Fundacion Calicanto

CAPTA Graduacion Agosto 2010

Muchas felicidades a las 20 mujeres que se graduaron el día Miércoles 4 de Agosto 2010 en la Escuela Hotel Internacional de Panamá ubicada en la Ciudad del Saber como Recamareras de Hotel. En un magno evento en el salón Miraflores del Hotel Holiday Inn, asistieron las familias y amigos de las estudiantes, así como donantes, voluntarios, invitados especiales, medios de comunicación y personal de la Fundación Calicanto, quienes con mucha alegría y emoción participaron de este día tan especial.

Ellas fueron parte del segundo grupo del año 2010 y el séptimo que ha pasado por el curso CAPTA. En total, 140 mujeres se han beneficiado enormemente del este gran programa que busca mejorar su calidad de vida.

Por seis semanas ellas participaron en talleres de desarrollo humano, psicológico y profesional. Nuestro equipo de psicólogos, capacitadores, colaboradores de diversas instituciones, personal de Calicanto y  las mujeres han trabajado muy fuertemente para llegar a este momento. ¡Gracias a todos por venir y ser parte de la “diferencia” en crear un Panama mejor!

www.fundacioncalicanto.org | www.twitter.com/fundcalicanto

SOBRE LA FUNDACIÓN CALICANTO

La Fundación Calicanto es una organización sin fines de lucro que se dedica a proteger el patrimonio arquitectónico y humano de histórico distrito de la ciudad de Panama, el Casco Antiguo. Fundada en 1997, la Fundación Calicanto lidererizo los esfuerzos para la designación de Patrimonio Historico al Casco Antiguo de la ciudad de Panamá, por parte de UNESCO.

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La FUNDACIÓN CALICANTO trabaja en el Casco Antiguo desarrollando programas para la preservación del patrimonio cultural y humano que este representa. Adelanta programas y acciones sociales, educativas, culturales y de conservación.

Proximamente estará iniciando el programa ENLACES, dirigido por la bailarina Analida Galindo, que atenderá a niñas y niños que asisten a las escuelas primarias de San Felipe y que recibirán formación en danza y teatro, complementados con acompañamiento escolar, psicológico y nutricional que les brindarán las herramientas para apoyarlos en su desarrollo como personas íntegras, capaces de transformarse y transformar a otros de manera activa y creativa.

La Fundación Sam Kardonski se une a este esfuerzo aportando varias becas para los niños de San Felipe. En la foto Carlos Arauz de la Fundación Sam Kardonski y Hildegard Vasquez, Presidenta de la Fundación Calicanto.

Para mas informacion contactenos a info@fundactioncalicanto.org

In the photo above is Carlos Aruz, of Fundacion Sam Kardonski and Presdient Hildegard Vasquez of Fundacion Calicanto.
Fundacion Calicanto works in Casco Antiguo to develop programs for the preservation of the cultural and human heritage it represents. Coming soon will be the ENLACES program, led by dancer Analinda Galindo, who will serve children attending elementary schools in San Felipe and will receive training in dance and theater, complemented by school, psychological, and nutritional assistance. The program  will give them the tools to for holistic development and the ability to change and transform others actively and creatively. Sam Kardonski Foundation joins this effort by providing several scholarships for children of San Felipe.

For more information contact us at info@fundacioncalicanto.org

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Below is our press release sent out on our graduation on May 5, 2010! A huge congratulations to all the women and thanks to all our volunteers, donors, and supporters!

A grass roots program in the impoverished historic district of Panama City has a remarkable track record of turning around the lives of unemployed women through hospitality industry training. The program, created by the non-profit Fundacion Calicanto, graduated its sixth class on May 5, 2010 at the Panama International Hotel School.

Panama City, Panama (PRWEB) May 10, 2010 — If history is any guide, one month from now at least 85% of the 16 currently unemployed women who graduated today from Fundacion Calicanto’s “CAPTA” program will be permanently employed in the hospitality industry.

