CHRISTMAS IN THE SKIES

The Hijos De Praderas community lies at the very top of a mountain, overlooking a large portion of the pueblos jóvenes. In other cities, this location would be inhabited by the most affluent. However, in the shanty towns, the higher you go, the poorer you are. So off to the top we went, to one of the poorest communities in the area to celebrate the holidays with panetónes & chocolatada with the locals.

After driving to the near top, a daunting stairwell awaited us - that was the easy part. After about 10 minutes of walking up, the cement stairs ended and we were greeted by a pile of rocks. This is where Hijos de Praderas began.

Before we could share the donations with the community members, The Reciprocity Team & our volunteers went straight to work to create a safe and comfortable space for everyone to sit and enjoy.

We had volunteers carrying tables up hillsides, plowing and shoveling rocks out of the way, and building makeshift benches to seat everyone. Simultaneously, other volunteers worked hard to get the panetónes and hot chocolate ready!

Once everything was ready, we were able to celebrate with the community members! We even got a special visit from Haku Tours and some of their Shanty Town Tour guests, who were able to see firsthand how their money was being used to help the pueblos jóvenes.

It was an amazing day filled with laughter, new friendships, and lots and lots of reciprocity! A special thanks to all of our donors, supporters, volunteers, Haku Tours, their guests, and most importantly, the Hijos de Praderas community for making this year's holiday festivities a success!