The
mission of Pura Vida is to facilitate
the sharing of First World resources
with Third World communities in a meaningful,
respectful, and long term way. Our primary
focus is on providing educational opportunities
for children in rural Third World villages
through scholarships, tutoring, and
support of local schools. We encourage
others to work with us as we give our
time, knowledge, and resources to help
poor rural communities attain a standard
of living in which their children can
thrive.
How
We Work
Pura
Vida is:
Ecumenically
Christian
Community
Based
Supporting
and Encouraging
This
is an ecumenical project in
that we work with volunteers and representatives
of a wide variety of Christian churches,
from evangelical protestant and Roman
Catholic. Our directors are from diverse
Christian faiths, as are our partners
in Guatemala. While we do believe
that our doctrinal differences are
not unimportant, we elect to focus
on that which brings us together,
not that which divides.
Our
work is community based in
that we focus on a few specific communities,
rather than spreading our time and
resources thinly across many. That
way we get to know the people, gain
their trust, and understand their
needs.
We
will focus on supporting and encouraging
communities, helping them from the
inside. We focus on projects that
"prime the pump", putting
people in a position to better themselves
and their community. Thus, our primary
focus is on education. We find that
this work also helps educate us as
well. Exposure to third world poverty
can change the life of a volunteer.
Carla
