A day at the farm

Today was a fantastic and adventurous day for us. Juan not only got to play with a puppy his own size, but he also had his first encounter with sheep and horses!
A few weeks ago a very inspiring friend of mine, Carolina, came for lunch. She told me of a new non-profit organization she had stumbled upon and thought it might interest me.
She was right.
It is called La Asociacion de Ayudar Acebal, (the association of help in Acebal. Acebal is the small town about an hour away from Rosario)
So today we took a ride sharing taxi that cost approximately 5 dollars each way, an hour there, and an hour back, as curiosity was getting the best of me and I had to see it for myself.
This amazing organization is a purely heart driven program for children with other abilities. Children that were born into a such a small country bumpkin town that they are considered lost causes, monsters, and wastes of time, hence the lack of resources for both them and their families. Recognizing the need for said resources, a young single mother named Fernanda has freely dedicated her life to helping this neglected sector of society. She dropped out of veterinary school to take care of her parents farm, raising free range farm animals for sale, and procuring what will surely be her masterpiece. Her instrument being a horse, or rather 9 to be exact. She is practicing equine therapy. Something that most Argentinians have never heard of.

Between 5 and 20 children are dropped off or picked up daily around 2pm. Each day is something new for them, a learning experience, a bonding experience that will last a lifetime.
Yesterday they learned to make homemade bread, the day before that they collected wood for the outdoor wood burning pizza oven. Today we worked hard to weed an over grown garden where they plan to seed winter veggies. But on most days, they ride horses. Yes, children with missing limbs, down syndrome, mental retardation and other such disabilities have found their love in horses and it is this that has allowed them to move forward in other areas of their life.

Fernanda works Monday to Sunday, taking care of the farm, taking care of these lovely faces as if they were her own flesh and blood, and she asks for absolutely nothing in return. She receives no government funding, and very very little private donations. Everything she does is from her own pocket. This is where I come in.
I have vowed that the way I will help her most will be to build her a website where she can receive not only monetary donations but communicate with people that are interested in helping her cause be it oral support, physical support, financial support, or merely inspiring programs like her own. I hope to develop a program where we receive students that want to learn Spanish and live on a farm while doing so, paying for their room and board with their labor. I hope to launch a donate now button on my own website, as well as associate her with a network of other farms around the world that are doing something similar...If I receive even one donation, it will be more than worth it.
So spread the word to the world and send those interested and inspired my way.
In the mean time, here are some photos to oohh and awwh over.

This little baby was born on Friday but for some reason her mother abandoned her so they are feeding her with a bottle...A little hard work never hurt anyone...