PeruDonations Corporation Blog

August 4, 2008

Summer’s over and so much to tell

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 10:39 pm

But, I’ll stick to the highlights.

1 - “Promises: A Party With A Purpose,” our third benefit rock concert on March 29 of this year was a big hit! We had four rock/ska bands - Awry By Design, Breaking The Innocent, Busekrus and Pimpbot (for the third time!). We were also proud to present our openers, “Na Kane O Hawai`i,” a pair of Castle High Seniors with talent beyond their years. Despite some delays with the sound system, these two boys bounced back and got the crowd on their feet. They will be back on the scene, without a doubt!

We held a ticket pre-sale contest and Awry By Design (ABD) won both tiers: the first to sell 30 tickets and the most tickets sold. The first tier earned them recording time from Fifteen07 Music Studios. The Grand Prize was an opening gig for a major act (yet to be announced), and was provided by Sick Nick Productions in collaboration with 808 Shows and Life Rocks.

We had an amazing group of sponsors, including The 808 Scene Zine,  Hawaii Grad Nite,  Pass Out Records,  Quality Transmission,  Fifteen07 Music Studios,  Bananagrafeeks,  Jelly’s Aiea,  Oasis Skateboards,  808 Tattoo and Budweiser,  and of course,  the five bands. Between the ticket sales, our Peruvian jewelry sales, the silent auction and the calabash bowl, we raised $1,000 that night! This is an amazing amount, particularly when translated into Peruvian “soles”. We also had a mess of volunteers whom we’d like to thank again! In all, it took FIFTY people to put on this show. How crazy is that!?!

2 - Two months ago, we heard that Presli had left the orphanage and was living with his mom and siblings. Although it was great that he had been reunited with his family, it meant that we may not be able to continue our mission with his medical care. His family is quite poor and does not have email or a phone. We were very worried that we would not be able to find him. In addition, the orphanage had yet another “new” Director, one who does not know us or Ely.

After many emails to the Director from us, and a visit by Ely, we have discovered that Presli has been returned to the orphanage. This is sad for him, because he misses his family even more, but good in the sense that we will be able to continue to provide for his surgical needs and, hopefully, continue with his education as he becomes an adult. Both Presli and his family are in need of psychological services. We are not able to provide it at this time, but we have taken it into consideration.

The Director has made arrangements to get him to La Oroya for another surgery and Ely has made contact with both of them (the Director and Presli)! We sent funds last week for his transportation. Ely will not be able to go this time, as her own charity and school programs are keeping her busy about 18 hours a day! Instead, the Director and Ely’s friend, a Social Worker, are making the trip. In fact, they went TODAY (Monday, August 4)!!! We are anxiously anticipating an update.

Rotaplast is expecting him and, unlike last year, he does not have a cold this time. This means that during their stay in Peru, the Rotaplast surgeons may be able to do more for him than last year. We will keep you up to date as we hear news.

3 - Merardo is doing very well. Ely is taking him with her to Huancayo to purchase the vitamins, creams and gauze that he needs to protect his skin from the effects of his EB. Soon he will be able to do this on his own and leave Ely more time for her other obligations. He is also thriving at the PLE school and is involving himself more in the activities. We are very pleased to hear this. He has just turned 17 and will soon be of age to go to a technical school or college. His dream is to become a businessman, but he still has the problem of fused fingers caused by his EB. Ely is looking into programs or doctors who might be able to help. When she finds more information, we may be doing another burst of fundraising to make that happen.

4 - On that note, we have been quiet, but not idle, especially mom. She spends several hours a week posting (and re-posting) items we have for sale. We have diabetic supplies, designer shoes, designer or haute couture handbags and purses, CD’s, books, jewelry, and more. We have stores and listings on various websites, including eBay, Craigslist (Oahu) and half.com, among others. All of these items have been donated by us or by friends and neighbors for the benefit of our boys. If you are interested in any item, or you know someone who may be, please let us know and we will send you the URL(s) that show you what we have. Please pass on the word.

5 - Dr. Bridgette Kuhn (Honolulu) has graciously donated to us a membership as retailers of Herbalife. Why does this help? Ely can order their highly regarded nutritional products online for Merardo, and they can be shipped from the Herbalife warehouse in Lima. This eliminates the waiting of emails, and the exorbitant shipping costs and delays of sending these items from the USA, and they are of much better quality than what Ely is able to find in her corner drugstore. It will also eliminate a trip from her home in Chupaca to the Huancayo P.O. during business hours by taxi to pick up packages - the Herbalife is delivered to Ely directly!

6 - Which brings me to the final point: PLE (our affiliate charity in Peru, run by Ely and her husband) has purchased land and begun construction on their Community Center. With plans and funding from our other affiliate, the Andean Outreach Program, a solar-powered oven is under construction which will facilitate the baking enterprise that Ely has begun with the mama’s and grandma’s of her village. In an attempt to both increase their skills and provide a form of “cottage industry,” this is the first of many steps to help the village of Chupaca be less dependent on farms and mines as they teach the women a trade and business management.

They have been working on hand crafts for nearly a year now and have quite an inventory. So far, the only customers have been the volunteers at Ely’s program, but they have nearly enough inventory now to try to sell them in a market. They are very excited for this opportunity to take a dip in the mercantile pool. Many of these women have never left their village, so this will be quite the adventure for them.

Well, that’s the last 5 months in a nutshell. We are potentially planning another benefit concert later this year, perhaps October or November, which will be just in time to help with PLE’s Third Annual Chupaca Village Christmas Party! If you are interested in helping out in any way for a show, or know of someone who may be interested in being a sponsor, please let us know so that we may get in touch soon.

