I am a documentary photographer as well as a concerned citizen of the world, always looking for places where both my photos and my financial resources can be put to best use. In November, 2008, I was on a photography tour that included the opportunity to meet a number of the students and their families who benefit from EI's programs. At that time, we were entertained by some EI students and then invited to walk a mile down the main barrio streets where many of the residents opened their homes and hearts to us, generously allowing us to photograph their lives. We were accompanied on that walk by EI staff members who translated our conversations and explained how EI, among other things, works with the families of its students to help change family and cultural attitudes toward education. I was so taken with the neighborhood that I returned for a second walk during my visit, even though the road was hot and dirt-packed.
In the summer of 2009, I and two other photographers held a show in Santa Fe which featured photos from our Nicaragua trip with proceeds benefitting Empowerment International. Our show opening was well attended, art patrons were smitten with the Nicaraguan faces, but our money-raising efforts were disappointing How could we better tell the EI story?
Thirty months later, I returned to Granada and again walked that mile down the Esperanza Barrio main street. The condition of the road had worsened and in places we had to dodge deep ruts in the road, often filled with water and garbage. However, the enthusiasm and energy of the residents was even greater with children and adults rushing into the street to embrace EI staff and their visitors, us. That same reaction greeted us upon our visit to the Santa Ana community, several miles outside Granada. We also visited EI's new office building, relocated just blocks from the barrio. There, every foot of office space was well used--for tutoring, a library, administrative purposes and even a "sleeping room" for three Santa Ana students to use during the week while they attended college in Grenada. Also on that trip, I and Morgan Smith, our trip organizer, were able to spend a morning coaching four EI students in photography. All of them were attentive learners and three hours later as we shared soft drinks near the main plaza in Grenada, each shared their dreams for the future, which involved college or technical school.
Perhaps my pictures can't tell the story but I hope my words here convey the importance of EI's work in Nicaragua. In a time when international charities, in particular, are facing hard scrutiny and accountability, I can say with confidence and conviction that EI is making a difference in Nicaragua and is a careful steward of the contributions it receives. I wish all donors could walk the same mile I walked in February and see for themselves the impact of Empowerment International. ~ Susan Boe
