The Teresian Association, through its Guidance and Accompaniment Center (COA), supports children and families in a working-class neighborhood in the city of Holguín, Cuba.
This is the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood of Holguín, in eastern Cuba, where TA members and collaborators, with the support of the NGO InteRed, carry out social and educational work with children and adults through academic support in language and mathematics, values education, and sports activities. In addition, there are craft and crochet workshops.
Project
Every Saturday morning, teachers and volunteers with different skills come to the Jesus Christ the Redeemer Parish in the diocese of Holguín. The project is an initiative of the diocese's Guidance and Accompaniment Center (COA), entrusted to the TA, which receives financial support from InteRed.
Teresa Muñoz, a TA member, and her team began providing school support after the pandemic. Muñoz was then head of the COA and is now one of the volunteers who never misses the weekly meeting. Since 2023, the director of the COA has been Dr. Nersa Grass, also a TA member who is a medical specialist in Pathological Anatomy and also a regular presence every Saturday in the neighborhood. “What we are trying to do is provide a support service for elementary school children, especially those who are struggling academically,” explains Grass.
From garage to classroom
Early in the morning, children and some mothers begin to arrive at the old parish garage that has been converted into a classroom. Esperanza, who has been a teacher for 45 years and is now retired, is there. “I come because I feel committed to this,” she says.
Denia is an elementary school teacher and helps students in grades one through four. She has been teaching for 22 years. She says, “They called me, and I feel good here.” Michael, an eighth grader, was invited by Lilia, a neighbor. He arrived with his friend Alberto, a fifth grader.
At 11 a.m., a group of teenagers participates in arts and crafts with educational themes. The teacher is Ailén Urbina, a disability specialist, who explains that while they learn how to make jewelry, “we work on values and emotions: how they integrate when they feel anger, shame, fear... We talk about it in each session. We do trust-building and teamwork exercises.” This project also includes sports time with the help of volunteers.
Weavers
When the parish priest, Father Jorge Inocente, finishes celebrating Mass in the church, a group of weavers gathers near the door leading to the street. This is the second group supported by COA. Seated around a round table displaying some of their work, they chat about what they do. Mercedes is considered by her colleagues to be the heart and soul of the group.
Lenia likes to come to weave, make dolls, and share knowledge with others. Yanet also likes to weave and acknowledges that “we knew each other from the neighborhood. Here we chat and distract ourselves.” And they make crochet dolls “for the children, to keep them entertained.”
The Teresian Association has been collaborating with the Diocese of Holguín since 2010 in the training of catechists and offering courses in theology/spirituality for the laity. In addition to running the COA, it works with educators and communicators and is entrusted with the diocesan library to turn it into a resource center.
A. Cantero, Cuba.
TA Translation Team.
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