HOLA
 from the CONTIGO board:

We thought this would be an appropriate time to send out a quick update of the activities that have been going on here “south of the border”.
The town of Cuatunalco has been busy to say the least! The secondary school had the honor of hosting a Sports and Cultural Event for the entire municipal area. It was a weeklong event which included 1500 students competing and demonstrating their talents. Several of those students came from distant towns and were billeted by the people of Cuatunalco. A luncheon was put on for everyone the first afternoon, which “Contigo” contributed a cow...thankfully we just had to pay for it and not “prepare” it. Those of us here in Salchi enjoyed watching volleyball and soccer matches in the day and dance shows at night.
It was a real “feather in their cap” and the town did an amazing job.

A special thanks to Glenn and Shelly for donating uniforms for the soccer team. They looked great!
As far as an update with the Secondary School...the computers are all up and running in an air-conditioned classroom and are a tremendous success. It took a while to have electricity contracts drawn up and protective bars installed and finally air conditioning...everything in Mexico takes a bit more time and patience, as we are all learning.

Providing internet service has been a bit of a financial burden for the town as their school budgets do not include the operating costs for internet service. We met with the director and proposed that Contigo would cover the monthly cost for a year and through their own fundraising efforts they raise half the costs per month. We suggested that once they have the internet they use it to research different grants that may be available to apply for in order to become self sufficient.
Another project the school itself has taken on is building an outside kitchen to provide a hot lunch program run cooperatively by the parents of the towns.
It appears as if Phase Two of the secondary school has been started. They have started clearing space for a Multi-Use Sports Court below the school property and have asked if Contigo would like to participate in the building process. We are waiting for a budget and plans before committing to anything. We are also awaiting plans for a proposed kindergarten in Cuatunalco. With Gino ‘s help we are trying to find out what the real needs of the community are. Other ideas , and we certainly welcome any of yours, range from scholarship funds, transportation to high school in Pochutla, to cementing dirt floor homes to prevent disease.
In the meantime, Contigo has installed a cistern at the school El Coyote as well as fans in both El Coyote and the school in Las Palmas. Some construction was provided for the kindergarten in Las Palmas.
As you can see there is a lot going on and we as a board have decided that perhaps this would be a good time to start thinking about another fund raiser. It has been almost two years  since CONTIGO’s last big event.
We have been extremely fortunate that Liz Healey’s students at Montgomery School in Calgary continue to raise funds for their “sister school”. They have funded 18 PlayAway books with MP3’s, 2 I Touches and a Flip Video camera, all by fundraisers, pizza and bake sales! Amazing work!
So...I am sending this out to those of you who are as committed as we are to helping this community we consider our “home away from home” and perhaps together we can come up with some great and different ideas, for potential fundraisers as well as uses for the raised funds.
Anyone willing to participate in any way shape or form would be greatly appreciated and held in our highest esteem!! ...and now I am off to help build bookcases for all the schools with the gang here in Salchi...
Thanks to all of you we have come this far and with you continued help we can go even further. We are looking forward to hearing any suggestions at
anneewood@hotmail.com 
Thanks,  
Contigo:
Anne Wood, Brian Wood, Meghan Wood, Larry Davis, Jennifer Davis.
PS... please feel free to share this email with others who are familiar with Contigo and its’ adventures!