2015
Education with a
Destination
is a most fascinating country; “Peru its people, alpacas, vicuñas, scenery, culture… Plenty of things made the trip unforgettable. Thanks to Mike´s incredible network, most of the time we were far away from general tourist amenities. We experienced things ordinary visitors never would come near. Doing all of this together with a wonderful group of international alpaca breeders meant that we learned a lot and also had such fun! I’ll definitely be back!
”
— Ann Marie Gerber-Santesson Österlen Alpacka, Sweden
Attend! Learn all the aspects of the alpaca business you need to buy, breed and succeed in the alpaca industry that we all love so much!
Quechua benefit is excited to announce the 2015 Education with a Destination Peru tour and the Education with a Destination event in Bend, Oregon. The Peru trip will be led by Quechua Benefit’s newest board member Amanda VandenBosch along with Mike Safley, Cheryl Gehly and Jude Anderson.
Peru Tour dates: November 4 through November 14. There is the option to extend your stay in Peru to visit Cusco and Machu Picchu. You will find a complete Peruvian itinerary inside with testimonials from last year’s participants. This year the 7th annual Education with a Destination event in Bend, Oregon will be held at the fabulous Flying Dutchman farm and will feature the most comprehensive schedule of classes and hands-on education that breeders new or experienced can imagine.
Destination
2015
Wednesday NOV 4
Depart US/Europe arrive Lima
Thursday NOV 5
Depart Lima, Arrive Arequipa early and hang out until group meet, greet and eat dinner.
Friday NOV 6 Arequipa tour • Grupo Inca factory tour and wholesale store
• Michell sorting sheds, factory tour and retail store
Saturday NOV 7 Depart Arequipa in the AM • Tour caves at Sumbay • Visit CASA CHAPI – Dinner with the kids • Overnight in the Colca Valley
Sunday NOV 8 • Visit Condor Cross • Travel to the Michell Estancia Mallkini Monday
NOV 9
Mallkini
• Alpaca education • Picotoni Vicuna Chacu
Tuesday NOV 10 Travel to Nunoa • Visit world famous Suri ranch • Breeders roundtable with Nunoa Suri ranchers
Wednesday NOV 11
Travel to Macusani
• Visit the Accoyo Estancia
Thursday NOV 12 Macusani • Visit Rural Allianza • Breeders roundtable with Macusani breeders
Friday
NOV 13
Travel to Arequipa
Saturday NOV 14 Depart Arequipa late afternoon to begin journey home or the side trip to Machu Picchu. (Three additional days arranged and guided by Quechua Benefit. Cost is in addition to trip fee.) The cost of this year’s trip is $3,500.00 per person double occupancy and includes all ground transportation in Peru, hotel rooms and food during the tour, including water and snacks. The cost does not include air fare from the country of origin to Arequipa Peru or any dinners out in Arequipa. You can register at www.quechuabenefit.org/peru-tour-2015. If you have any questions please call Amanda at (831) 809-1147 or email Amandafda@earthlink.net or Mike at (503) 703-6020 or email Mike@alpacas.com.
2015 Education with a Destination Peru leaders Join with the four co-authors of the World acclaimed alpaca judging book, The Art and Science of Alpaca Judging, to tour Peru and learn the secrets of selecting elite alpacas. Jude Anderson, along with her husband, Alan Cousill, have been raising alpacas, both Suri and Huacaya, since 1991 in both Australia and the USA. Jude is a certified senior alpaca judge in Australia and the USA, and has judged alpacas and fleeces in Australia, the USA, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, Sweden, and Norway. Jude shares her knowledge at alpaca seminars and conferences around the world. She currently serves as chair of the AOA Judges’ Advisory committee and is the halter judge liaison to the AOA Show Rules committee. Cheryl Gehly became an AOBA Certified Fleece Judge in 2002. In addition to judging fleece shows, Cheryl has shared her knowledge with judges and apprentices as an AOBA Certified Instructor at JTCC sponsored Judge Training Clinics, as well as being a Senior AOBA Fleece Judge and an AOBA Certified Fleece Judge Trainer. Cheryl has been a member and chairperson of the AOBA Judge Advisory Committee. She is also the fleece judge liaison to the Show Rules Committee. Cheryl teaches at breeder seminars around the country as well as judging multiple AOBA Certified Fleece Shows annually. Amanda VandenBosch is a Senior AOBA Halter and Fleece Judge and an Alpaca Judge Trainer and Instructor in the United States. Amanda qualified as an International Alpaca Judge trained in Peru at the International Alpaca Judging School (IAJS). She has judged shows in the USA, Canada, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden and Peru gaining an international perspective and true love for the art and science of alpaca judging. Together with Vince, Cody and Hunter they operate Flying Dutchman Alpacas, in Bend OR, successfully raising both Huacayas and Suris along with Stanford Livestock International, a livestock agent business serving customers worldwide. Mike Safley was born and raised in Oregon. He attended the University of Oregon and served in the U.S. Navy Seabees, doing two tours of duty in Vietnam. He lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife Julie and their four children who live close by. Mike was elected president of the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association (AOBA) in 1990 and the Alpaca Registry (ARI) in 1996. In 1996 he founded Quechua Benefit, a charity that works with alpaca breeders in Peru. While serving as president of AOBA, he conceived of and became the first editor for Alpacas magazine. In 2013, Mike was the first recipient of AOBA’s “Distinguished Judges Award”. He authored the following books: Alpacas: Synthesis of a Miracle, Ideal Alpacas from Myth to Reality, The Alpaca Shepherd, The Alpaca Chronicles.
