Cecilia has been a committed participant in Jungle Mamas training programs since they first began nearly four years ago. She is one of the “first responders” who volunteers to put her training as a birth attendant to good use every time the birth of a baby is near. She has attended nearly every birth in her community of Pumpuentsa since becoming enrolled in Jungle Mamas, totaling more than twenty births.

Cecilia is a mother of six children (four girls and two boys) and also a teacher in the local elementary school. Cecilia dreams of a community in which every birth is attended by knowledgeable, caring women and men, and that not one mother or infant die in childbirth if it can be prevented. This is an amazing commitment in a community where there is no doctor, no prenatal care, and the closest hospital is accessible only by airplane or by walking several hours.

Your contribution will help Cecilia fulfill her dream of becoming a Birth Attendant with the practical hands-on experience needed to serve her people and help teach others. It is a gift of life of the highest order, which will impact generations of rainforest people and their communities.

Thank you Pradeep, Peter & Kim, Mark & Lisbet, Anil, Jeffrey, Eileen, Cindy, Amy, Katie and Vache for your support!

Mercedes is a deeply trusted leader in the Pumpuentsa community. She is also an elementary school teacher–something very unusual for Achuar women. Because of her devotion to her family, students, and community, Jungle Mamas has selected Mercedes to receive a birth attendant training. The scholarship will provide in-depth, practical training to become a Skilled Birth Attendant. This is a future Achuar women could not have dreamed of before the Jungle Mamas program.

Mercedes has a big dream to help ensure the health & wellbeing of her people while preserving their culture and traditional way of life. Her incredible ability for remembering material taught in the workshops and teaching it to others, and her skill at translating from the native Achuar language to Spanish, gives her a key role in the education of her fellow classmates. Mercedes’ grasp of the material about safe birthing practices and her fierce commitment to preserving traditional healing methods help ensure a bright, healthy future for her community.

Thank you Rajeev, Akiko, Kandace, Micah, Brad, George, Richard, Mike & Suzanne, Rick & Beth and Susan for your generous support of this program for Mercedes.

Your contribution will help Mercedes fulfill her dream of becoming a Skilled Birth Attendant! This will give her the hands-on experience essential to help ensure safe births and healthy babies where there is no doctor or medical care.

Carlos has been an active participant in the Jungle Mamas safe birthing and family health workshops in northern Ecuador from the beginning. Since joining the workshops, he has attended nine births in his small community. Because of Carlos’ experience helping his two wives give birth to many of their 18 children, he is especially attuned to the needs of women during birth. He is known for the sensitive, respectful way he cares for each family’s individual circumstance. Carlos is also a well-respected leader in his community–the one everyone comes to for basic health issues, especially regarding women and infant health.

Carlos has an admirable dream -the empowerment of women and men in his community–along with a passionate commitment to improving the health & well being of his community of Kurintsa. In a recent workshop on family planning, a culturally sensitive topic in Achuar culture, not only did Carlos actively engage in a discussion of what birth control methods are culturally appropriate, but he was also eager to provide his people with useful information.

The community of Kurintsa faces many health issues ranging from water contamination to malnutrition. Thanks to the support from Bradley, Kathryn, Nancy, William, Mark & Lisbet, Bill, Mary, Sarah, Peter & Kim and Michael, Carlos is finding solutions to these problems, and providing families in Kurintsa with the quality of care they deserve. Makete (Achuar equivalent of “Thank you”)!