Distributing Solar Lights

Camping is our family tradition every summer. We would always bring solar lights to light up our camp site and tents. It is convenient and it is our back-up light for torchlight. Most of the time the rangers would organized some activities for the kids at their main camping site in the evening. We always managed to locate our camp site after the activities because our camp is always lighted. We would then turn them off before we go to sleep. So, I decided to bring solar lights to Piura, Peru. This is a pilot project of utilizing solar light as a source of lighting for the poor families. This green energy is very safe and Piura, Peru has abundant sunlight. My main objective is to help the poor villagers to have some source of light in the evening, so that both the children and adults can do some activities in the evening. If this pilot project works, I will start a program called Bringing Solar to Peru.

Together with Michael, we went to the outskirts of Piura, Peru to a small village called La Piedra to deliver solar lights to families that have no electricity. Many of the families are extremely poor, and all of them could not afford to pay for electricity. Although there are power lines outside all of their houses, many of the houses either utilize kerosene lamps, which are dangerous because they live in bamboo houses, or lanterns powered by batteries, which are equally dangerous because of their questionable method of disposing said batteries. In addition they have to purchase kerosene or batteries which left with little cash to spend on food and education.  In total, I visited 11 homes to deliver snacks and solar lights. 

Families have lights but cannot turn them on because  they do not have money to pay the electricity  bill.

Instructing families how to use the solar light with Michael, my awesome translator.

Teaching families the different ways the lights can be used.

The following are some pictures of me and the families that I visited. From these pictures, you can determine the conditions that they live in every day life. I am humbled that they share their stories of their life with me. Their hospitality and kindness despite their conditions are definitely extremely commendable. In fact, the lady at the last house I visited cried because she is overwhelmed with happiness.  Her house had no electricity or way to see at night.

Delivering solar lights to this family. The house is in darkness even during the day that the children have to stay outside the house for their activities.

You can see that the houses needed constant state of repair because it is made from bamboo.

Most of the families that I visited consist of parents (mom and dad) and 4 children.

Majority of the homes have mosquito netting. This is the main equipment to protect themselves against mosquitoes that causes malaria.

They are utilizing solar energy to dry their clothes.

This is the "living room" of the entire house.

T-shirts !

Michael and I handed out t-shirts from the parish to the adults. Even though we had an entire box of t-shirts, only for the adults, we handed the entire box of t-shirts in just one street of a single village.

Distributing t-shirts to all the adults of the families that we visited.

Wow, I didn't realised that there are so many adults just in one entire row of houses.

The reactions from the village clearly elucidate the fact that the villagers appreciate missionaries' help in the the village. They really touched my heart and I really want to help them as much as I can. Hopefully I can bring more and better solar lights next year so that the villagers can have light at night and be able to walk around their houses, and also give them hope that everything will improve, one step at a time.

I am very grateful to have this opportunity to experience and see for myself how these folks struggle to make a living. Reading them from books and National Geography doesn't even come close to the description of their way of life. I sincerely hope that my meagre gift will bring some happiness in their daily life. I truly belief that my solar light project will make an impact in their life.