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Rotary e-Club of Houston Special Presentation
About the Speaker
Cristal Montañéz is the International Coordinator of the Hope For Venezuelan Refugees, a project created in response to the humanitarian crisis affecting thousands of Venezuelan refugees, migrants and ‘walkers caminantes’ in Cúcuta and Pamplona, Colombia. She is also a valued member of the e-Club of Houston!
Join us via Zoom as we welcome Cristal Montañéz-Baylor!
Rotary e-Club of Houston International Service Committee Member & Hope For Venezuelan Refugees Project International Coordinator
Cristal Montañéz Baylor is a humanitarian global citizen and philanthropist with years of experience in citizen diplomacy in some of the world's most controversial countries. Her work promotes international relations and understanding among people of different beliefs and cultures and different sectors of society as she works with leaders from around the world.
She is a member of the Rotary e-Club of Houston International Service Committee and the International Coordinator of the Hope For Venezuelan Refugees, a project created in response to the humanitarian crisis affecting thousands of Venezuelan refugees, migrants and ‘walkers caminantes’ in Cúcuta and Pamplona, Colombia.
Cristal serves on the Board of Directors of Sister Cities of Houston, and the Executive Committee of the Houston-Karachi Sister City Association.
Meeting ID: 885 8486 2776 One tap mobile +13462487799,,88584862776# US (Houston) +12532158782,,88584862776# US (Tacoma)
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Please join us for our online monthly meeting and welcome our guest speaker!
September 2020 was Rotary’s Education and Literacy Month, we would like to celebrate Rotarian Kim Rogers’ passion for education in Guatemala.
As the saying goes; "Rotary open doors of opportunities."
After affording me the opportunity of being an Exchange Student to Chile in 1987, Rotary has had a profound influence on my life for more than 30 years. After a major life change last year, I used my education and experience to start my own non-profit organization to benefit children in extreme poverty in Guatemala. I moved there at the start of the year, but I’ve been stuck here in the States due to Covid-19. However, I’ve used this time to build a strong foundation, fine tune our website, and have spoken at several Rotary Clubs across the county. In a short amount of time, I’ve also been able to raise over $15,000 to be used for food donations and school projects.
The most amazing opportunity thus far, happened recently with a connection from my hometown club in Milton-Freewater, Oregon. Thanks to Facebook (and some old friends) I was introduced to Vanessa Vega, a Guatemalan woman sent to Oregon some years ago as a Rotary exchange to my home club. Once she found out about my projects, she asked her host parents if they knew me. Turns out we had been neighbors and I grew up with their kids. They soon became very interested in our projects in Guatemala, and after some discussion made a sizable donation which will enable us to start a water and bathroom project for a very poor rural school. It will be so exciting to start a project I’ve had on my heart for over two years now. What a testimony to have Vanessa (an Ambassador for World Peace sent from Guatemala to small town Oregon, USA by Rotary International some fifteen years ago) come to our project school, help pass out supplies and meet the students who will benefit from the generosity that she inspired. This is the influence of Rotary…..two teenage girls, two different generations, one from Oregon and one from Guatemala, having an impact on several hundred more Guatemalan children who will benefit immensely from the loving hearts of Rotarians. It’s a magical story of the power of Rotary.
September is World Literacy Month, and this theme goes hand in hand with the primary missions for both Rotary and the organization I founded, Heart for Guatemala. The people of this amazing country suffer greatly from poverty and a lack of education. But, little by little, if we can each do something to support and foster literacy, we’ll provide more opportunities, and thus create a better life for our neighbors in Central America.
Hope For Venezuelan Refugees Phase 4 JUCUM / Yukpa Community - Marta Duque and her volunteers distributing a nutritious meal to a large group of Venezuelan refugees, migrants, and walkers “caminantes’ passing through the city of Pamplona on their way to other cities. Together, we are helping to alleviate hunger and build peace!
Learn more about the Yukpa people:
In November of 2019, VOA (Voice of America) filmed a documentary highlighting the struggle of the Yukpa people. Watch the 3-minute documentary at this link.
The economic crisis in Venezuela threatens the survival of the Yukpa, an ancestral indigenous community that has been forced to emigrate in search of food.
For centuries the Yukpa have inhabited the Serranía del Perijá in the Zulia state, but at least 350 of its members have lived for three years in a makeshift camp on the banks of the Táchira River, in the city of Cúcuta in Colombia.
The tribe lives in precarious conditions, but at the moment they do not believe that returning to Venezuela is an option. “Here we are doing a little job, looking for scrap metal. Children eat only once, ”Dionisio Finol, one of the two chiefs of the camp set up in Cúcuta, told Venezuela 360.
"Today I went to collect scrap metal and with that I am supporting my children," he added, to describe one of the most severe problems facing the tribe: hunger.
Rotary Youth Exchange builds peace one young person at a time. Students learn a new language, discover another culture, and truly become global citizens. Exchanges for students ages 15-19 are sponsored by Rotary clubs in more than 100 countries. Watch this video from our Rotary District 4140 friends in Mexico and then find out more information at this link.
Calling all e-Club members! We've added new photos to our member mosaic! Please email your photo to Charles Mickens for our online Member Directory and to be included with the group below!
A great way to keep up with what's happening at the Rotary e-Club of Houston is on our Facebook page. Please "Like" our page and learn about all the great things Rotary is doing in our area and around the world: https://www.facebook.com/RotaryEClubHouston