As always, Aloha ka kou, Mahalo nui loa and Dios te vindiga!
Lisa and Sherrill Sturm

March 10, 2008

PROMISES and other news (continued from home page)

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 3:24 am

NEWS ITEMS: March 2008 - PROMISES: A Party with a Purpose - The long-awaited news has arrived - We are hosting another concert at Don Ho’s, Saturday, March 29. This show promises to be as happening as the last, with some of our most dedicated supporters, Pimpbot, Büsekrüs and Awry By Design entertaining us with their musical talents. We are also having for the first time, Breaking The Innocent, who are doing more than just playing - the band is also providing the entire sound system as well as running the board all night. Much thanks to Steve and the guys for taking care of this huge job for us. Their drummer, Larry, will also be filming the event for our archives and for the website. We are looking forward to having that available for our beneficiaries in Peru to see online!

We are also going to have as our openers “Na Kane O Hawaii” a very talented trio from Castle High School who are making progress in the Hawaiian music. These young men have a very successful future ahead of them from what we hear (pun intended).

Throughout the night, Guest DJ Fernando “The Love Machine” will keep things moving with his signature antics and Latin music collection. We will also have a merchandise and info table, staffed by our volunteers. The merchandise will include hand-made Peruvian jewelry, our Hawaii Music Award-nominated compilation CD “One Life At a Time” and a few other items for sale. We will also have door prizes and raffle items from The 808 Scene Zine, 808 Shows, 808 Tattoo, Quality Transmission, Jelly’s Aiea, Oasis Skateboards, as well as fine and costume jewelry. A few of the bands will also have some of their merchandise for sale. Please make sure to support them as well. There are a few surprises in the wings, so don’t miss this party!

The funds raised at the concert will continue to support our efforts in Peru. Presli has been selected for further surgery this summer by Rotaplast International. Dr. Capozzi has taken a special interest in Presli and we are grateful for his efforts. Merardo continues to need medications and bandages, as well as nutritional support for his disorder. Elaine Binkley has also been working behind the scenes on the East Coast, gathering more Kerlix and other hard-to-find items to deliver to Merardo on her return trip to Huancayo, Peru later this year.

~~START HERE TO CONTINUE FROM THE HOMEPAGE NEWS ITEM~~
NEW PROJECT - We are also excited to announce that we, along with our affiliates the Andean Outreach Project (AOP), are going to sponsor Peru Luz de Esperanza’s efforts to create a school/community center to serve the 5 villages in the Andes where they currently have educational programs for both children and adults.

PLE’s schools already provide classes in reading, math, science, history, crafts, geography, Spanish, English and other subjects. The ‘schools’ are run entirely by PLE’s volunteer staff, which includes locals and international travelers as well. The older children also join the adults in courses in knitting, sewing, crafting, construction, carpentry, masonry, baking, animal husbandry, gardening and the many other skills brought to he program by the volunteers. The children’s program is mostly run in the afternoons to provide a chance for the children who work in the factories and farms to get an education, despite having to work as young as the age of 6 to help their families.

All of the programs that PLE provides are free-of-charge to the participants. These programs are sustained solely by the contributions of the volunteers and their affiliated organizations. The classes are held in borrowed facilities, often with no flooring, desks, or water-proof roofing, much less having books, pencils, paper and other supplies which we take for granted. Our goal this year is to help PLE purchase the property necessary to create their own permanent campus, which will include a day care, classrooms, a weaving room, a soup kitchen, a library, a mini-museum of their Incan and Spanish history, and an office to coordinate their programs.

AOP is also working with architects in the Bay Area to create a building plan that will be both “green” and at least partially self-sustaining. Once these plans have been finalized, the funds will need to be in place, through fund-raising and grants, to break ground and begin building a more comfortable, safe and fun learning environment for PLE’s participants.

December 28, 2007

Year-End Letter 2006

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 10:30 am

Mahalo and Gracias to our wonderful supporters! Since our creation one year ago, PeruDonations Corporation has been blessed to fund three projects. We have raised $3158 through benefit concerts, jewelry and CD sales, and monetary gifts from donors like you. All proceeds have been used to send goods and provide for the medical needs of poor children in Peru. Your generous gifts have gone directly to those in need!

August 2007: “Project Presli” - In conjunction with Rotaplast International Inc., Presli Balbin Ordaya underwent surgery to correct severe deformities to his mouth and eye, both of which now function properly. We hope to provide more for more surgery for Presli in 2008. Many thanks to Dr. A. Capozzi, and Ely Tinoco Chinchilla.

September 2007: “Mission Merardo” in conjunction with Peru Luz de Esperanza, Doctors B. Kuhn and M. Lee of Honolulu, and E. Binkley, RN of N. Carolina, Merardo Pillpa Alvarado received specialized bandages, clothing, and nutritional support for his Epidermolysis Bullosa. Merardo now sleeps on a mattress with a pillow instead of on a dirt floor.

Special recognition to the world languages classes of Ms Oliva Lui-Kwan who have raised money for all our projects and now have bought a bicycle and Christmas presents for Merardo’s family. WAY TO GO, GUYS!!! We are proud of you!

Christmas 2006: In conjunction with Andean Outreach Project and Peru Luzde Esperanza, 400 children in a remote Andean village, most of whom never had celebrated Christmas before, were treated to a party. Babies through adolescents received hot cocoa and rolls, and clothing or a toy. The village “mamas” who donated the use of their kitchens also received a whole chicken and other gifts, so their family could have a nice Christmas dinner.

Thanks again to all the bands, businesses, promoters, sponsors, and volunteers who donated their time and talents at the benefit concerts in March and September of 2006.

October 18, 2007

YIKES!! Has it been over a month since “One Life at a Time”?