The graduation, which took place today at the Panama International Hotel School in Panama City’s Ciudad de Saber (www.panamahotelschool.org), was the sixth group to have gone through the intense two-month program. To date, over 120 women have graduated, and more than 85% of those women obtained permanent employment following graduation.

The emotional ceremony was attended by the womens’ families, program donors, staff and dignitaries, including U.S. Ambassador Barbara J. Stephenson, who praised the program for its effectiveness in empowering women, and spoke about the role of women in breaking the cycle of poverty in developing countries.

Even more impressive than the employment rate are the performance reviews of the employers. Says Samantha Sagel, manager of Canal House (www.canalhousepanama.com), a Panama hotel that hires exclusively from the program, “Every day the strength, commitment and affection that the CAPTA women give to our hotel impresses me. Each one of them gives their all. It’s a huge part of what makes our hotel.”

Panama International Hotel School’s director, Jean-Francois Robert, says “In my years of teaching and training, which are many, I have not seen a success rate as large as those achieved with this (CAPTA) group.”

CAPTA (which in Spanish stands for Capacitación Para el Trabajo) is an intense six-week course run by Fundación Calicanto to provide job and life training for women from the impoverished Panama City neighborhoods of San Felipe, Santa Ana and El Chorillo. The neighborhoods together make up Panama City’s historic district, known as Casco Antiguo or Casco Viejo, which is a UNESCO designated World Heritage Site.

The key to the program’s success, says Foundacion Calicanto president Hildegard Vasquez, is what happens before the women even get to the arts of housekeeping, food handling and customer service. “We spend the first four weeks of the program working on the women as individuals and building a sense of team.” This intense “Foundation Cycle” includes professionally taught workshops on emotional intelligence, resentment and forgiveness, personal finance, effective communication, personal image and beauty, first aid and other subjects, along with frequent one-on-one counseling sessions with the program’s psychologists.

According to Vasquez, the cost of putting a woman through CAPTA is around $900. “We’ve been blessed with a very supportive group of donors. Money will always be hard to come by, but I think that if we can prove to donors that $900 can break a family out of the cycle of poverty forever, we will find the support we need to keep going.”

At least one local donor looks at CAPTA as more of a long-term investment than a charity. “I believe that the single biggest threat to Panama is the gap between rich and poor,” says K.C. Hardin, president of Conservatorio SA (www.conservatoriosa.com), a major program donor. “Anything that helps people out of poverty makes our business safer in the long run.”

About Fundacion Calicanto:

Fundacion Calicanto is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the architectural and human heritage of Panama City’s historic district, Casco Antiguo. Founded in 1997, Fundacion Calicanto led the drive to designate Casco Antiguo a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

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LA HOSPITALIDAD ROMPE EL CICLO DE LA POBREZA EN PANAMA

Si la historia nos sirve de guia, dentro de un mes a partir de hoy, el 89% de las 16 estudiantes, hoy desempleadas, que ahora se graduan  del Programa CAPTA (Capacitacion para el Trabajo) de la Fundacion Calicanto, estaran empleadas de forma permanente en la industria de la hospitalidad.

La graduacion que se realiza hoy en el Hotel Escuela Internacional de Panama en la Ciudad del Saber, corresponde  al sexto grupo que ha pasado por un programa intensivo de dos meses. A la fecha, mas de 120 estudiantes se han graduado y el 89%  de ellas ha logrado tener un empleo permanente despues de su graduacion.

Aun mas impresionante que la tasa de empleo son los reportes de desempeno de sus empleadores.  Samantha Sagel, gerente del Hotel Canal House en el Casco Antiguo, un hotel que contrata exclusivamente egresadas de este programa dice: “Me impresiona la fortaleza, el compromiso y la devocion que las egresadas de CAPTA dan a nuestro hotel cada dia. Cada una de ellas entrega el 100% en su trabajo. Esto es una parte importante de lo que somos como hotel”.

