Greetings.
The images, stories, and lives you see on these pages is a glimpse of life in Muylaque and Sijuaya in the state of Moquegua, Peru. As a researcher, I work very closely with these people who have welcomed me into their small community with open arms. Now, as I plan my next trip there, I think of how I can give something back to the 200 or so individuals there. Starting up a non-profit has proven to be a lot of work which I don’t have time for and so I have set up this page as a sort of solicitation for assistance for basic supplies.
The people you see here are not starving, they are sustenance-farmers, but they lack a lot of the things that those of us in more developed countries take for granted, accordingly I have made a list below of small (easily transportable, not heavy), simple things which I think would make a big difference to the lives of these people and may help them become happier, healthier individuals.
If you can help in any way with any of the items below, please contact me at ml.coler@let.vu.nl or send items to the address below.
- Dental hygiene products (toothbrushes, toothpaste, dental floss)
- Personal care products (soap, shampoo)
- Baby care products (bottles, baby-safe toys)
- School products (pads of paper, pencils, pens, markers, crayons, stickers, coloring-books,etc – the school has almost no supplies)
- First-aid products (scissors, gauze, bandages, non-prescription extra-strength painkillers)
- Vitamins (esp. with calcium), calcium chews, children’s vitamins
- Photo books - coffee table books with historical pictures or documentation of life in other parts of the world
Again, please feel free to contact me with any questions, suggestions, or tips. Unless someone has contacts who can help me take these items across the desert from Tacna to Moquegua (and then by cargo truck into the Andes to Muylaque), I am limited by what I can fit in one large rucksack and my giant suitcase.
As a thank-you, I’d be happy to mail you a photograph of your gift at use in the community.
All donations can be mailed to my address in the US. Please contact me if you have any questions at all.
On behalf of the Aymara peoples of Muylaque and Sijuaya, thanks a lot!
Monetary donations are welcome, 100% of proceeds will be used to buy the supplies above.
Dontations may be sent to:
Matt Coler (Aymara project)
214 Williamsburg Rd
Williamsburg MA 01096
USA