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 11:46 pm

I can’t believe the concert was 6 weeks ago! I still feel like it was just last week or so. Anyway, it occurred to me that I did not write a blog about it (brain fart), so here are some notes about the concert and other news:
There were a lot of familliar and new faces at the show, even bands who were not playing came out to support us. Erica Aloang, Keith Monzen, Dave Letarte of Missing Dave and Marcus Büsekrüs (of Büsekrüs the Band) of were all there to party even though they weren’t playing. Keith even brought some merch for the raffle - I did not know Missing Dave was going to donate anything. They are simply awesome! A new band “Awry By Design” got on the docket the week before, since Missing Dave had to cancel. ABD rocked the house and has been getting gigs fairly regularly through October. “One Life at a Time” was their first gig - Daena Dempsey of Missing Dave recommended them to take their place. It was really the place to be that night - even though we were competing with the Bone Thugs & Harmony show. All the bands who played were awesome.
John Holy and Keoni Maivela of GTA doubled up by running sound after I lost both my sound guy and my DJ. Katie Whitman helped me emcee and brought cheesecake from Sure Shot Cafe to celebrate the Dock Session’s birthday party (as well as making the fliers, going with me to KTUH to plug the show on DJ Nocturna’s show the week before, finding the sound equipment, and a reaaaaly long list of other things). Aaron Churchill and Brian Coleman helped me with the video camera, merch and door. Gilda Holy stayed at my merch/info table all night with Hannah (the graphic artist also known as hanasaurusrex / bananagrafeeks). Max Murdoch not only performed, but sang an acoustic song called “Lisa Peru” followed by some statistical facts about Peru (I learned!). The capoeira group (Capoeira Besouro Hawaii) was excellent, first playing outside to get people to come down to Don Ho’s, then inside. The crowd loved them! (and I got video of mom busting a move during the audience-participation Samba!)
Other volunteers were: Sarah, Debbie, Winter, Sharla, Karene, Chris and Francie (did I forget anyone? Sorry!)
We sold about half of our jewelry that night, and have ordered some more. We will offer them on our website soon - rings and necklaces from Peru. We also had a calabash box for people to donate cash to help Ely’s school after the post-earthquake looting at her schools. We got a good amount of cash in there in addition to our door take and jewelry sales. At the end of the show, Marcus Büsekrüs loaded up the all the Easy Music Center-loaned sound stuff in his car and brought it up to my apartment (second floor, no elevator) at 3 in the morning! The speakers weighed 66 pounds apiece (I know because I weighed them on my scale before carrying them down to the car myself on Monday!). He did this for me at the end of the night when I realized that my mom’s car (that brought the stuff) was gone and Katie did not have room. I called Marcus, frantic that he had left, but he was by the stage helping GTA with their amps and stuff. I could not believe that I had not planned out that detail, since all the other minutiae had been arranged days or weeks before.
And through all of this I felt drunk/dizzy. I think I had an inner ear thing. I was a little out of it, feeling like I might fall on my butt at any time. I didn’t know it until I parked my car on arrival and went to get something out of the back seat. When I stood up I stumbled backwards a few steps. I was like “Crap!! How am I gonna run a show if I’m out of it?” But mom, Katie, Shawn Davenport, and all our volunteers came through to keep it going smoothly. I got better after a couple of drinks (alcohol re-equilibrium? HEHE), but I could not drink much, mostly because I was seriously afraid I was going to take a header at any moment.
It was also John and Gilda Holy’s 25th Anniversary after midnight. John told me when we were outside taking a break. So, without warning, I called Gilda up to the stage and presented the couple to the crowd to roaring applause. They shared a kiss and Gilda was all glowing! (She’s from Lima, Peru) When I told her in July about my charity, what we saw in Peru and what we want to do for Presli and Merardo, she was practically in tears! She is one of the truly good and sweet people in this world. Mom spent a lot of time talking with her at the merch table and she was really impressed. Mom said that Gilda reminds her of our friend Ely in Peru by her attitude and sweet nature and I could not agree more! Te adoramos, Gilda!
And I can’t say enough about Eric Lagrimas, who not only produced a very professional CD, but he has arranged for reviews in the Honolulu Advertiser, Star Bulletin and Honolulu Weekly and will be shortly announcing the CD’s availability online at several sites (iTunes, Napster, etc). He did not let me see the cover design until that night. I was soooo impressed, especially since I had taken a picture at Machu Picchu that was nearly identical to the cover image! He really did a professional job and we are blessed to know him.
Pimpbot also donated 25% of their merch sales that night to PeruDonations! They were there all night because they were the last to play. And when the got on stage they played just one song and then Fernando said “Okay, this will be our last song”. The crowd went crazy “PIMPBOT! PIMPBOT! PIMPBOT!” In the end, they got in about 5 songs before we had to clear out. These guys are so unbelievably awesome!
Jason Miller, of 808Shows.com was also a welcome face at the show. And, like for “Promise for Presli,” he had donated shirts and CD’s for the raffle and door prizes. He is one of our regular “sponsors”. (Can you say that after only two events…?)
Unfortunately, neither of our cameras were working, so if you were at the show and have pix, even if they aren’t great PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE send them to us. We have nothing but band and sponsor logos to post on the website. If they are dark or whatever, send them anyway. We have PhotoShop and mom’s a whiz!
There was a review of the CD “One Life at a Time” in the Star Bulletin a few weeks ago and Katie Whiman wrote an even better review in the 808 Scene Zine (October issue). If you have not seen it yet, pick it up at many music, clothing and coffee shops around town. Or go to The 808 Scene Zine October issue, page 5. You can purchase the CD through us directly (we take PayPal - $10 + S&H) or from PassOutRecords.com, (click on “STORE”).
After this show mom said, “NO MORE!”, mostly because this time I assigned her a good portion of the work. And since she knew how much I did and how much Katie did, she realized how much work it took for me to put on the first show with Josh86, she did not want me to spend all that much time any more, particularly since I am in the senior year of my program. Our profit margin after each show is about 50% and she does not think it’s worth hundreds of hours on my part.
But I reminded her of three things: 1 - people are getting to know of the charity (via Rocky’s podcast, the Pimpcast, the Scene Zine article and CD review, the papers’ reviews, the KTUH interview, etc); 2 - nothing else is bringing in money except small intermittent donations from individuals; and 3 - even if a “small” amount of money raised, say $500, is like two-months wages for a minimum-wage worker in Peru, so it’s not nothing!
That said, we are considering having another spring show. Seeing as how I will have less time and mental energy to accomplish this task, but now I kinda-sorta know what to do…..any volunteers to help me set it up? We are thinking that a contemporary Hawaiian or other local genre would be good. Although you know I love the rock and ska, it would diversify our audience and help to spread the word to a different scene. Email me (my charity email box is not working, so use perudonations@yahoo.com).
In other news:
- There is a nurse from the U.S., Elaine, who is going to work with Ely’s dad’s program in Huancayo for a few weeks. She contacted us several months ago and we told her about Merardo’s EB. She is taking boxes(!) of Kerlix to deliver to Ely for us. That stuff is expensive, but she had the hook up and got them for free! His prognosis is looking better and better. We still want to try to get him surgery to separate his webbed fingers. But that’s down the road a bit.
- Elaine is also taking more medical supplies and medical emergency/First Aid information in Spanish for Preli’s orphanage. You may remember that I gave a First Aid and CPR “class” to the house mamas while I was there last summer. Most of them had no clue how to handle a lot of the more common mishaps that kids get themselves into (banging their heads, burns, bee stings, minor cuts), nor the more urgent things that might happen (broken limbs, neck injury, poisoning, respiratory emergencies/choking, impalements). They were taking notes and asking questions. Somehow I managed to demonstrate rescue breathing and CPR on this baby doll. It was okay for showing them the baby stuff, but it was comical straddling this little doll and pretending to give stomach thrusts to a full-sized kid to “dislodge” food. They wanted me to come back the next day and tell them more, but I had not prepared for giving a class and did not know what else I could teach them without better Spanish skills and more supplies.
However, Elaine is a nurse and is going prepared with First Aid kits and instruction sheets for all the “casas” and common areas. She is also taking other information that they should be able to copy and have on hand for all the staff. She is going to be veeery popular at Rosario!
- Natalie Lui-Kwan’s Spanish and French classes at Castle High School (Kaneohe, HI) are going to raise funds to get Merardo a new bike. His old bike is probably totally dead by now. He gets blisters on all surfaces of his body, including the soles of his feet, so walking is a painful ordeal for him. If he has a working and comfortable bike, it is much easier for him to get to school and be independent.
- Meanwhile, the Medical Director of Rotaplast, the wonderful Dr. Capozzi, has mentioned having Presli go to their clinic again next summer in Peru for a second round of surgery. We are beside ourselves. Mom though that it was a one-shot deal with them, but I didn’t think so. When I told her we got an email from him saying he also felt invested in this boy, she nearly cried.
All-in-all, things are going well. We are currently in the red in our books, but we are hoping to sell a few CD’s and get some into Jelly’s ‘Aiea (I have already arranged it, but have not taken the trip to ‘Aiea to do the deal yet). We are also going to have new jewelry on the website and hope that people will buy some, if only just to help us out. The wood rings are super cheap (like $5 or so) and the stone pendant necklaces are probably going to be about the same as they are now. All handmade in Peru (we are buying them directly from the artisans).
Anyway, this is a really long blog. Thanks for sticking around to the end. When I get the pix from Ely or any more news, I will write again.
Until then, cuidense y que tengan un dia maravilloso,
Lisa and Sherrill Sturm

