Buena Esperanza School Transport 2023

Buena Esperanza, translated to English means “good hope”.  Eight miles south of Bocas del Toro in Panama, the little village of Buena Esperanza, consisting of approximately 50 indigenous families, sits high on a hill overlooking beautiful Dolphin Bay. With the exception of a few families fortunate enough to own a solar panel and a small tank to collect rainwater from their roof, the village is without electricity, adequate toilet facilities, or running water.

Escuela Buena Esperanza, a public school, provides basic education for about 75 children in kindergarten through sixth grade. To the west, 4 “water miles” away, public school Escuela Tierra Oscura offers grades 7 through 9. The Panamanian government does not provide transportation.

In 2017 and prior, more than 80% of students dropped out after 6th grade.  Often left idle in the community, these kids are ripe for trouble: girls pregnant at age 13 being just one of the unwelcome results. Uneducated youngsters are destined for a future of poverty, continuing the subsistence life-style of their mothers and fathers.  

In 2018, Give & Surf collaborated with local neighbors and community members to help with transportation costs.  Local parents volunteer to drive the small community motor boat and in, turn, we  raised the money needed to cover gas for the school year.  In 2018, 15 students attended middle school compared to 5 the year before, and that number has continued to grow!

Your help is needed now more than ever! With the rising gas prices, we need to raise $3,000 to help cover the gas costs and ensure that these students stay in school! Your one-time or monthly donation increases the possibilities for a brighter future in Buena Esperanza. Will you bring good hope to these  kids and their families?

100% of your donation goes directly towards funding this transportation program for Buena Esperanza.

Your donation may be tax deductible in the US under Tax ID # 27-3351048.  Contact info@giveandsurf.org with any questions.