Roberto Jean-Francois, Director del Hotel Escuela Internacional dijo: ” en todos mis anos de ensenanza y capacitacion, que son muchos,  no habia visto un porcentaje de exito tan alto como el que se ha logrado con este grupo de CAPTA.”.

CAPTA (Capacitacion para el Trabajo) es un curso intensivo de seis semanas de la Fundacion Calicanto para el desarrollo personal y formacion para el trabajo para mujeres residentes de comunidades empobrecidas de la ciudad de Panama, como son San Felipe Santa Ana y El Chorrillo.

La llave del exito de este progrma, dijo Hildegard Vasquez, Presidenta de la Funacion Calicanto es lo que sucede antes de que aprendan sobre la limpieza de habitaciones, manejo de alimentos y servicio al cliente. “Las primeras cuatro semanas del programa trabajamos con ellas en su desarrollo personal y en la construccion del sentido de equipo”. Este intenso “ciclo basico” incluye talleres de inteligencia emocional, manejo asertivo de emociones, finanzas personales, comunicacion efectiva, belleza e imagen personal, primeros auxilios y otros aspectos, preparados profesionalmente, todo esto combinado con sesiones personales frecuentes  con los sicologos del programa.

Segun Hildegar Vasquez, el costo de este formacion son unos US$900.00 por participante. “Tenemos la bendicion de tener un grupo de donantes que nos apoya”. Entre ellos tenemos muchos residentes del Casco Antiguo, asi como  la Fundacion Taft, Conservatorio, S.A., Arco Properties Inc. Rilemo, S.A., Fundacion Alberto Motta, Mossack & Fonseca, UBS, Mesoamerica y Bladex.  Siempre es dificil conseguir dinero. pero  si podemos demostrar a nuestros donantes que con US$900 podemos sacar a una familia del ciclo de la pobreza, encontraremos el apoyo que necesitamos para continuar con este programa.”

Finalmente, un donante local ve CAPTA como una inversion a largo plazo mas que un acto de caridad.  “Considero que la amenaza mas grande que tiene Panama es la brecha entre ricos y pobres” dijo Patrizia Pinzon, miemb ro de la Junta Directiva de la Fundacion Calicanto, cuya empresa Arco Properties es una de las mayores donantes. “Todo lo que ayude a sacar a las personas de la pobreza hara a la larga que nuestro negocio este mas seguro”.

SOBRE LA FUNDACION CALICANTO
La Fundacion Calicanto es una organizacion sin fines de lucro que se dedica a proteger el patrimonio arquitectonico y humano de historico distrito de la ciudad de Panama, el Casco Antiguo. Fundada en 1997, la Fundacion Calicanto lidererizo los esfuerzos para la designacion de Patrimonio Historico al Casco Antiguo de la ciudad de Panama, por parte de UNESCO.

Para mas informacion visite www.fundacioncalicanto.org

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By: Jackie Hyland

This past week has been full of action!

In Class at the International Hotel School

This past Monday the women in our CAPTA course moved to the International Hotel School to begin their professional training after a month-long session of working on their personal development. After a fantastic finish of presentations last Friday on self-esteem, decision making, communication and more, it was very apparent that these were motivated, confident women ready to get into training.

Today various members of Fundacion Calicanto welcomed a visitor from the U.S. interested in connecting various companies in the U.S. to Central American NGOs. As Vice President of Florida

President Hildegard Vasquez and Catherine Forment

Bank, Catherine Forment has had a great deal of experience in the financial world, spending the majority of her career in investment banking with Merill Lynch.  But, her main passions are “children, women, and helping NGOs grow.”

In her passion to connect businesses and promote a movement of corporate social responsibility, she has spent various time traveling to Panama and has plans to also visit Costa Rica. “For-profit businesses are sustainable by a lot of the social work non-profits do, and that is an important thing to recognize,” Forment said. She also

Part of the Fundacion Calicanto Team with Catherine Forment

mentioned her love for Panama and that today there is a lot of “buzz” about it. Forment, like  many others who come to help Fundacion Calicanto, are essential in our vision and mission to connect with others and not only expand but involve as much as the community as possible: locally and globally.

