Author Archives: krisvadale

Overview of FOB Activities in Barron

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FOB CANAM, Inc.’s mission is to help improve educational, health, and economic conditions for the residents of Barron, Sinaloa, Mexico, a town of 2,000 people located twenty minutes south of Mazatlan. Friends of Barron (FOB, also known as FOB CANAM AC) has been working in Barron for ten years and the needs of the schools and the community continue to grow.  We are always in need of financial support for the many projects we have listed below.  Please note:  100% of the money that is raised goes directly to our projects.  There are no administration fees – the foundation is totally run by volunteers.

  • FOB CANAM, Inc. provides scholarships to students that are looking to continue their high school or university education.   We are always looking for sponsors for these individual applicants.
  • FOB CANAM, Inc. donates computers and schools supplies to each of the five schools in Barron. We are working to bring Internet connectivity to the High School.
  • FOB CANAM, Inc. also provides free dental clinics for kindergarten and primary school students and provides a one week medical doctor health clinic for community members in need.
  • FOB CANAM, Inc. provides micro-loans to local women who are looking to start their own business and become self-sufficient members of society.
  • FOB CANAM, Inc. also provides 50% of the financial resources that the schools identify for their infrastructure projects.  The other 50% is provided by the schools.  For example, we are now building two classrooms for the new high school. These two projects will cost $160,000 pesos.

As you can see, we are very busy. Each of these projects requires money. If you are interested in supporting the students and families of Barron, please go to CrowdRise.com/friends_of_barron and make a donation.

FOB Receives Donation from EDM

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Friends of Barron would like to thank Estrella del Mar, Señor Carranza and Jorge Corral for their donation of $50,000 pesos. These funds will go a long way to fulfill the committment that Friends of Barron has made to the people of Barron. In the past eleven years, we have augmented school infrastructure, aided students in their pursuit of higher education, provided micro-financing for upstart businesses, installed computer labs at the primary, secondary and prep schools and provided medical and dental clinics to bring the wonders of modern medicine to this tiny agricultural outpost. Please remember that it is due to the efforts of a gardening staff made up primarily of Barron residents that make this golf course so attractive. Friends of Barron would also like to thank the following Estrella del Mar residents who have selflessly participated in the achievement of the lofty goals set forth by Friends of Barron:  Dale Lyster, Richard McGuire, Claire Silk, Margaret Perez, Jeremy Kennell, those who support our 33 scholarship students and all the people who assist with the clinics. Thank you, players, for coming out to the charity golf tournament every year. I guaratee the money will be put to good use.

Medical Clinic Progress

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The Barron Ejido president, Jorge Hilario Espinosa formed a committee of four Barron leaders to solicit local government (municipality of Mazatlan) support and funding for the project. The committee has raised $50,000 pesos in Barron for the project so far.

The Ejido of Barron has donated the land for the new clinic and has transferred title to the municipality of Mazatlan.

FOB CANAM INC has committed $400,000 pesos to the project.  We have also offered to help equip it once built.  We have raised $300,000 pesos to date.

The government has agreed to build and staff the clinic and has produced plans and budgets.  They estimate a $1,600,000 peso construction project.

Elections were in July and a new municipal president will take power this month.  So far his administration has verbally agreed to pursue the project.  Obviously, this participation is key to success.  We have been told that nothing will happen until the new administration takes control. We will routinely advise you of progress.

New Computers Arrive

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Because of the generosity of many individuals, the Barron high school has taken delivery of 22 Samsung tablets connecting to the new high speed internet. Thanks to Jeremy Kennell and Lance Gutersohn, these machines are becoming part of the educational curriculum, accelerating these kids into the 21st century. Thank you Lance and Jeremy and everyone else who made this happen. More computers are needed however, so if you have about $300 usd to spare, donate it and we will buy another computer. We have a RallyUp site devoted to this effort.

Other developments include the extension of high speed internet into both the middle school and the primary school. For the first tine in history, all three principals are working together to improve the educational standards in Barron

The third wonderful thing happening in Barron is the addition of an internet hotspot in the plaza. Very soon, anyone with a smartphone will be able to connect to the internet while enjoying the beautiful plaza. Hopefully, they will be doing their homework.

The final step in the right direction is that plans for a new medical/dental clinic are progressing. Completion of this clinic is a milestone that will coincidentally mark the end of our annual dental clinic in the primary school. For the past six years, a remarkable set of dental professionals have donated their time, money and expertise to improve the dental health of the community. Simple thanks to this team, led by Jeff and Deb Astroth and Kurt Ferre, is insufficient. In a feeble effort to convey our thanks, we will be hosting a special Mother’s Day Taco Party scheduled for Thursday, May 10. If you can attend, you will be most welcome.

FOB Makes a Difference

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The Friends of Barron annual dental clinic has affected the legislative process in Colorado. A recent legislative action, House Bill 1045, concerned the application of Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) by dental hygienists and was introduced by Representative Jonathan Singer and Senator Tate.  During the House committee hearing, one of the people to testify was Deb Astroth, RDH, BSDH, a member of the Barron dental mission team. She mentioned in her testimony the history of use of SDF with the children of Barron.

The committee unanimously voted to sent the bill to the full House where it was passed and sent to the Senate.  The Senate committee invoked a rarely used procedure to Supermotion the bill to the full Senate without a hearing as the full committee was supportive.

The Senate passed the bill and Governor Hickenlooper signed the law on March 22, 2018.

Friends of Barron is thrilled to participate in this marriage between science and politics. Without the intensive database maintained by FOB volunteers, compelling statistics that lead the way to legislative decisions would not have been available.

Thanks must go out to the Estrella Del Mar community for supporting our work both monetarily and physically, but also to the dedicated cadre of dental professionals who have traveled to Mazatlán annually for the last seven years. Working under MASH-type circumstances, they brave floods, outages, chaos and crowds, working their magic amongst the elementary school students in Barron. All of them. All 200 of them. Every year.

FOB is very proud to have contributed to the impeding health and welfare of the children of Colorado.

Two Students Need Scholarship Support

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Jose ZambranoJose Francisco –  Age 19  – Jose is enrolled in the Polytechnic University of Sinaloa studying to become an Engineer of Animation and Visual Effects. During the week, he works 24 hours a week in a hotel and in a cyber cafe and contributes half of his monthly earnings to his college education. In Barron, he volunteers helping younger kids participate in the arts and in sports. He hopes to set up sports tournaments and works at finding uniforms and equipment for kids to use while participating in these tournaments.

img_0146Antonia – Age 19 – Antonia is in her third year of high school at the COBAIS in Isla Piedra where she maintains a “B+” grade average. He favorite pastimes are reading and writing and she also enjoys playing soccer. Her goal is to enter University and pursue a career in criminology with a minor in English.

For her community project, she thinks cleaning the place up is a key step toward attracting tourism. She say, “there are many very beautiful places in my community like the river, like the agricultural fields, but they appear spoiled because of trash.”

Please contact either Dale Lyster (dlyster@shaw.ca) or Richard McGuire (richardmcg@aol.com) for more information. The cost is $550 USD per year.