Mission Features: Amistad “The Friendship Mission”
			Our Mission Statement
			Amistad “The Friendship Mission” is an association of Christians dedicated to improving the physical and spiritual welfare of destitute Quechua natives and abandoned children in Bolivia by building friendships with God, with each other and with the poor. Lloyd and Joanne Turner share the story of their 1999 trip to Amistad. A return trip took place in August 2002. “Nestled in the foothills of the Andes Mountains, the Amistad Mission is a beacon of hope for the orphans of Bolivia. We had visited Amistad in the summer of 1997 and wanted to see how the children had grown in the past two years,” recalls Lloyd.
			Lloyd & Joanne with Oscar from our Cottage		The Cottage where Oscar lives.
			Amistad, the Friendship Mission, supports two ministries which address the physical and spiritual needs of the poor of Bolivia: a Mountain Medical Clinic in the remote Andean village of Aramasi and an 80 child orphanage, the Children's Villa in Cochabamba, one of Bolivia's largest cities.

LA VILLA: The Children's Residence is an extended family...

Because of its temperate weather, the city of Cochabamba is a magnet for orphans throughout Bolivia. The Children's Village cares for eighty children, toddlers through teenagers, in eight houses of ten children each. The goal is to replicate a family setting by keeping siblings, different age groups and boys and girls together under the care of a live-in Mama and a Tia or aunt. The Villa also operates a school and a spiritual development program for the children.

Fast Friends at La Villa

“One morning, Paul Newpower drove us over to the Children’s Village to meet the children. Our congregation (at the Presbyterian Church at New Providence) supports a Mama and 10 children in the cottage called “Seed of Love” (“Semilla de Amor”)” “During the day the children attend classes at a private school and there is also daily instruction in Christian education. On Sundays they attend Mass at Father Berta's church next to the village.”

Lunch at La Villa, Casa San Miguel

Lloyd shares, “Our group of 6 (Dean Rigel, Jeff Swartzlander, Allison Frawley, Ted Stewart, Joanne and I) enjoyed playing basketball, frisbee, and other sports with the children. They particularly liked the photos we brought from our 1997 trip. They couldn't believe how much they had grown in 2 years!”

Andrea's 15th special birthday party

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ARAMASI- The Medical clinic in a remote Quechua mountain farm community

“We took a 3 hour trip over a rugged mountain road to visit the Aramasi Medical Clinic. Aramasi is an ancient village inhabited by several hundred Quechua Indians who are descendants of the Incas.” High in the Andes at over 9000 feet, some communities served by the clinic can only be reached by foot after a 3 hour walk. Previously high birth-related mortality rates have been reduced to zero. We are pleased and gratified by the now broad acceptance of vaccination by the native Quechua.

Picturesque Aramasi

The clinic provides medical services in the region for approximately 1500 cases per year. The day care center now serves dozens of children, ages 2-6, and has reduced the prevalence of malnutrition by providing a nutritious breakfast and well-balanced hot lunch to each child. The Presbyterian Church of New Providence provides two

hot meals a day to all children. New classrooms for the day care center are now under construction. Lloyd says, “When I saw these precious children receiving a hot lunch at the Medical Center dining area, it reminded me of Jesus’ works, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew:25:40

Hot lunch for about 50 Quechua children.

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		More Highlights
		Gift of Love to PCNP
		“Our own sponsored ‘Seed of Love’ cottage created a beautiful weaving in memory of one of our members, Kevin Crotty, who was killed on September 11th. The Mother's Club at Aramasi weave bright red aguyas to carry babies, groceries and other objects to their homes. Sales of these treasures to tourists like us provide much needed income to supplement their meager income from sales of potatoes, corn and other agricultural products,” says Lloyd. The highlight of our trip was a puppet Show for the Children's Village kids and staff the last night of our stay. The kids listened attentively while a local puppet team told them stories about how to deal with life problems from a Christian perspective. As we were leaving, we gave all the kids hugs and left some new photos from our time together. Since then, many of the kids have been in contact with our youth by letters and email correspondance.
					PCNP’S Next Challenge This year, several of the children will be making plans to leave the Mission to attend university or trade school. We at PCNP want to create a Scholarship Fund for continuing education. You will hear more about this in coming months.

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