The pandemic has shifted life in many ways. For CoCoDA, it forced us to think more creatively. We retooled our annual Febrero Fiesta fundraiser as a four-night internet event and TRIPLED donations and doubled attendance with people participating from a dozen states and five countries. We took our Sun and Water Conference virtual and have already seen nearly $85,000 pledged to water projects in 2022. We may never go back to the in-person events.However, one of our losses has been...
In October of 2017, CoCoDA held its first Sun and Water Conference in Suchitoto, El Salvador. That conference leveraged nearly $180,000 for four small, rural solar powered water projects serving about 1500 people in Central America. Based on the success of that initiative, CoCoDA had planned another conference in October of 2020. Of course, we hadn’t planned on a pandemic.That didn’t stop us.On April, CoCoDA held its second Sun and Water Conference virtually. We had over 70 participants from North...
The CoCoDA Speakers Bureau is designed to create one-hour Zoom presentations that: Sustain positive connections between Central American and our partner universities, churches, and Clubs during the pandemic when face to face interactions in Central America are impractical. And, Generate revenue for CoCoDA during a period when we cannot sustain the income normally generated by delegations.These one-hour presentations could include one or more of the following:1. A CoCoDA staff person presenting on a subject or theme.2. A staff person...
In the months after the pandemic began, CoCoDA transitioned from our previous projects to supporting Nicaragua and El Salvador through the “Central American Relief Effort” (CARE) campaign.While we continue to sustain other programs, our priority has become supporting the response of our partners to this terrible virus. Through donors like you, we have distributed over $5,000 of masks, PP equipment and other resources.However, the need still exists, the danger is not over and we will continue to fight against the coronavirus. We have...
On the 50th birthday of Ivan José María Villasboa, we celebrate his life, his dedication to the people of Central America and his years of service to Companion Community Development Alternatives (CoCoDA). On October 31st, Ivan will be retiring from his position as CoCoDA Program Director and transitioning to the CoCoDA Board of Directors. For the first time in nearly 30 years, he won’t be involved with the day to day activities of CoCoDA. This is possible because of his diligence...
In this video, Dr. Alex Hurtado and Midwife Higinia Hernandez explain how desperately they need the resources to fight Covid-19 in Central America. In El Salvador, there have been about 22,000 “reported” cases and about 600 deaths. Nicaragua has had at least 130 deaths. These are high numbers for these small countries. There is also lots of evidence that many are dying at home and that the mortality and case rates are higher than reported.Both countries have few ventilators...
Companion Community Development Alternatives (CoCoDA) alongside Central American communities, local NGO’s, Rotary International, local Rotary clubs and the Washington Ethical Society have been partnering in building potable water systems.During these difficult times, much of our work in Central America has stalled, but we are still able to prepare for four new solar-powered water systems coming in 2021. These systems make possible the distribution of this vital liquid straight to homes at a low cost using renewable energy.Thanks to solar energy as...
On February 1st, 2020, the community of Zacataloza, Luis Arturo Mairena the mayor of the Municipality of Ciudad Antigua, local government officials, Fredi Flores the Executive Director of MCN, the engineers, and a delegation of financial supporters from the United States gathered to celebrate the inauguration of the Solar Powered Water System in Zacataloza, Nicaragua. No more would women and children spend 3-4 hours each day traveling that path to acquire water. In 2015, Zacataloza was identified by our Nicaraguan partners as...
The La Mora clinic has long been an example of a local controlled clinic offering accessible, quality healthcare to the working poor. In 2014, La Mora clinic served nearly 12,000 people. CoCoDA works with partners like Resurrection Catholic Parish in Canton, MI to provide financial support to the clinic in the form of salaries, medications and equipment. La Mora is also one of the clinical sites for students and faculty from the Indiana University Department of Family Medicine. In collaboration with...