August 21, 2007

Doctor’s report

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 8:37 pm

I have finally reached Ely. I could not get a hold of her from Wednesday until Sunday. We were desperate for news both about Presli and about the earthquake.

When I did finally get through, she told me that Presli was at the hospital and had slept through the whole thing! Meanwhile, she and her son were at the hotel in La Oroya on the highest floor she had ever been on - the ninth! Anyway, she felt the building go left then right then left then right, etc. She started to panic and her three year old son started to scream. She had never been in an earthquake that strong, nor ever been so high up. Understandably she was a bit freaked out. As her son later told the story, the man under the floor (the downstairs hotel “neighbor”) was a bad man because he was making their floor shake. Ah, kids!

Immediately, she got out of the hotel and went to check on Presli. He knew nothing and was peacefully lying there while the staff of the hospital was in emergency mode all around him.

So, back to Presli. He did finally receive his surgery over one week later than planned. In the meantime, he had a nice time at the clinic and bonded very strongly to Ely, telling her as he went under the anesthesia “I love you. I wish you were my own mom”. Of course, Ely was so moved that she was shooting tears (that’s how she described the moment). Presli’s surgery was about 3.5 hours long, from what I could make out on our crackly and tenuous cell-to-cell connection across the Pacific. There were a few other details that I could not make out, but she will be sending a full report in a few days.

Here is a letter to Dr. Capozzi from the lead doctor on the team (more to follow as it comes in): (FTSG is a full-thickness skin graft)

“After 2 cancellations because of illness I operated on Presley on the 16th. I did 3 FTSG’s from the supraclavicular area. One was on the right medial lower lid to repair a lower lid ectropion and release a medial canthal fold. The other two filled in the areas after a upper and lower lip release. The upper lip graft was the entire upper lip to the NL folds, a cosmetic unit graft. I spoke to a local surgeon about his aftercare and especially how to remove the stent dressings and when. I would anticipate a good result.
He will need a forhead flap nasal resconstruction in the future. Pehaps a tunneled subgcutaneous flap would be best t avoid having to cut and inset it.
Hal Rosenfield.”
I know that the letter contains a lot of medical jargon, but basically they opened up his right eye near on the nose side and they released some of the scar tissue that keeps his lips from closing by adding skin from just above his collarbone. If you want more info about FTSG, Dr. Capozzi said it’s easily found on Google.
We are so pleased that Presli’s treatments have gone this far and has been successful. We are excited about the prospects of future procedures and his future in general.
We would like to thank Ely with all our hearts. She really is the flesh and blood of PDC. Keep her and her family and their charity in your prayers and thoughts. Peru was effected all over, even as far in the hills as Chupaca. The damage to the buildings was not great, nor was there loss of life, but her school program was the victim of looting. Some of their student desks and other supplies were taken. As it is, they don’t have enough desks, seats, paper or anything else for the students they teach in the five schools free of charge. Ely and Nilton have given all they have to this community and some uncaring individuals took advantage of a tragedy for personal gain.

