I have been living in a small rural community of 350 people for the past year and eight months by the name of Menchaca de Ocu. It is on behalf of Menchaca that I am soliciting your help.

About five months ago a group of community members together with me planned a project to construct a Community Center building in order to have a place for meetings, seminars, activities etc.. We spent three months preparing a detailed proposal only to discover the day of submission that the financial help was no longer available.

WHY the need:
At this moment in time the only two buildings in the community are the school and the church buildings, neither of which are available to the entire community. My hope and the hope of the community is that having a place to come together will aide in greater community development into the future.

DURATION:
We have prepared a work plan mapping out each day, the work to be done, and the number of people needed to carry it out. When we have the necessary funds to begin the project the Center will be finished within 2 months time.

This project will be fully carried out by community members and the donations that are received will be used specifically to buy the necessary materials for construction.

The bottom line is that we need your help to carry out the construction of the Community Center. The total cost is $1,500.00 and believe me when I say that any amount donated will be greatly appreciated. I ask that you would consider aiding our efforts.

• Make checks payable to Peace Corps Panama Friends.
• Specify  the project name (Community Center Construction) and include your name and address.

Sincerely,
The Community Center Committee &
Amy Halvorsen- Peace Corps Volunteer

October 2002