Ask Zipy Toy Drive for the Children of Jardines del Río Project

Hey all!

Zipy here and I can really use your help! You see some pretty terrible things happened to my Costa Rican friends and the remnants of the disaster are just too large for me to tackle on my own. You see, this terrible hurricane Otto came to Costa Rica in 2008 and hovered over us for nearly five days, pelting us with torrential rains and violent winds. The Pacific Coast was hit the hardest with the majority of the damage in Quepos. Many of my friends were killed in landslides across the country and others suffered from the damage of downed trees, dangerous power lines, and flooding. Our roads were demolished and bridges destroyed. Our evacuation routes were closed off due to the damage. I’ll never forget the fear and sadness I felt. My family was able to hide in the trees but it was so hard to see my friends suffer so greatly. Businesses were destroyed and houses were deemed unfit to live in. In fact, the damage from this storm was noted as the worst in Costa Rican history. Unfortunately, 28 of my dear friends died, 12 were never found and about 4,000 of them were left homeless.

Pretty awful, right? My rainforest friends and I watched as our human friends tried to piece back together their lives. The government sought international aid, but alas, the damage was too tremendous. Many of our human friends went to their homes to try to restart a life, but everything was ruined. The ministry of health deemed house after house unlivable, leaving many without a place to go.

However, for many, the light of hope was renewed by the Jardines del Río project. It took another 8 years, but a group of very hard working citizens put the project together to provide housing for those unfortunate to have lost everything in the natural disaster. In fact, this beacon of light in the aftermath of the storm provides housing for 183 families that needed a helping hand.

This community helps to provide opportunities to low-income families that are rebuilding from the storm, elderly populations, and single mothers, usually those who have children with mental or physical disabilities. There are 6 parks to provide a safe space for the children to play and it’s own water plant to provide fresh water to each family.

Having a roof over their heads is just the start, however, and many of these families have a long way to go. I am a fortunate little sloth who has ample shelter, food, and water as well as a pretty amazing job helping you all find the best things to do and places to be! Unfortunately, not everyone is as lucky as I am and having the basics does not always equate to quality of life.

As Christmas approaches, my dear little human friends in Jardines del Río could really use our help. I’m sporting my Santa hat and vest to collect toys to bring some joy to my little friends. Want to help too? I could really use it, with only three toes it is hard to collect all of these gifts!
 

Here are some important dates to know:

Dec 10 - Kids Making Ornaments Project at the local school from 8am to 12pm

Dec 16 - Tree Planting and Decorating ceremony 2pm - 4pm at Jardin Del Rio Park

Dec 21 - Santa and Zipy visit to distribute gifts to the wonderful children of Jardines Del Río 2pm - 7pm

ALL OF DECEMBER  - The Ask Zipy team and Barba Roja will be collecting gifts to distribute. We need 250+ in total.

What do you say, friends, can you help me,

Zipy,

Make a difference!

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