May 2014: Sustaining Hope
The Association Promoting Education and Conservation (APECA), grassroots in the beginning, started as a floating health clinic growing into a comprehensive Ministry of Health.
May 2014 Bulletin Insert Format
I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10b
The Association Promoting Education and Conservation (APECA), grassroots in the beginning, started as a floating health clinic growing into a comprehensive Ministry of Health. For over 20 years, APECA has worked with community members in remote villages, and together they have equipped and deployed Peruvians to over 30 communities along the Amazon River trained in health care, midwifery, leadership and conservation.
El Fundo, Peru, serves as the base of operations and training center where local volunteers go to learn about fish ponds, vegetable gardens, clean drinking water systems, trash pits, reforestation, natural medicine, planting and tree nurseries. Participants are educated on the important role they play in conserving the rainforest. Through the support of interns and volunteers, APECA empowers individuals, families, and communities.
In November 2013, Area Executive Rev. Felix Ortiz of Global Ministries traveled to welcome APECA as its newest partner. They journeyed to the beach to meet one of APECA’s health promoters, Pablo. He and his family tend a peanut field planted in the silt and sand of a receded Amazon River. Pablo explained the level of hardship experienced by community farmers, conditions APECA’s sustainable development program addresses. APECA is clearly a vital presence for these communities, and Global Ministries wants to partner in these programs as a companion.
This is a time of great celebration for APECA and local volunteers, who have advanced in sustainable ways, 20 years of hard work on health care and conservation. In November 2013, APECA also signed a project agreement with a local parent-teacher group to create a tree nursery for school children and their families. The schools and the families working together insure the success of reforestation in the community, making it far more secure for future generations.