Rave Reviews for Destination Peru “Deciding to join the Quechua Benefit trip was the best decision we’ve ever made. That said, this unique adventure is not for the faint of heart or the infirm, but if you are willing and able to go, do it. You will enjoy the company of like-minded souls, meet the generous, and sometimes quirky, folk of the Peruvian altiplano, see alpacas, llamas, and vicuñas in their natural habitat, and your heart will be absolutely melted by the children of Casa Chapi.” —Sue and Bob Regier, Beaufort, SC “I attended the Breeder’s School in Peru in 2004 with Dr. Sumar and Maggie Kreiger and came away with an abiding love of Peru and a wealth of knowledge about alpacas. I was anxious to visit Peru again, this time with my husband, to continue to learn all I can about alpacas and to understand the improvements the Peruvian alpaca farmers had made in their breeding programs in the ensuing 10 years. We visited some of the finest established alpaca breeding programs in Peru and up and coming smaller co-ops and were able to examine exceptional fleece. There could be no better way to have this experience than with expert guidance of Amanda, Arturo, Mike and Cheryl. They’re all wonderful mentors with a profound knowledge of alpacas and a great deal of fun.” —Pamela Ray, Xanadu Farm Alpacas, Frederick, CO “For me it was the best trip I have ever done: perfect organization, friendly people, breath taking animals. To see Accoyo with all the animals was very emotional. I will be back with you in November”. —Wolfgang Putzinger, Alpacas vom Aspoltsberg, Austria “I’m one of the lucky ones who was part of the inaugural Education with a Destination – Peru trip in November 2014. There are so many superlatives that come to mind when trying to describe the experience that I find it hard to choose – unbelievable, unrivaled, unearthly, or perhaps just “trip of a lifetime” will do.
Traveling in some of the most remote areas of the Peruvian highlands, with jaw-dropping vistas of unbelievable beauty all around us, we were hosted like dignitaries by the alpaca communities who were anxious to share their life’s work with us. The level of access to these areas is unparalleled due to the relationships that Quechua Benefit and Mike Safley have built over the last decades in the region. The journey was rigorous at times but well worth the occasional inconvenience and discomfort. Our intrepid guides, Mike, Amanda, Arturo and Alejandro, were excellent shepherds, looking after the welfare of our international group with efficiency and patience, all the while sharing their unrivaled wealth of knowledge about the culture and the beautiful animals we were privileged to see. Every day was a new and different experience and just when you thought you’d seen it all, the next day would delight even more. Our visit to Casa Chapi was definitely a highlight of our trip. Witnessing all of the progress Quechua Benefit has made at the site, meeting many of the volunteers at the medical clinic and greeting the children with smiles on their faces brought joy to my heart. Casa Chapi is also a place of aspirations, with goals to provide capacity for more children.
The need is undeniable and the opportunity to support the dream is within reach”. —Michelle Alexander, Dakini Alpacas, Bend, OR “I have been attending “Education with a Destination” in Bend Oregon since August 2009. I was so excited to have the opportunity to join the first EWD 2014 PERU with Amanda, Cheryl, Mike & Arturo. What an amazing group of people to travel with! The combined knowledge of this group was bottomless. Hearing Mike speak so passionately about Quechua Benefit, and being able to donate to and visit the children & Casa Chapi was an extra incentive to participate in this adventure! It was a life changing experience for me from Arequipa to Chivay ...the Alpacas of Accoyo, the warm and beautiful Hacienda Mallkini, participating in my first Vicuna Chacu (an experience I will never forget!) Touring the mills ...has left me in love with this beautiful country and so happy about my experience, A trip of a lifetime, amazing leaders...invaluable information! I have already signed up for November 2015!” —Robbin Freedman
Education with a Destination
August 20-23, 2015 Bend, Oregon USA • www.edu97701.com Come and join us for four days of incredible education, networking, “hands-on” evaluations, marketing, judging, fun and friendship with some of the world’s best known experts in all aspects of the alpaca business. Scott & Debbie Miller, Vince, Cody, Hunter and Amanda VandenBosch will host this iconic annual event. Mike Safley, Cheryl Gehly, Brett Kaysen, and many more experts will cover alpaca selection, EPD’s, fiber processing and evaluation and how to set up your very own farm store. And that’s just the beginning. This year’s event will include our first ever Saturday night extravaganza with dinner and entertainment. The event will be open to both the public and the entire eastern Oregon alpaca community. The dinner will include a Quechua
Benefit auction with a lot of surprises. Education with a Destination is always a highly social event where people meet and form lasting relationships, whether it is in the highlands of Peru or the high desert of Bend Oregon. In 2015 Amanda, Scott and the gang are going to push the envelope on fun. You will not want to miss it. The folks who want to attend the Saturday night event and are not registered for the entire weekend need to RSVP with Amanda or Scott just to make sure we have enough food and drink to get you through the night.
Amanda can be reached by phone at (831) 809-1147 or email Amandafda@earthlink.net and Scott’s number is (541) 923-2285 or email scott@crescentmoonranch.com.
Please RSVP to Rachel at Rachel@crescentmoonranch.com You can also RSVP on line at www.edu97701.com