Fundación Solidaridad

The recent earthquakes in Chile have naturally caused concern over the welfare of our customers.

Shared Interest has worked with the Chilean handicraft organisation, Fundación Solidaridad since 2001. The company began work as part of COPACHI in 1974, supporting the production and sale of handicrafts made by political prisoners detained in prisons and detention camps under Pinochet.

Since then they have gone on to work with hundreds of Santiago’s poorest community groups, helping those who want to earn a living to alleviate their economic difficulties.

Executive Director, Winnie Lira, has been in touch to share how the earthquake has affected Fundación Solidaridad and the work that they have been doing to support their producers during this time. Winnie said:

“As of today, except in one location where all communications are completely cut off, we have been able to communicate with all producers and have been happily been informed that the only losses sustained by our producer groups have been material ones: fallen walls, lack of water or electricity, shattering of all the windows in their house, and substantial losses of their raw materials. We’re supporting them as much as we can with these matters and everyone continues working

As for us, our lovely old house on Calle Santo Domingo has sustained no structural damage, but all kinds of cracks in the walls have appeared, cornices have fallen off, and parts of the roof have been damaged. It is not as beautiful as it once was, but we are very grateful to be able to continue working in it. We only hope that there are no more aftershocks because with each one there is another crack that expands.

Witnessing so much pain and destruction made all our team at Fundación Solidaridad and producers feel helpless and anxious to do something else. Last week, visiting families who are living in tents in the Plaza Yungay, 500 meters of the Foundation, the children gave us the idea of something we could do. Their little faces of full of grief and bewilderment alongside their parents who can now think only of where they will live and everything they’ve lost, made us realise: children must be able to continue playing.

Today we made the first dispatch of 100 toys for children in Jardín “El Pescador” Coronel, the area hardest hit in the earthquake which is also where “aunties” play with the children because their local park was destroyed.

What makes us happy is that all producers of toys in Santiago we work with the Foundation have come up with dolls, puppets, trucks, clowns, puzzles from the stock they had available. All can share in the joy and be grateful that such toys, which are their means of income for household expenses, have now, in the words of an enterprising woman: “have now given me the greatest satisfaction of my life”. Foundation Solidaridad will also donate part of their stock of toys and pay the packing and transport.

We wanted to share this experience with you as the best way to thank you for your concern and solidarity.”