Tag: New Haven/León Sister City Project

New Haven-León Sister City Project News: A Report from Eréndira

Hello from León, Nicaragua dear friends,

We are pleased to share our first updates from 2023. Over the next few weeks, we will share many good stories and progress from our programs. Despite these successes, there are also many challenges we continue to face in supporting the rural communities of the city of León.

Señora Petrona with her EcoStove

We always want to offer our most sincere thanks to our network of friends, our donors, our Board of Directors, and our co-workers in New Haven. Your hard work, empathy, and commitment to a more equitable society make it possible for us to reach the communities of Goyena and Troilo with programs that support people’s basic needs: food security, quality education, public health, care and preservation of the environment, and economic empowerment of women.

With this support, we continue to contribute our grain of sand toward a more just, respectful and empathetic society. So, thanks for all the support!

¡La lucha sigue! Much love, Eréndira

Less Cost, Better Health: Ecostoves in León
“My name is Petrona Muñoz Centeno and I am 58 years old. I am a housewife and I live in the Troilo community in the Nueva Esperanza neighborhood (El Polvoncito). I have benefited from an ecological stove, and this has helped me a lot at home, since today I can cook my food in a safer place. I have been able to see that this kitchen helps me save firewood. Before, I spent 200 córdobas a month buying firewood. Today I only spend half of this.”

Employment Opportunity: Part-time Director of Development, Flexible Hours

by Susan Bramhall, NHLSCP

The New Haven / Leon Sister City Project is seeking a part-time Director of Development to join our team as employee or self-employed. We are passionate about our work to connect and support the people of New Haven and Nicaragua. We are looking for a mission-driven, well-organized person who seeks to use great communications skills to connect the people of New Haven to the people of Nicaragua.

The primary work of the NH/LSCP in León, Nicaragua is to support community-based initiatives in the rural communities of Goyena and Troilo and to facilitate programs and projects that improve public health and community-based education, support women’s rights, and address root causes of poverty. In New Haven we work to build new projects and coalitions to confront the climate change crisis. In both communities we work to build local leadership and capacity and address causes of poverty and injustice.
Patty Nuelsen, our long-time Director of Development, will be retiring in the coming months. We believe that we have the opportunity to increase our use of social media and technology, along with person-to-person contact, to carry our work and message of connection to a new generation. The position can be largely remote and the hours can be flexible. This is not a traditional siloed non-profit development position – our Director of Development will be connected to the work we do and the people who are doing that work. We think this opportunity is ideal for someone skilled at organizing projects, who wants to work with a wonderful team delivering important change in the world. Our Director of Development will use communication and networking skills to connect current and future supporters to our values and mission.

Please don’t be shy! We are very interested to hear from you if you are interested in this position. Please see newhavenleon.org/nhlscp-job-opening-pt-director-of-development for the full job announcement.

Holiday Gift Bazaar and Craft Show Dec. 2

by Patty Nuelsen, New Haven/León Sister City Project

Once again this year the Bioregional Group in conjunction with the New Haven/León Sister City Project will hold its annual gift bazaar from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2 at the First Unitarian Universalist Society of New Haven, 608 Whitney Ave., New Haven, CT, 06511.

Unique in the New Haven area, all items are handcrafted, locally produced or fair trade.
The local crafters and artists will be selling their products and you can talk with them adding more meaning to your purchases. Beautiful rubber stamped clothing and socks, dish towels, etc.; mounted photos of the New Haven area and cards; pottery; jewelry; hemp products; hats, scarves, etc…..all beautiful and created with skill and love.

The New Haven/León Sister City Project will be selling Nicaraguan coffee, woven goods and chocolate as well as Syracuse Cultural Workers calendars, Swords Into Plow-shares honey and beeswax candles, bowls from India made from recycled wire, Palestinian olive oil, CT produced soap and much more. All proceeds benefit the work of the NH/LSCP in New Haven and two rural communities in León, Nicaragua.

