I SHOOK THE PRESIDENTS HAND!!

The President said he was going to come for the inauguration of the new school... and he actually did!!!

As you can see Valle was packed. There was about 20 cars of people from the hydroelectric dam, National Police, different government organizations, and education officials.


After much waiting in the hot sun the sound of a helicopter became audible and it roared over the new school to land on the soccer field.

Right after this picture above was taken the President Martin Torrijos walked towards the school. He shook some peoples hands. I greeted him with a ¨Hello. How are you?¨ He replied back in English that he was good and wanted to know how long I had been in Valle. He obviously knew I was Peace Corps and speaks perfect English because he studied at Texas A and M.

There was tons of media there. You can see in this photo the people at the main table. The guy in the blue striped shirt in the Director of FIS - Fundación de Inversión Social, (Social investment fund). This is the government organization that gave funds to build the school. They primarily work in impoverished areas. The next guy is the National Director of MEDUCA which is the Ministry of Education. El Presidente is next. The guy in green is a teacher from my town officially welcoming them.
The Pres appear a little exhausted. I think he must have woke up very early and was a little overwhelmed by the heat. Next to him is Deputado Benicio Robinson. He is sporting the Bocas baseball hat and is kinda like a senator of the province.
The gringo looking guys in hats are from the hydroelectric company. They announced that they would be improving the health center in town, by adding a full time doctor and hospital beds. The last guy is the new director of the school. He is great and really personable. Later that day the President had payed for 2 cows to be killed and essentially food for the whole town. The Director and myself were talking about NBA and he was saying how he doesn´t really like all the new players and that Jordan, Bird and Magic are the all time best. We also talked about the movie Blood Diamond.

Lots of media completely blocking the students view.

Me and my buddy Kevin in front of the Presidential Helicopter.
My host brother Ochoa next the the Presidential Seal.
The new computer lab that is part of the school. They got 24 new computers all with DVD players, optical mice, flat screen and internet. There is also a scanner, wireless router and digital projector.
The Pres touring the new school.
A final shot of the main man himself.

In other news, on a recent trip to Bocas Island I ran into some US Army soldiers that are on a humanitarian mission in Bocas. They are building schools, roads and health posts. I was chatting small talk with an engineer and he asked me where money for projects comes from. I explained to him the Peace Corps does not provide money and that we get it from NGOs and friends and family through Peace Corps Partnership. He told me that he has loads of materials that he needs to donate to a certified NGO before they leave in a month. After some talks between the country director and Army personal it has been approved. This week I will go to their temporary base camp and see what they are willing to donate.