Roberto Jean Francois and Dagmar de Alvarez enjoying a brownie in the International Hotel School

A part from the CAPTA class moving to the International Hotel School and welcoming Catherine Forment, Fundacion Calicanto recently added a new member to our team! Dagmar de Alvarez joins as our new Administrative Director and brings along a plethora of NGO and financial experience with many organization such as Fundación para la Promoción de la Mujer, Credimujer,  Coordinadora de  Organizaciones para el Desarrollo Integral de la Mujer (CODIM), and helped organize for 2 years the International fare of EXPOMUJER. She has also had the opportunity to be the first director of the Red del Pacto Global, that started the Social Responsibility programs and achieve a fiscal installment in the Asociación Panameña de Ejecutivos de Empresa  (APEDE) that today has the name SUMARSE.

De Alvarez has known about Fundacion Calicanto for awhile, but was recently approached by president Hildegard Vasquez to join our team, and couldn’t turn down the opportunity. “I am passionate about the history of our city and I see the opportunity to get to know more of this fabulous heritage that we have as Panamanians. Besides motivating many other Panamanians to know this jewel we have,  I would like to involve ourselves more in it’s preservation and revitalization. I would love to see Casco Antiguo completely recuperated and integrated into the life of the city, including everyone that lives in San Felipe, Chorillo, and Santa Ana opening to all these people community and personal development.”

With so much passion and experience we are very lucky to have such a wonderful new team member!

(En Espanol)

¡UNA SEMANA AGETREADA – CARAS NUEVAS Y VISITAS INTERNACIONALES!

¡La semana pasada hemos estado muy ocupados!

El lunes las participantes de nuestro curso  CAPTA (Capacitación para el trabajo) se trasladaron al Hotel Escuela Internacional para iniciar su entrenamiento técnico, luego de un largo mes de sesiones de trabajo en su desarrollo personal.  Luego de una fantástica presentación el viernes pasado de auto-estima, toma de decisiones, comunicación y otros, era evidente que estas eran mujeres se sentían seguras, motivadas y listas para recibir el entrenamiento técnico como amas de llave.

El jueves algunas miembros de la Fundación Calicanto dieron la bienvenida  a una visitante de los Estados Unidos de América interesada en vincular empresas de los Estados Unidos con organizaciones sin fines (ONGs) de lucro de Centroamérica.

Como Vice Presidenta del Florida Bank, Catherine Forment ha tenido mucha experiencia en el mundo financiero, en el que ha pasado la mayor parte de su carrera en la banca de inversión con Merrill Lynch. Pero su principal pasión son los “niños, las mujeres y ayudar a las ONGs a crecer”

Por su pasión por vincular negocios y promover un movimiento de responsabilidad social,  ha pasado algún tiempo viajando a Panamá y también tiene planes de visitar Costa Rica. “ Los negocios que tienen lucro logran hacerse sostenibles con mucho trabajo social que hacen las organizaciones sin fines de lucro y esto es importante reconocerlo” dijo Catherine durante su visita al curso de ama de llaves en el Hotel Escuela Internacional. También mencionó su amor por Panamá y mencionó que hoy hay muchos “comentarios” sobre Panamá.  Catherine, como muchos otros que se acercan a apoyar a la Fundación Calicanto, tiene nuestra visión y misión de vincularnos con otros y no sólo expandirnos sino de involucrar tanta gente de la comunidad como sea posible, a nivel local y global.

