Standing in solidarity

Standing at the top of a hill overlooking the outskirts of Lima in Peru, 11 CBC Fremantle students were shocked at the panorama before them. As far as the eye could see spread the homes of people living in extreme poverty, born into circumstances beyond their control and marginalised by their status as part the world’s poor.

Dylan Allen, Ethan Contera, Sam Garbellini, Lloyd Jacob-Keenan, Liam Kennedy, Fletcher Kerspien, Joshua Koleszko and Daniel Leavy from Year 11, and Callan Howe-Robinson, Stephen Jaeger and Jacob Shales in Year 12 signed up for the inaugural student Peru Immersion to travel beyond borders and build a home for a family in need. The students were accompanied by Spanish born and speaking CBC parent, David Contera, and three College staff, Mr Adrian Correia, Miss Shelley Nodwell and Ms Cherie Butcher.

A few days earlier, the team had arrived in a nation that was in the grip of the excitement of FIFA World Cup fever. Red and white strips were everywhere, and the boys were plunged into the midst of it, gathering with students at fellow Edmund Rice School, Fe y Alegría 26 in the impoverished district of Canto Grande to watch Australia take on Peru on their classroom TV sets.

With their nation’s heroes beating the Socceroos 2-0, the locals were able to relax and the boys experienced some genuine Peruvian hospitality with dancing, singing and many games of basketball and soccer as they tried out their basic Spanish. The warm welcome was overwhelming for the visitors, who were treated as if they were soccer royalty, signing autographs for the children who swamped them and delighting in the festivities of the day.

The halcyon hours spent with the children kept the boys motivated for the hard work of building a home for a family in need. The hardy group carried the materials up the hills, working in teams to negotiate the rocky incline while toting the unwieldly prefabricated wall panels and roofing sheets, and then erected the house under the direction of the carpenter, Jorge.

Physical exhaustion did not stop the CBC students from bonding with Gladys, Juan Franco and baby Diego as they watched their casita taking shape. Abandoned by an abusive husband and father, the family were a constant reminder of the reality of the relentless poverty, exploitation and vulnerability of the people living in the slums of Lima.

The meagre pile of furniture that the boys assisted Gladys to arrange in her new home made the contrast of their own comfortable lives with the humble existence of the family they had become attached to even more poignant.

Every evening the boys returned to the Christian Brothers’ quarters, travelling by local transport and experiencing the real Lima few tourists get to see. A visit to the National Museum taught a great deal about the volatile history of the country, and the boys also explored the Basílica y Convento de San Francisco with its spooky catacombs and took in the remarkable Circuito Magico del Agua water show to round out their Lima experience.

The group was also lucky to catch up with Old Boy Bevan Grant (’16) who was in South America and suffering from an illness that prevented him from being there for the building of the house. Bevan spent a couple of days with the Brothers to recover and the CBC boys past and present caught up with FIFA results and news from home.

The students also had the opportunity to stay with a local family further out in the hills surrounding Lima and assisted with projects in the local community, including laying a concrete pad and painting the chapel.

Fletcher and Sam celebrated their birthdays partying with the locals, dancing the night away around a fire and proving that language is no barrier when having fun.

The physical and emotional challenges brought out the best in the young men, who built warm relationships with their hosts and displayed immense respect to the people whose homes they were privileged to visit.

It was with some sadness that the boys left their new friends, Bevan and the Brothers and boarded their flight to Cusco, high in the Peruvian Andes and the gateway to one of the wonders of the world, Macchu Picchu.

The boys were free to discover the markets and indulge in the local cuisine, as well as keep up to date with the World Cup finals on every TV in almost every shop and restaurant on their explorations.

The archaeological remains of the Incas and the beauty of the Sacred Valley proved to be a fascinating end to their intrepid travels, but it was the simple casitas, the warmth of the students at Fe y Alegria and the bright smiles of Juan Franco and little Diego that stayed with the boys on the long journey home.

The experience turned poverty around for the CBC students, who learned the true value of community, education and faith for people living in circumstances beyond their control.