Live and Work with a Community

My first experience with VBB was in November of 2017. Over Thanksgiving, I joined a group constructing a library in the mountain village of El Olvido, México. During construction, we spent hours sweating through the sun and the rain, mixing concrete with shovels on the side of a dirt road. Energy depleted, at day’s end, we’d walk down to the house with Alfredo and two of his children -- eight-year-old Violeta and twelve-year-old Rico. Alfredo had worked harder than anyone, but he always had enough strength to keep up with his kids’ antics. For me, walking into the house never failed to reinvigorate my spirit. Reina -- the queen of the house -- joined by Rocio and Aracely, the elder daughters, greeted us with hugs and had a bean and tortilla dinner ready for us every time. My Spanish was by no means perfect, but they didn’t care. We shared stories while we shared a meal and laughed at my lack of vocabulary. Many nights ended with a dance party set to the tune of the dusty radio in the corner. Other nights ended with us reading books from the library with the family. I learned so much from the family in these experiences. They were so happy, so long as they were together. They had little material goods, but they didn't focus on that; they made up for it in the spirituality shared among the community. When departing, tears dampened my cheeks and those of the family. (Except for Alfredo. That guy was tough as nails.) I wasn’t ready to walk away from what they had given me. In my excess of material goods, I had not noticed I fell short elsewhere. We gave them a library, but they gave us much more.

From a logistical standpoint, VBB does a great job instilling a culture of reading with the village. To be entirely honest, the construction is tough work but isn't what makes the real difference in the community. VBB engages in a classroom experience as well as home visits to show what access to books and education at large can do for kids and adults alike. When VBB leaves a library, they also want the village to take ownership of it. Although VBB continues to support and track the progress in El Olvido, the village has complete control and sustains the library fully. Since El Olvido, I've gone on trips to build three other libraries with VBB. Let that be a testament to my experiences. I highly recommend this group to anyone who wants to spread literacy and have a taste of another culture.