If you would like to make a direct contribution to Peru Luz de Esperanza, Ely’s volunteer program, please let us know and we will tell you how to wire them money through xoom.com for a very small fee (it’s like 7%). In fact, the fees may still be waived due to Peru’s crisis. For donations to aid in the relief efforts for the cities that were destroyed, go to Interbank.com or xoom.com and look for the trust account that they have established, or I can send you instructions that we received from the wire service. Remember, the dollar goes very far, so even $10 or $20 does make a huge difference.

On a lighter and happier note, the concert arrangements are just about 100% completed. We look forward to seeing you at the show on September 1. Hopefully we will have after-pictures of Presli to share with you!

Lisa and Sherrill Sturm

August 16, 2007

Surgery at last!

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 10:42 pm

*PRESLI GOT SURGERY!!

Thanks to the generous donation of time and talents of the Rotaplast International medical team, Presli got his first intervention today in LaOroya!!

Presli arrived at the clinic in La Oroya, accompanied by Ely, the social worker and the director of the orphanage. What an entourage. We did not know that the director would be going with them. Nor did we know that he is a medical doctor! He was able to do the paperwork necessary to be a part of the surgical team. As of yet, we don’t know if it actually happened that way, but how cool is that?

Unfortunately, when Presli made the trip, he had a cough. This resulted in a delay. They waited a few days for him to get over it, but in the meantime he developed an infection. Another delay. As a result of these two setbacks, he has been in the clinic much longer than his court-approved 7 days, so it was providence that the director of the orphanage made the trip with him afterall. As the custodian of record, he could authorize the extension without a judge’s approval.

While Presli was recovering from his health issues, he had a really great time! He shared a hospital room with two other boys, both being treated for deformities. Since most of the patients are treated for cleft palate and other birth defects, Presli was not the only person there who looked different. In fact, he probably felt more comfortable among the other patients than he does in his current home. Ely reported that they played outside, goofed off and even did a little production for the families. He must have had a blast. We are so happy for him. It must have been great to be surrounded by people who saw Presli the boy and not Presli the “monster,” as some of his orphanage siblings still call him.

Due to the earthquake earlier this week, we have been unable to communicate with Ely yet. We did, however, receive a message from Dr. C that the hospital felt the effects of the temblor, but did not suffer any damage in the facility (see below of an excerpt of a letter to him from staff in Peru).

We would like to extend a heartfelt “Thank You” to all of you who have supported our dream and who have helped to make this day come to pass for Presli!

This is only the beginning for him, but we are just so pleased we could get this far so fast! Through luck, hard work and continual support from all of you, his future is looking brighter already!

Most of all, we would like to congratulate Elizabeth Chichilla, our “funcionaria” in Peru for her hard work and dedication to this cause. Ely has spent EIGHT MONTHS attending to the minutiae of red tape and meetings to make this a reality. She met with lawyers, judges, social workers, filled out paperwork, scanned documents for the medical team and spent hours with Presli preparing him for this procedure.

Staying the course through the transition from Sr. Almonacid as Director of Aldea del Rosario, through a temporary director and finally getting the new director up to speed, Ely has worked tirelessly, depsite running her own charity in another city! And she did it all for love.

Ely, te agradescemos muchisimo. Sin ti, no hay PeruDonations Corporation. En ti tenemos toda la fe y un oceano de cariño.

*The “One Life at a Time” Benefit concert is officially on! September 1 at Don Ho’s Island Grill at the Aloha Tower Marketplace in Honoulu, HI, PeruDonations will join The 808 Scene Zine at a party to close out the summer! Four bands, including Missing Dave, Grand Theft Audio, Pimpbot and Max Murdoch & the Northern Soul Project will entertain you from 9:30 until the bar kicks us out at 2! Opening the show will be a capoeira demo by Capoeria Besouro Hawaii, and DJ Mano Lopez will keep the party going between set with his own collection of Latino rythms.

* Also, that night will celebrate the release our first compilation benefit CD, produced by Pass Out Records, entitled “One Life at a Time”. Seems like a running theme…

Check in often to see how you, too, can own this priceless treasure!

* Merardo turned 16 last month! With donations from our supporters, we were able to get him an orthopedic mattress and pillow (so that he no longer has to sleep on the bare ground), some books, refills for his medical supplies and even a get a Birthday cake! It’s true, a small amount of dollars sure goes a long way in Peru.

FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS, MERARDO!

* We were contacted several months ago by a teacher from the East Coast who was considering a one-month stay in Peru, working at Ely and Nilton’s school program. Karen Doolittle did a bit more than that! She was gracious enough to purchase and hand deliver vitamins, protein powder and some medical supplies to Merardo. While she was there, she experienced quite an adventure, arriving in country to find her luggage lost and a country-wide transportation strike! Welcome to Peru!

Thankfully, her delay was short and she safely arrived in Chupaca to face a teacher’s strike, a farmer’s strike and clashes with police in the city square. Must be July in Peru! She soon acclimated (both to the political and seasonal) environment and went to work. Her month with PLE has ended and she is traveling more of Peru before returning to the US. Karen, thank you for going to help out our friends at PLE. We enjoyed the pictures of the parade and the view from the house. Thank you so much for sharing that with us. Thank you also for getting those supplies to Mr. Merardo. We hope you will return soon! See her blog for more details of her adventures.
*Here is the letter from Tom Fox (in La Oroya) to Dr. Capozzi:

“Well, things are constantly changing aren’t they. As I write, Presli, our burn patient, is having surgery. Hal Rosenfield is the primary surgeon. At the end of Wednesday, we had operated on 87 patients and completed about 150 procedures….Regarding the earthquake, we definitely felt it as a very long roll from side to side rather than up and down. No damage here that we know of, but part of the road between here and Lima has large rocks that need to be removed before travel. Hopefully, it will be open by Saturday pm when we travel to Lima. We have not heard anything about the status of the airports or flights.”


