Many coffee harvesters in Costa Rica are migrants, making their way from one coffee-producing region to another during harvest season to provide a better life for their families.
These workers are accustomed to bringing their children, even small children, into the harvesting zones where they work, covering steep elevations on mountainsides, because there is no one to leave their children with.
The folks at Hacienda La Minita saw this problem and decided to take action. In 2002 they used start-up funds donated by Migros to build 2 facilities in Rio Negro to nurture 120 children every day in a safe environment. As you can imagine, the demand from migrant parents was great, and over the years, La Minita built five more facilities across La Minita Estate and Rio Negro.
Serving migrant families with multiple children under the age of 12 means each facility is limited in the scope of what it can safely provide, so some children must be turned away. This leaves many families with no good options. Either they can carry their children into the harvest, or one parent must forgo earning their wages that day to stay with the children, preventing them from providing a better life for their families.
By supporting the expansion of Casas del Alegria, we can address this problem and help these families thrive. All that is needed are more caregivers, supplies, and space to give these migrant children a place to play, eat, and nap in safety while their parents work to produce the coffee we enjoy every day.
With what most of us spend on coffee each week, we could come together and make a tangible impact in the lives of the people who bring us that coffee.
Coffee Bean Corral is putting our money where our mouth is – donating the first $1,000 of our goal.
But we need you to make up the difference!
Add your desired gift amount to your cart so we can provide safety and nurture to even more children of migrant coffee farmers while their parents are hard at work!