A young man preparing cake at the Training Center in…
This is the story of a boy whose name is Bilbor, he trained in catering at the SOS Children's Village Sucre in 1996 and graduated in 2007. He points out, practicing what he had learned in the village to reach his goal was anything but easy. His story is of his visit to the village where he trained.
- Lisa
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A young man preparing cake at the Training Center in Cochabamba-Jordán.
This is the story of a boy whose name is Bilbor, he trained in catering at the SOS Children's Village Sucre in 1996 and graduated in 2007. He points out, practicing what he had learned in the village to reach his goal was anything but easy. His story is of his visit to the village where he trained.
Emotional and nostalgic was how Bilbor described his visit to SOS Children's Village Sucre after years away from the village. He was speaking to older children who are at the stage of making choices about their career, he told these children of his experiences and goals.
Bilbor remembers the great value of the counseling words of many people in the village and in the youth facility but especially those of the village director. "I used to attend meetings with the director and that helped me very much because there I learned how to relate to people and not to be shy, to make decisions and to value myself [...] In the youth facility I also had a counselor who gave me good advice. He got me my first job in a pizza shop. That was great!" Bilbor said.He put a lot of dedication and effort in his career at the Centre of Professional Training in Nutrition from which he graduated successfully last year. The reward was a variety of new work opportunities arising for Bilbor. Among them, one of the places where he would acquire more experience was a prestigious restaurant which allowed him to participate at a local but quite important contest known as "The Innovation Fair", an event in which he participated with a very innovative gastronomic proposal: the Ham Cake, with which he won the first place.
After graduating in December 2007, he obtained a good position in the Federation of Chefs of Bolivia where he now works as a chef. "I feel happy here because I have achieved my first objective. Now I have more plans. My next challenge is to have my own business; I have a lot of energy to triumph. The first thing is to get more experience and then to have some capital to begin my business", he continued with his speech.
In this whole training process and after having harvested successes, thanks to his dedication, Bilbor stressed the unconditional support he received from his mom and his SOS family which not only helped him to be constant in each undertaking but also to strengthen his character so he would not be drawn towards bad influences.
- Mary
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Cooking doughnuts in post Tsunami Thailand.
Cooking classes in SOS Children's Village Nongkhai
SOS Children's Villages Thailand and Dumex (a company famous for making baby milk and nutrient products) together have been running local fund raising projects in Thailand. "Supporting lives by Dumex" is a programme which not only supports raising funds but also supports knowledge sharing and some social activities of SOS Children's Villages Thailand.
As part of this project cooking classes were held at SOS Children's Village Nongkhai where SOS mothers participated. As food is one of the four requisites of life and it is very important for children to grow up healthy, mothers were very keen to be part of this programme.
Nutrient menu
A workshop titled "Nutrient Menu" was held at an October weekend. The menu was simple food but the focus was how to cook it in a manner that it tastes delicious and is at the same time very nutritious.
"It is always a challenge for mothers to cook food which is healthy and at the same time satisfies the taste buds of children," said one of the mothers. "For me this is a wonderful opportunity to learn how to cook healthy, mouth-watering meals," she continued.
Spring roll and pancake
The nutritionist began the class with a brief theoretical lecture about food and the various sources of vitamins and proteins. She further elaborated on the calorie requirements a child and an adult have and how this could be achieved.
After this it was time for a practical class where mothers learnt how to cook one snack and one dessert. Spring roll is one of the popular Thai snacks and amongst desserts coconut pancake tops the list. The pancakes can not only be served for dessert but also make a great breakfast or brunch on weekends.
The cooking class
A tent was put in the grounds of SOS Children's Village Nongkhai where utensils, a stove and all the required ingredients were arranged and kept. Besides mothers, SOS girls also took part in the preparations and cooking of two delicious recipes.
For the girls it was good fun and at the same time learning exercise. Anchali, an eleven-year old girl who was mixing dough with her hands, seemed quite excited about this event. "I always see mama making our food but I have never done any cooking on my own. Now I am learning how to prepare spring rolls and even try my hands on them", she said.
One of the mothers tried making vegetarian spring rolls with tofu and lots of vegetables. "Since these make a great appetizer I made them vegetarian as it's a lot healthier," she said.
After the class finished staff from Dumex, SOS mothers and girls had a great lunch together with what was cooked by everyone's joint efforts.
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