KUDOS to Rotaplast International, Inc. for making this all possible, not just for Presli, but for the hundreds of families you served during you short stay in Peru. We know your efforts and your caring smiles will not soon be forgotten, nor will the effects of your mission.

August 9, 2007

Email from the director of Rotaplast

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 11:52 am

Quick note to add to yesterday’s post (the entry below this one).
I received this email from Dr. Capozzi yesterday afternoon:

Hello,
I just got word that Presli was seen in the clinic and is the first surgical case scheduled. Exactly what they decided to do I do not know but rest assured if totally successful it will make him better. Your efforts have not been wasted.
I will send you any information I can.
Dr. C

Angelo Capozzi, M.D.
Co-founder and Medical Director
Rotaplast Int’l Inc.
San Francisco Rotary Club
www.rotaplast.org

I say again, small efforts from a lot of people can equal large changes for those who need it. What else can be said?

We will keep you update and add photos as we get them. YAY PRESLI!!!!

August 8, 2007

Presli meets the doctors!

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 8:30 am

We are ecstatic to announce that at the moment that I am writing this, Presli has arrived at the clinic in La Oroya, Peru, and is in the process of getting registered and settled in for his week’s stay.

I have spoken with Ely just a few minutes ago and all is well. She will keep me posted on the progress of his treatment. They have made the trip with the social worker of the orphanage who will stay the entire week, leaving Ely free to return to her own organization’s 5 school programs near Chupaca. She will return to her home tomorrow and, if needed, will go back to Oroya on Friday to stay the weekend.

We can’t thank her enough for all her efforts over the last eight months as she has done a ton of legwork and gone to see the judge and orphanage director many times on our behalf. We are so blessed to have her on our team.

Meanwhile, arrangements for our second benefit concert are underway, with the fliers expected out of the shoot any day now. If you are on O’ahu, please join us on September 1 at Don Ho’s Island Grill at 9:30 PM. The party will be four-fold:

- Benefit concert to continue to support “Project Presli” and “Mission Merardo,”

- Celebration of Presli’s visit with the surgical team and perhaps some correction of his lips and eyelid,

- The 808 Scene Zine’s “Dock Sessions” first birthday, and

- Release party for our compilation CD featuring local rock and ska bands who have supported us in our efforts to raise funds (by Pass Out Records).

A few months ago Ely told us about a family of five who all have varying degrees of cleft palate. Since they are very poor, we told her that PeruDonations will pay for their transportation to the clinic as well, since the round trip is only about $7 apiece for the 2.5 hour trip! Dr. Capozzi assured me that since the main thing they do is repair this deformity, that the family is welcome and will have a place to stay during their treatment (all patients are being provided housing by Doe Run Company, who are well known in that region). Ely was not able to inform the family before she left today, but on her return she will give them the good news and hopefully they will be able to get surgeries as well!

We thank our supporters who have made these miracles possible. We truly could not have done any of this without the help and encouragement of our family and friends.

More to come later - including photos of Presli’s voyage!

Lisa and Sherrill Sturm

July 26, 2007

WOW! Long time, no write - concert news

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 12:48 am

PeruDonations Corporation is now in the final stages of putting together a second benefit concert. It will be at Don Ho’s on September 1, from 9:30 to close. We will have four bands, a raffle, door prizes and a capoeira demonstration. We are also hoping that this concert, which is also a celebration of the Dock Sessions’ First Anniversary, will additionally be a CD release party for our compilation benefit CD being put together by Pass Out Records.

If any of you out there would like to help out, these are the things we need:
-donations of goods or services for the door prizes or raffle
-small cash donations to help offset our printing and other costs of promotion
-volunteers to help at the door, with the raffle, and with our merch table.

If you, or any business owner you know, would like to provide raffle/door prizes (an oil change, a manicure, CD’s, gift certificates, a hotel stay, merchandise, etc.) please have them contact me ASAP at lisa@perudonations.org. Anyone who makes a donation will be given credit on our fliers. The fliers should be getting printed next week, so donation commitments and logos have to be submitted post haste. The actual merchandise, certificate or whatever can be delivered any time before the show.

Thanks to all who supported our cause in the past, particularly the 10 bands, the promoter (Unity Crayons and the street team), the flier designer (Josh86), the many sponsors who donated prizes, The Taco Shop (who fed the bands), the venue (Anna Bannana’s), and our many volunteers.

We hope that this second concert will not only raise funds to help our two boys with their medical and other needs, but to help raise awareness of the situation in South America, particularly in the Andes; and to get people talking about how we as individuals can make their lives better by our small combined efforts.

Please mark your calendars so that you can be a part of the solution!

Muchos mahalos and Gracias Nui Loa!

Lisa and Sherrill Sturm

P.S. Presli is confirmed to visit the surgeons in August and will hopefully be staying at the clinic for one full week for his first stage of surgery!!!

P.P.S. Merardo just turned 16 two weeks ago. We sent funds to our representative (Ely) and she purchased a mattress, pillow and books on our behalf for his birthday. She even had enough left over to refill his medical supplies AND get a cake!! I love the power of the dollar in Peru. See the pix below…

Ely poses with Merardo and his new bedding.
Merardo and Ely

Merardo shares his good fortune with two of his siblings.
Merardo and two sibs

The Alvarado-Pillpa family with Ely and one of her volunteers. Mmmmm….. cake good!
Merardo'

May 17, 2007

Short note - summer projects underway

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 12:08 pm

First, thanks for clicking the link! This should streamline the newsletter process. As always, email me if you want to change your addy or be removed from the list: lisa@perudonations.org.

Second, it’s official - we are two or three steps away from launching our two most exciting fund raisers for the summer. #1 - Eric Lagrimas of Pass Out Records is finalizing arrangements for a compilation CD. #2 - I am working with Katie Whitman of the 808 Scene Zine on another concert in August. Exciting venue and date TBA. By the way - we already have 4 super hot bands confirmed for the show!

