Volunteers teaching at Escola Municipal Tabuleiro
PROJECT 1
Educação sem Fronteiras
Scope: Surroundings of the town of Xerém, Duque de Caxias, in the State of Rio de Janeiro.
The goal is to improve the quality of the education received by students of the rural schools existing in this region, which currently lack sufficient resources, infrastructure, and teachers.
What we do:
This project has been carried out since the year 2014 in some schools of our región. Among those schools that already received our help are: Esc. M. Tabuleiro, Esc. M.Presidente Vargas, Esc. M. Coração de Jesus, Esc. Santa Rita and Esc. M. Brasil Itália.
Our volunteers give free lessons for reinforcement and teaching new subjects that the schools don’t provide to the students. Each volunteer gives lessons to approximately 50 students, distributed in different classes. For this, our volunteers live in the headquarters of our organization for fixed periods of 6 months or one year, to fit in the school calendar.
Currently, we are teaching the subjects of English, Spanish, theater, football, judo and arts.
PROJECT 2
Lanche com os Irmãos na Rua
Scope: The center of the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Duque de Caxias.
Goal 1: To offer help to homeless people living on the streets through the delivery of food.
Goal 2: To offer our volunteers an opportunity to reflect on the situation of the neediest people, and feel the effectiveness of an act of fraternity.
What we do:
This Project is carried out with the help of volunteers who go to the centers of the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Duque de Caxias, with the aim of helping homeless people living there, delivering a meal and spending a heartwarming moment with them. We get an opportunity to also learn from them, and hear what they have to say.
This act of solidarity provides us with confidence and hope. When we can, we offer counsel and orientation. The resources for this project are provided by our organization or donated by friends and benefactors of Casa do Caminho.
Since we started this project, we have received positive feedback from those benefited, and we have felt an atmosphere of thankfulness, which has made the initiative endure. The number of directly benefited surpasses 100 people.
Close to Rio Branco Avenue, in the Center of Rio de Janeiro, May 2017
PROJECT 3
Brincadeiras no Caminho
Scope: At the headquarters of the institution, with children who live in the surroundings.
Goal: To provide moments of joy and learning to children of the region, with the supervision of our volunteers, generating a healthy atmosphere of partnership through games and cultural activities. It is important to mention that in the rural area where the headquarters are located, there aren’t other places where children can gather to have fun, play sports or do these kind of activities.
What we do:
At the headquarters of the institution, every weekend we carry out a series of activities and games, for children and teenagers, such as children’s games, competitions, sports, cooking lessons, handicrafts, arts, and guided outdoor walks. During the summer, the children take baths in the river and practice swimming.
The age of those attending varies between 4 and 14. The participation of the parents is also common in some of the activities and during lunchtime.
The target audience for these activities are children who live in places where there are no public spaces to gather and play. We foster coexistence, partnership and sharing between them.
PROJECT 5
Finding National and International Volunteers
Scope: Social media, website and partnership with related entities.
Goal: To find people committed to the educational and cultural development of our region, and to sensitize people about the benefits of volunteering and humanitarian aid.
What we do:
The work and projects carried out by Casa do Caminho are performed solely by volunteers. Neither the directors nor volunteers within the organization receive and type of monetary payment or benefit, by the work performed.
We spread awareness through social media about the work we do, and about opportunities of participation in our projects.
National and International volunteers have the opportunity of living together with people of our region, staying at the headquarters for periods of 6 or 12 months, for free, helping in our work and mission.
PROJECT 4
Apoiando Famílias em Nosso Caminho
Scope: Rural area in the surroundings of Xerém
Goal: To directly help the poorest families of the region, through “mutirões” (collective works of construction and cleaning), and psychological aid.
What we do:
Our team of volunteers organizes and performs collective works of construction and cleaning (known in Brazil by the word “mutirões”) to fix and improve the houses of the neediest families of the region.
The aim is to improve their living conditions, the infrastructure and health, and to provide basic domestic utensils, which are obtained through collection campaigns, and through our own internal resources.
At the same time, we desire to provide psychological care, through family therapies, to help them overcome the traumas and distress that extreme poverty usually brings, as well as the high levels of alcoholism and lack of education that are very common in the region.
The target audience are rural families from our surrounding area. Volunteers investigate the needs of the families that participate in the project and organize the aid, prioritizing those which have a higher urgency. Since we have been working with the local community for 35 years, we know closely the reality that diferent families live in.
PROJECT 6
Comunidade Verde
Scope: Rural community of Xerém, Duque de Caxias, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Goal: To spread knowledge regarding the production of organic food and education about the environment.
What we do:
This project is currently on standby, but we hope to recommence it soon. In the meantime, we are growing organic food for our own use.
Comunidade Verde is a space for the production of organic food and raising farm animals, while educating children about preservation of the environment in the rural surroundings of Xerém, in Duque de Caxias, RJ., Brazil.
We are looking for volunteers with knowledge in agronomy and cultivation methods, to share and teach practically.