Intiwawa

• Peru - South America

Intiwawa is a dynamic young charity in Peru' founded in April 2007 by Leonel Revilla Cruz, Juan Quispe Medina and Henning Lueke.

The name Intiwawa is Quechua and means "Children of the sun." It’s a non-governmental organization that mainly work in San Isidro, a small village of about 90 families, located approximately 45 minutes from the City Centre of Arequipa. The inhabitants of this village suffer from poverty, malnutrition, lack of education, alcoholism and domestic violence.

The village of San Isidro is very poor and the lack of leisure facilities means that kids and teenagers spend their free time in the streets where crime, drugs and temptation is just around the corner.

The houses are just one room made of terra cotta bricks with a piece of metal as a roof secured by a couple of rocks. Lack of adequate sanitary facilities and poor hygienic practices are a serious issue.

Some of the kids are unable to attend school because they help their parents to make terra cotta bricks and work so it's normal to see kids as young as five years old working ten hours a day to have some food in their belly. Life is very tough for these kids, no PlayStations, TV or shopping spree for the latest snickers or mobile phone.

The charity is run by a dedicated and loving team based in Germany and Peru who rely on volunteers from all round the world. Susana Ramos Guillen is the president and based in Peru', she has been working with the organisation from the very beginning and is supported by an incredible team of volunteers like Edwin, Rafa, Jose Luis to name a few who spend their free time helping, mentoring these kids and their community out of love.

In 2012 Intiwawa were thrilled to open "Casa Intiwawa" a sanctuary and support Center where they run different projects for the kids of this community.
The kids receive free classes in English, IT, nutrition, crafting classes and after school support to improve their future employment prospects.

I spent almost 2 months as a volunteer at Intiwawa and had the honour to teach the Intiwawa kids and be part of the incredible Intiwawa team. It was my first stop of my charity tour in South America and the minute I met the kids and the staff of Intiwawa, I fell in love with them.
The kids are bright, affectionate and positive despite the sad reality they live in. Their energy and enthusiasm are infectious.