¡Además del traslado de las clases de CAPTA al Hotel Escuela Internacional y la bienvenida a Catherine Forement, la Fundación Calicanto ha incorporado un nuevo miembro a nuestro equipo¡  Se nos une Dagmar de Alvarez, como la nueva Directora Administrativa y trae consigo una gran experiencia financiera y en organizaciones de desarrollo como la Fundación para la Promoción de la Mujer, Credimujer, la Coordinadora de Organizaciones para el Desarrollo Integral de la Mujer (CODIM). Creo y realizó con el Club de Mujeres de Negocios y Profesionales de Panamá la feria internacional EXPOMUJER, además de ser Directora Fundadora de MiBanco. Tuvo también la oportunidad de ser la primera directora de la Red del Pacto Global de Naciones Unidas (SUMARSE hoy) e iniciar los programas de responsabilidad social empresarial, que por su intermediación se instalaron físicamente en la Asociación Panameña de Ejecutivos de Empresa, organzación de la cual es miembro y en la que ha ocupado cargos de dirección.

Dagmar conocía la Fundación Calicanto desde hace algún tiempo, pero se entrevistó recientemente con la Presidenta Hildegard Vásquez, quien le invitó a ser parte de nuestro equipo y no pudo no aprovechar la oportunidad. “Me encanta la historia de nuestra ciudad y veo la oportunidad de conocer mas de este fabuloso patrimonio que tenemos los panameños. Además de la oportunidad  de motivar a muchos otros panameños a que conozcan la joya que tenemos en el Casco Antiguo, me gustaría ver que todos nos involucremos más en su restauración y revitalización. Me encantará ver el Casco Antiguo completamente recuperado e integrado en la vida de la ciudad incorporando a toda la gente que vive en San Felipe, Chorrillo, Santa Ana, abriendo a toda esta gente una  oportunidad de desarrollo personal y comunitario.”

¡Con tanta pasión y experiencia, somos muy  afortunados de contar con una nueva miembro tan maravillosa!

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By: Jackie Hyland

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Even though the CAPTA program is only in week 3 of the latest course, amazing revelations and changes are already taking place in the lives of the participants. Celia Moreno, the psychologist who is helping the women through their personal development, has shared some of the heart-felt feedback she has received during some of the one-on-one sessions. Here are a few examples of how the CAPTA course has touched the lives of some of these women:

“Primera vez que estoy en un taller o seminario así y me ayudó mucho en mi vida personal. Nos conocimos nosotras mismas y de repente salieron sentimientos que estaban muy guardados. Ojala pudieran ser más accesibles a las personas con menos recursos económicos”.

• This is the first time I have participated in this type of seminar or workshop, and I feel it has truly helped me in my personal life. We have learned to get to know ourselves, and suddenly, many deeply guarded feelings arose. I wish this was accessible to more low income people.

“Aprendí muchas cosas que no sabía, para poder ayudar a mis hijos.  Aprendí que debo tener la autoestima alta y realizarme, para así valorizar a mis hijos y a los demás.  Aprendí también a comunicarme con otros, a expresar lo que siento y a no reprimirme.  Siga haciendo estos seminarios que son muy instructivos para las personas que lo necesitan como yo.”

• I have learned so many things that I did not know, things that could help me to help my children.  I have learned that I need to raise my self- esteem in order to reach my goals, and with this, I can provide value to my children and to many others.  I have also learned to communicate and express what I feel, and not to repress these things inside.  Please continue with these seminars, as they are very instructive for people that need them, such as me.

“Mi mayor aprendizaje fue la autoestima, la responsabilidad, el ser honesta y el hablar de mi padre y de mi madre, desarrollar todo lo que llevo dentro.  Quiero decirles que me ayuden y me apoyen y me agarren de la mano y no me suelten y que me sacudan cuando sea necesario.”

• My biggest achievement was learning self-esteem, responsibility, honesty and to communicate with my mother and father to develop all that I have inside.  I want and need you to help me, support me and hold my hand and not let me go, but also shake me when I need it.

“El seminario es excelente, está muy bien hecho y aprendimos cosas importantes, sobretodo como guiar a nuestros hijos y como guiarnos a nosotras mismas.  Todo lo que están haciendo por nosotras no tiene precio.  MUCHAS GRACIAS!!!

• This seminar is excellent, everything is so well organized and we have learned so many things – especially how to guide our children and how to guide our own lives.  Everything you are doing is priceless. THANK YOU!!!