 

Holiday Gift Bazaar and Craft Show Dec. 2

by Patty Nuelsen, New Haven/León Sister City Project

Once again this year the New Haven Bioregional Group in conjunction with the New Haven/León Sister City Project will hold its annual gift bazaar Saturday, Dec. 2 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Unique in the New Haven area, all items are handcrafted, locally produced or fair trade.

The local crafters and artists will be selling their products and you can talk with them adding more meaning to your purchases. Beautiful rubber stamped clothing and socks, dish towels, etc.; mounted photos of the New Haven area and cards; pottery; jewelry; hemp products; hats, scarves, and more … all beautiful and created with skill and love.

The New Haven/León Sister City Project will be selling Nicaraguan coffee, woven goods and chocolate as well as Syracuse Cultural Workers calendars, Swords Into Plow-shares honey and beeswax candles, bowls from India made from recycled wire, Palestinian olive oil, CT produced soap and much more. All proceeds benefit the work of the NH/LSCP in New Haven and two rural communities in León, Nicaragua.

Let’s Talk About Climate Change in October

by Chris Schweitzer, Director, NHLSCP

Climate change effects us all, so let’s talk about what it means, how we’re feeling about it and ways to respond. Healthy City/Healthy Climate Challenge (HCC) invites you to hold a discussion this October as a way to support a wider response to this new challenge. HCC has organized great resources for holding discussions.

There are many different ways that you can support climate discussions:

  • Organize a climate change talk at your organization or home.
  • Promote online discussions and blogs.
  • Watch and share videos (suggestions in our resource kit).
  • Print and hang up the posters (provided in our resource kit).
  • Create a series of Facebook posts related to climate change throughout October.
  • Get speakers from environmental organizations to come talk (HCC can suggest possible ones).
  • Participate in any of the HCC-sponsored climate change discussions this October (more details to follow).

Our resources include global warming videos, websites, articles, letters, visual tools, activity ideas, posters and graphics, so be sure to check them out! Let us know if you organize a discussion or have other ideas on how to engage people. We’re excited about this chance to get people talking…AND taking concrete steps to create a healthier future!

Contact Chris at [email protected] or (203) 562-1607.

New Haven/Leon Sister City Project works to promote social justice, education and sustainable development in Nicaragua and Connecticut. For more information see newhavenleon.org; www.facebook.com/newhavenleon; email [email protected]; or call (203) 562-1607.

Milada Marsalka’s Memoirs Now Available in New Haven

PAR Planning Committee

milada-marsalkaMilada Marsalka, founding member of PAR (1993), long-time president of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, New Haven County Branch, and a fiery activist in countless struggles for peace, labor rights, equality and justice, had the foresight to write about her life. She died in 2000 at the age of 95, leaving a manuscript that could inform and inspire others.

Through the diligence of Milada’s nieces, Regina Stevenson and Catherine Nathan, Pursuing Peace: Memoirs of Milada Marsalka has been published.

Thanks to New Haven/León Sister City Project, a box of books was shipped to New Haven. You can purchase your copy of Pursuing Peace from PAR for $15. Please call Paula at (203) 562-2798 to arrange your pick-up. This book makes a great gift!

For a description of the book go to the publisher’s site: wordassociation.com/memoir%20book%20page/pursuingpeace.html.

“An Evening of Stories” Celebrates 30 Years of Nicaragua Sister City, 5 p.m. Oct. 18

by Megan Fountain, NHLSCP

In 1979 after 40 years of a brutal dictatorship and additional years of a bloody insurrection, the people of Nicaragua vanquished the Somoza family and established a new government headed by the Sandinistas. The response of the Reagan administration was to accuse the leaders of being Communists, to justify covertly supporting the counter-revolutionary forces against the duly elected leaders of the country.

People from around the world, including the U.S., under the established vehicle of Sister Cities, began a non-violent movement in solidarity with the people of Nicaragua. In 1984 New Haven citizens became a part of that movement with the establishment of the New Haven/León Sister City Project (NH/LSCP). Read more