Third, we are requesting anyone who is from Peru, or who knows someone from Peru or another Andean region, to submit recipes for a cookbook. We would like the recipes in English and/or Spanish, with a back story (i.e.”This was my favorite bread pudding from grandma’s kitchen…”, “My aunt’s house always had the smell of anise on Saturdays because she made a huge pot of…”), and a photo of the finished product if possible - you can even be eating it. Drink recipes would be awesome as well - Pisco anyone? Make it fun! We would like to have anywhere from 20 to 50 recipes, so if you have more than one to share, don’t be shy. We will arrange and upload all the pages to www.lulu.com and they will print and ship directly to the customer per order and send us the profits for our projects. The buyer gets the low prices of bulk printing and we don’t have to front any cash or keep an inventory. A win-win.

Lastly, I spent all day yesterday working on the website (click the link above right) - moving things around, refining the format and adding…. our genuine “Alpaca silver” jewelry store. These items are imported from Peru and are all one-of-kind handmade pieces. They are priced at $6-$11 and you can get as many as will fit into one package for a flat S&H of $5 to any US address. For international customers, write to us for the shipping rates. All profits will go toward Merardo and Preli’s visit with the Rotaplast surgeons in August.

Let me know your thoughts about this new process and if there are any glitches or problems on the blog or the website.

Mahalo,

Lisa and Sheri

May 10, 2007

Lots of irons in the fire for PDC, AOP and PLE

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 10:51 pm

Aloha to all, It has been a while since we have touched base with our supporters. Hope your Spring is moving along well and that your summer is lining up nicely. We have been a little quiet lately - I am in my finals and mom has a long-term teaching gig. Needless to say, we are both a bit wiped out these days. But that is not not say that we have been completely dormant. Our website was last updated mid-April featuring our new logo, an updated mission statement and a link to a “jewelry store” for fund raising, and photos from the March 30 show (more to follow and video montage to be produced this summer). Please check out our website: www.perudonations.org and take a gander at the fine emerald, opal, sapphire and ruby items that have been donated to us as fund raising items. These pieces are real, new and at amazing prices. Silent auction format (with super low reserve values). There has been great interest in some of the pieces, so don’t delay! You might lose out on a great deal - some as low as $25!

We also have some things in the works. We have been officially named as a partner with the Andean Outreach Program, based in Oakland, CA. Please visit their website: www.andeanoutreach.org, to learn of their exciting projects. They have already issued a grant to a volunteer/traveler (Karen) in Peru to do some restoration and conversion work to a bathroom at a school for the blind in Huancayo, Peru. The project was finished in record time using a local contractor and the results are impressive. Now the wheelchair-bound students will be more independent with their bathroom use and will greatly improve their confidence as they learn more skills. AOP has also approved a loan through our mutual colleague, Russell Jenkins, to a local man to initiate mass-production of assistive canes for the blind in the city. These canes will not only provide a nice line of income for Adel, but it will bring relief to the blind citizens of the area and their families and caregivers. See the AOP website for photos. AOP has recently received a large donation earmarked for the school at Chupaca, Peru, run by our friends and affiliates Ely and Nilton. Their volunteer program, Peru Luz de Esperanza, will be hosting their first foreign volunteers this summer. They are beside themselves with joy and are madly preparing to welcome these Westerners into their home/homebase for a mutually enlightening experience! The donation received by AOP will be sent to PLE when it reaches the $800 goal mark - it is short of that by just a small amount. Please consider contributing even just $15 or $20 to help build it up so it can be sent off right away. Use the link on their website to make your donation.

Peru Luz de Esperanza (PLE) has really a lot of irons in the fire. Besides renting a small space for their school for working children, they have a small number of local volunteers who are lending a hand. They have also been working several times a week with our second beneficiary, Merardo. Ely continues to tutor him while also caring for his blisters and other health needs. I have INSTRUCTED her to quit doing the wound care. She has been showing his parents and Merardo himself how to properly drain and care for his all-over body blisters that are caused by his EB (epidermolysis bullosa). I told her that she can relinquish the care of his wounds to his family now that it is more under control and return to her main focus of providing him with academic tutoring. This will not only relieve her of the burden, but it will prepare Merardo and his family to continue his care if she is for whatever reason unable to continue. It will also be a way for them to take a partnership stance in controlling this previously uncontrollable disease.

Additionally, Ely is looking into initiating the legal paperwork needed to authorize Preli’s medical visitation in August, as well as beginning the process of obtaining the more long-term consents that will be needed if Presli will require surgeries outside of Peru and transportation to such place. Time is of the essence now that the Rotaplast team will be there in three months. She is making inquiries with the social worker at the orphanage as well as attempting to make contact with Presli’s father. Perhaps his father will be able to assign a temporary yet long-term limited power of attorney to Ely or to some other private party so that Preli’s treatments can proceed without red-tape issues.

Both Presli and Merardo will be seeing the Rotaplast team in August in La Oroya, Peru. A dermatologist at Rotaplast is currently reviewing Merardo’s case to see what could be done for him. It is our hope that at the minimum they will be able to surgically separate his webbed fingers so that full use of his hands will be restored. This will greatly improve his quality of life, his educational success and his nutrition. His father will accompany him on the trip, so the legal speedbumbs we may face in Presli’s case are not an issue with Merardo.

We are hoping to send vitamins, nutritional supports and medical supplies to Merardo via the volunteers who are going to PLE next month and July. If anyone has a contact with a hospital or medical company who disposes of expired gauze, Kerlix, nitrile gloves (not latex), Desitin, antibacterial creams/gels/soaps, ice/heat packs, etc. (in other words, non-invasive wound care supplies), please send have them contact us. I know that some of those things don’t technically “expire”, but through rotation of stock they may have surplus that they may be able to contribute.

