Packs of dogs roamed the dump and they attacked the children, bringing Jr. down by the back of his neck. One foggy smoky morning we came across a body that had been dumped there.
I look back now and ten years! Doesn’t seem like yesterday, seems like ten years (at least). There are a couple of things that make the project a real learning process. One is that all of you have made this possible. It’s incredible the amount of support everyone has given since t outset. If hadn’t happened I might have gone back to photographing wars.
People have sent cameras, donations, supported kids schooling for years made exhibits possible and travel for the kids (broadening their horizons and giving them the feeling of a safety net, truly the global village), opened up your hearts, you homes given medical help, workshops and the list goes on and on.
So what began, as a healing process for me to get over covering massacres and the cruelty of war has been an extraordinary reaffirmation of the kindness and compassion of people.
The other addendum to this is that the project, directed by children’s interests, as well as the talents of extraordinary volunteers we’ve had over the years, is like a river finding it’s own course. I do guide it a bit but mostly I end up being pulled by the current, and that means it’s always new and sometimes rough.
1996-Danilo 10 year’s old on our trip to Houston to participate in the Houston Fotofest
Two of the days were the worst I’ve ever had because my tooth started to hurt me in the night and the pain didn’t go away and the next day I had a dentists appointment and had no idea what to expect and couldn’t guess. When the time came I was really scared but it was useless because they were going to do whatever they were going to do.
The very first exhibition and the kid’s 1st flight…preflight chatter
Miriam: “Do you have to take a bath everyday? Will we get new clothes?” You know little Red Riding Hood was born in Jutiapa (small town in S. Guatemala) before there were very many people, so nobody much remembers her. The first thing I’m going to do when we get there is take a bath. I haven’t bathed all week. It’s been too cold!”
(“I bathed yesterday”, says Rosario)
“I bought new shoes because you need new shoes, you don’t want to dirty the plane.”
When we take off in the plane, Miriam screams, and Rosario thinks this is very funny and laughs. “Do all airplanes have the same upholstery?” Miriam wants to know.
Rosario: “The people look like little dolls. “Miriam, Miriam look at the water!”
Our visit to the Alhambra while we were in Spain as part of the Spanish Voices Project-
1996-Marisol age 14
The Alhambra was like a very large castle. Inside it was decorated with Arabic designs. It is many centuries old. They used neither tractors nor bulldozers to construct it. It was constructed by hand, it’s incredible, and it’s so large and so beautifully designed. The designed the windows without any metal and they turned out rather well.
1997- We are appearing on Sabado Gigante, which is a 4-hour long variety show that reaches 42 countries and 80 million viewers.
From Me
My most vivid memory was the hour spent in make up. I came out more groomed than I have ever looked in my life, The taping was delayed three hours and just before we were ready to go on Danilo turns to me and says, “Seño, you have to do something with those lips! You look like a clown!”
I panicked and ran into the women’s room wondering if I rubbed it off I would have no mouth at all. I desperately asked two women if they thought I was overdone- the assured me it was light make up-
Then I looked at them.
Essay theme 9th year anniversary-- where do you see the project going in five years from now?
“Seño Nancy left the country 3 years ago (!!! Exclamation mine) Now we are heading up this project and we are realizing that although it seems easy to be managing a Foundation it’s a little more difficult, but to push ahead we must make it that the difficult appears easy.”
This last one sounds like a Coup d’ etat to me!
From Me on our 1st flight to the Ixcan
I knew the plane was small but I was unprepared the next morning to see a piper cub stuffed with 8 small plastic stackable stools. They weighed us and the luggage…we flew very low, just over the tree tops and the views were nothing if not breath taking.
I wasn’t sure if I should feel relieved because we would have a shorter distance to fall.
I kept praying the others would make it (we were on 2 different flights)- I’ve flown a lot of dicey flights in central America but this and a banged up Contra helicopter with a hole in the floor flying over Sandinista anti aircraft positions takes the prize.
1997-Danilo’s Look at the Future (age 15)
I want that my life in the future will be more ordered. In the future I want to accomplish all possible goals, such as studying. I want to do advanced study and learn science. That’s because every thing or animal I look at gets me to thinking, I wonder how they reproduce? Or where they were born?
I know that if one wants to reach those goals you have to make an effort. I don’t know if I will be a thief or a doctor. What I do know is to make the effort to obtain these goals I have to get past adolescence and that’s a lot and the best thing I have is studying photography.
Send a donation to print up a catalogue for the 20yr Retro exhibit-you’ll get a copy!
Where are they Now?
I thought it would be interesting to update you and me on where everyone is now that has been part of Fotokids.
Starting with the original kids from the dump:
Rosario - married with 4 children Rosario (a.k.a. Rosa) teaches for us now in a dangerous gang barrio where she lives
Marta - graduated from Del Valle University in education is teaching middle school social studies in the same barrio as Rosa where they both live-
Adelso - murdered in a drive-by shooting while playing cards out in front of the church in the dump
Benito- driving a garbage truck and is part of gang network
Rember- murdered in the dump, drowned in a cess pool
Jr.- married a woman with 3 kids and is working in a factory, moved out of the dump
Gladiz- Doctor’s office receptionist, married a lawyer and has a baby boy
Miriam- is still writing and working as staff for the non-profit, Safe Passage teaching literacy to older women in the dump
Then Later
Evelyn- Fotokids Administrative Director- graduated in journalism San Carlos University, married to Fotokid Berlin and they have a beautiful 6 yr old girl, Abby
Berlin- Head of Jakaramba has worked extensively with film crews and professional photography-married to Evelyn
Atiliano- graduated as a sculptor from National School of Art- works as art restorer and on his family farm with his father who’s had a stroke.
Jonny- supervisor for Central America working for a pest fumigation company.
Danilo- has a daughter and has had various short term jobs
Marisol- works for the Ministry of Communications- is married, lives with her Mom in the dump and has 2 kids
Oswaldo- works as a volunteer fireman and teaches 4th grade
Wilder- got his degree in systems engineering and is getting his MBA
Nancy Morales- graduated with a degree in graphic design from San Carlos University, works as a freelance designer
Linda- Nancy’s sister- is finishing her degree in literature, married Flavio a TV producer/cameraman
More to come…
Buy our NEW BOOK –and see more of what we have been doing for 20 years! Order it thru our web sitewww.fotokids.org <http://www.fotokids.org/> (can easily be shipped directly to Europe)
cover foto © copyright David Ixbalán 2009
Design4Kids is being held on beautiful Lake Atitlan June 26-July 2nd - Join us and use your design & photography skills to make a difference Details-www.design4kids.org <http://Details-www.design4kids.org/>
Please help us – we need about 50 more educational scholarships for the upcoming year.
Educational scholarships pays for a students traditional education $300 a year or Fotokids Photography scholarshisp $150, which pays for our teaching and materials expenses. All our programs are free to the participants.
You can use PayPal button on of our web site…www.fotokids.org <http://www.fotokids.org/> or Make checks out to: San Carlos Fdn/Fotokids and send to: Fotokids. P.O. Box 661447 Miami FL33266