After a week with a lot of wind, dust and confinement in my house, on Saturday January 16th I received an invitation to attend The Academy Del Mar party in the distinguished Hotel L' acua Viva.
Normally, when I carry my camera with me, I am used to wearing comfortable clothes - hippy style to be exact. But that night I made a wardrobe mistake; I forgot an important detail. The event was a gala and my yoga pants were not right for that event. But it was already too late… the restaurant’s warm lighting, the marimba music and the elegant murmurs of the guests were calling me inside.
I asked myself, “Would it be possible to attend a gala event in Nosara?
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Yes, it was possible, and there I was… Inside the complex there were some 100 people eating dinner or having a drink. The men in elegant shirts and the women in dresses like those seen in Hollywood movies. But such elegance didn’t have a superficial end but was covered by philanthropy. It was the summer evening chosen to raise funds to help pay for over ten scholarships needed by children with few resources to study at the Montessori Private School, "Academy Del Mar". Montessori teaching is characterized by respecting the timing of natural child learning, without forcing them to learn by memory but more so by the experiential mode. The use of environmental care, art, and games as learning tools form an important part of this type of school.
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To apply for a scholarship, low resource parents have to follow various procedures, and after presenting documents and papers they must go through interviews in order for their children to be accepted. The cost of a full bursary is six thousand six hundred dollars a year, and is awarded only when there are adequate funds collected.
With the finds raised from this formal dinner and other private contributions, the non-profit foundation known as "Del Mar Academy Scholarships ", aspires to be able to say YES to more children. According to foundation member Heidi Dawn, "…is not easy to raise money, and the work can be complex sometimes, but we know that we are doing something very good; some day these children can come be doctors, artists or any thing that they want to be. Their possibilities are greater”. With a smile and a lot of pride, she informs me of a new resolution taken by the foundation, "since we cannot accept all the children that we wanted, we are going to donate 10% of our general funds to public schools ". She clarifies that the projects and schools that will be financed have not yet been declared, "but that will be defined in the next few months".
Still inside the restaurant, I decided to approach the table where the donated articles were being auctioned, and the creativity and originality of some donations did not cease to amaze me, such as the ice cream shaped children’s sunglasses, boxing classes or a day’s use of heavy machinery (which I was informed was one of the most disputed items). After taking photos here and there, I noted that my yoga pants could no longer withstand so much elegance and I decided to go back home. On the way out of the restaurant they handed me an informative brochure about the school and I couldn’t help but feel touched by reading what a 3 year old boy with a foundation scholarship writes at the end of classes everyday: "Gracias por la escuela!".
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