We at Fundación Calicanto are very excited about how this course is going, and it is especially moving to hear such wonderful feedback. Thank you to those who have helped support us as we try to make a difference in the lives of these women and in Casco Antiguo. If you would like to get involved, and help these women as they continue down the path to changing their lives, just let us know at: fcalicanto@gmail.com

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October 7, 2009

The Fall 2009 CAPTA program is under way! The office of Fundación Calicanto was packed this morning with prospective participants in the next “Capacitación Para el Trabajo” (CAPTA) course. The program focuses both on personal development and empowerment as well as acquiring technical training needed to get a job. At the end of the two month course, the women graduate with practical skills to manage both their personal and professional lives, help support their family, and make a difference in their community. Over 40 women came on the first day of interviews to learn more about the program. The opening presentation and interviews took place in the historic Santa Familia School in Casco Antiguo, the future offices of Fundación Calicanto.

The women listened to a welcoming and encouraging speech by Program Director Heriberto Trejos. Following this the Director of Hospitality Service at The Panama International Hotel School, Roberto Jean Francois, spoke to the women about the many possibilities the CAPTA course could offer them. Next, a former graduate of the CAPTA program spoke about her experience going through the program, and the benefits that have come from it – including her current job working at the Gamboa Rainforest Resort. It was wonderful for the women to hear a student’s perspective on the course, and have the chance to ask any questions they had about the program. Finally, a current member of the Fundación Calicanto staff, Sara Urbanek, talked about how the women were a part of the greater organization, and how they can give back to their own communities with the help of the CAPTA course.

After the welcoming messages, the interviews commenced. The women were interviewed in small groups, and were given a chance to talk about why they wanted to participate in the course, as well as ask any further questions they had about the CAPTA program. After today’s activities, a second round of interviews will take place to select the final group of women to participate in the course. Best of luck to all the women, as they start embark on this great opportunity to better their lives!

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The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, also known as the Oficina del Alto Comisinado de las Naciones Unidas para los Refugiados (ACNUR), has awarded Fundación Calicanto a grant to help refugees in Panama City attend the CAPTA program. The generous $20,000 grant was given through the Julia Taft Fund for Refugees.

Fundación Calicanto is extremely grateful to receive this grant, and are excited by the opportunity to further help the women in the Panama City area with their personal and professional development.

Refugees in Panama are at a severe disadvantage when trying to enter the competitive working world, because so many regulations make it difficult for local and national companies to hire them. We at Fundación Calicanto believe that everyone should have a right to educate themselves and better their lives through work and the help of our foundation cycle. This grant will enable us to help protect the rights of refugees living in Panama and provide the means to graduate more women from our program than we thought possible at this time.

Our mission is to open doors for all members of the historic district to help to shape the revitalization of Casco Antiguo, and realize the benefits of preserving their community. If you would like to help is further this mission, contact us at fcalicanto@gmail.com. Thank you for your continued support.

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Thank you for your interest in Fundación Calicanto! We hope that you will follow us in the future as we update our members and supporters on the successes and events surrounding Fundación Calicanto.

Fundación Calicanto is a not-for-profit Non-Governmental Organization located in the historic Casco Antiguo, in the San Felipe neighborhoos of Panama City. Originally, Fundación Calicanto was formed to conserve and restore the numerous historic monuments located in Casco Antiguo. After securing protection for the neighborhood as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the foundation has now expanded its mission to help the people of the community.

This expansion now includes programs to empower and educate the members of Casco Antiguo to take part in the restoration and revitalization of their community. The neighborhood is currently stuck in the vicious cycle of poverty, and without the necessary education and empowerment, the people of Casco Antiguo will be squeezed out of their community as the neighborhood is built up around them.

By motivating the community to better their own lives, the effects will radiate outward and the benefits will be felt by all. The result will be a Casco Antiguo where both the historical and cultural heritage is not just preserved, but celebrated.

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