AOP is planning to have a fund raising event this summer in the Bay Area for our Project Presli funds. If you are in the area, or have friends there, please go to the AOP website and register for their newsletter. We are also playing with the idea of having another benefit concert for Presli mid-August - right about at the time he will be seen by the Rotaplast team. Any bands, musicians, promoters, sponsors, photographers, videographers and graphic artists out there, please contact me at lisa@perudonations.org to volunteer your services or time or make suggestions for the show. The last concert was a nice beginning and quite a learning experience. I am hoping now that people are aware of our cause and there is more time to prepare (I did the last one is six weeks, which was clearly not enough time) that we will have a bigger turn out, better raffle prizes and perhaps a more accessible venue. We will have the services of Andrew (TRX TV) to create a television spot on his cable music channel, maybe have more newspaper coverage, and earlier posting of fliers in more places sooner all over the island. We will also have more time to approach potential sponsors and prize donors to sweeten the pot for our attendees. Suggestions?

Lastly, we are making inquiries about importing genuine .950 silver jewelry (and some gold) from Huancayo. This city has some of the highest quality, locally mined silver items, handmade by local artisans (or at least produced in Peru). We are hoping to purchase a quantity of this beautiful jewelry and sell it on our website as a fund raiser. Some of this stuff is truly spectacular, adorned with semi-precious stones and unique gemstones, as well as everyday designs that are suitable for every age, gender and occasion. Besides raising money for our own projects, this will help local artisans and mom & pop business in Huancayo by bringing American dollars into the city without the burden of tourism. Our friends Ely and Russell (now a married man, felicidades) will be researching the shipping issues and we will go from there.

Lastly, and perhaps most exciting, I was approached by a member of Pimpbot and LoveChile, drummer Eric Lagrimas, about a very exciting idea - his day job is in the music biz and he had the following suggestion - create a compilation CD with music from bands her represents and sell it for our charity! Not only would it be professionally produced at a low cost, but we could sell this CD through traditional sources, like music stores and our website, but perhaps we could also sell it online through our friend Francie at her BurnLounge website (please take a look at her music store by visiting: www.burnlounge.com/FrancieLuana). This online store is unlike the others, such as P2P and iTunes, etc., in that the artists have contracted with the website and they actually get paid for every download. In this way, any profits from the sale of our benefit CD can be directly designated to us by Francie and we can skip the middleman.

So, that’s what we have up our sleeves for the next few months. To recap:

updated website
AOP projects
PLE volunteer program
Merardo’s health improvements
Presli’s legal situation
gearing up for the Rotaplast visit
medical supply donations needed
Project Presli fund raiser in the Bay Area
Concert #2?
Possible silver jewelry fund raisers
compilation CD

PHEW! No wonder I have not had time to write!

Lisa and Sherrill Sturm
One life at a time

April 14, 2007

New fund raiser - JEWELRY!!! and our CHS supporters

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 10:57 pm

Aloha no,

Just in time for both Mother’s Day and graduations everywhere, PeruDonations is proud to offer super discount prices on a variety of fine jewelry items. These pieces are not costume jewelry, but genuine emerald, sapphire, ruby and opal gemstones set in both white and yellow gold. (http://perudonations.org/jewelrystoreslideshowpage.html)

The items are offered silent-auction style, or you may chose to purchase them at a Buy Now price using PayPal.com. Any amounts over the cost of the item will go toward our projects, which at this moment include: Project Presli - providing for plastic surgery for Presli Ordaya, who was burned as an infant; and, Mission Merardo - helping to minimize Merardo Pillpa’s pain and maltutrition caused by his epidermolysis bullosa. Visit www.perudonations.org for updates on these two projects.

If you don’t have a PayPal account or a credit card, the PayPal website will guide you through the process using your bank account. We are happy to combine shipping and all items will be sent in jeweler-quality gift boxes. We will even ship internationally.

On another note, we are continually surprised by the generosity of the Spanish, French and Guidance classes at J.B. Castle High School in Kaneohe, Hawaii. Every week students empty their pockets in an inter-class competition to raise funds for PD. The donations range from 5 cents (which is enough to buy a student a pencil in Peru) to $5 or more in bills (which is enough for one week of groceries for one person!). Every little bit helps, so we are so pleased that these students have taken it upon themselves to make a difference in a stranger’s life with no expectation of anything in return. We are so proud of them and we know that these are the youth who will make great changes in the world in the years to come. Gracias chicos!!

That is all for now,
Lisa & Sheri Sturm

April 8, 2007

Just a quickie - website update and news

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 4:47 pm

Please visit the website: www.perudonations.org.

There are some news items, our mission statement, an actual logo (finally), some info on our new “kid”, and some updates about our partners and affiliates.

We have been uber-busy the last few weeks, but now things are a bit more settled (as you read in the newsletter I just posted). I am still collecting pix and vid from the concert (if you have any please let me know I we can arrange a way to get them to me). I will be putting some stuff up here and there so check the page once in a while. When the full video is ready, I will let you know.

Thanks for all your interest and well-wishes. It really goes a long way.

Lisa

April 7, 2007

Post-concert news and stuff!

Filed under: PDC News — Administrator @ 9:30 pm

A long overdue update…..

Our fund raising concert “Promise for Presli” in Honolulu on March 30 went pretty well. There were tons of glitches before and during that gave me more grey hairs, but I am over it now. Despite looking for someone to create a flier for several weeks, in desperation I finally made one myself. Clearly an amateur effort. I was saved in the end by Josh Hancock (AKA Josh86) of Unity Crayons - he is also the singer for Black Square in the photos - who made a truly impressive and attention-grabbing poster design. Glitch #1 - Josh and I went back and forth for several days getting things right. Then he sent the file to the printer on the day that the large poster duplicator was out of order. Good thing too, because I found a couple of other little things to adjust. So the next day, I went to pay for and pick up 675 fliers of various sizes, delivered the bulk of them to the coffee shop for Josh and went home with a stash my mom and I to disseminate. Later that evening, I did my neighbor a fav