Clare and James Knight worked at the San Roque child care centre in Ecuador’s capital, Quito in 2007. It is a child care centre for children aged 1 to 6 whose parents are indigenous and have come to Quito from the countryside to work in the markets at San Roque. Without the centre the children would have to spend the day with their parents whilst they worked, often just sitting around a market stall. The centre gives the children somewhere to go for the day where they can play and participate in classroom sessions.

The centre was set up in some rooms underneath a primary school that were originally used for storage. The space was dark, cold and miserable, nothing like the facilities most of us imagine when we think of a child care centre. The dim lighting was turned on by touching two naked wires together near the entrance, just out of reach of most of the children; the front door was held closed with a shoe lace; there were 2 toilets in one small damp room out the back where the children balanced on the edges without seats; the walls were dull with nothing to stimulate young minds; the floor was dirty and impossible to keep clean.

Initially we spent our time there on toilet duties, bouncing children on our knees, playing games, pushing swings, kicking footballs and teaching them how to hold pencils and crayons. We loved getting to know all the kids and giving them the attention and touch so many of them yearned for. There were many personalities; Elsa, whose attitude was older than her tender years – she loved helping organise the tables and chairs for meals and sweeping the floor; Cesar, who could barely talk at 5 years if age; Jhon, who showered Clare with kisses everyday; Alex, whose attention span for anything was little longer than the blink of an eye; Rolando, who had to be the first to do everything; Michelle, Jessica, Mario, Angel and many more.

Six mothers worked at the centre, their meagre salaries funded by the government.  Two worked in the kitchen preparing the breakfast, fruit and lunch the children were fortunate to eat everyday; and four supervised classes. They had no qualifications in child care or teaching and had doubtfully completed school themselves. They did their best to organise activities and keep control of the children, but they were little more than minders.

After a short time we began to wonder how best we could help the centre in the time we were there. We were frustrated by the lack of: equipment, structured teaching and number of staff to look after almost 50 kids. We decided we would see how much it would cost to redecorate or rewire to try and cheer the place up a bit. This would at least improve the conditions for the children and we could then focus on other requirements such as educational activities and toys.

Upon emailing our friends to sound them out regarding our idea we were overwhelmed by the response and funds they donated. As a result, we were able to redecorate all the rooms and put fluorescent strip lighting with light switches throughout the centre. The brightly coloured walls were further decorated with photos of the children, letters, numbers, smiley faces and a hand print of each child in bright orange paint.

We were also able to set up a dental program for the children with the help of our Spanish language teacher. Many of the children had craters where molars used to be, rotting front teeth from lollies to keep them quiet and gum infections. Each child was enrolled in a dental program at the University of Central Ecuador where under the supervision of dentists, final year students worked at a children’s clinic. We also organised an educational session for the parents where a dentist came to talk to the parents about the basics of dental hygiene. Subsequent to this, it was great to see little Jessica who always used to arrive at the centre in the morning with a lollypop or sherbet straws, now bring a boiled egg as her snack. Needless to say it was a miracle if it remained intact in her pocket!

We still financially support and offer advice to the centre in San Roque. The centre has recently been able to move into a much more suitable space that is lighter and warmer with the help of another charity. They still need much equipment and additional personnel to help run the centre effectively though. The number of children attending in the centre is now 60 and on the rise. They also need money to buy supplements for the kids, most of whom are malnourished by Ecuadorian standards according to height and weight measurements.

At Little Amigos we aim to donate some profits to the San Roque child care centre. Buying an item of clothing from Little Amigos you are not only helping to employ the people that make the knitwear, but also contributing to help the kids that we have committed to help in an effort to improve their lives. THANK YOU!

Please feel free to contact us if you’d like to find out further information, we’d be delighted to answer any questions.

Please click here to see a gallery of photos of our time at San Roque.