Kari Hestnes of Du Alpakka, Norway shares her personal experiences.

High up in the Andes, where there is so little oxygen that I have to move in slow motion, not to lose my breath, I meet Mirasol and her little brother Alex for the first time. Mirasol is beautiful, but she is marked by the life she lives, the skin is darkly tanned and cracked, her clothes are trashed, but she still radiates something beautiful and very feminine that touches my heart deeply. Her little brother Alex has dry cheeks, also cracked, but he still has a big smile.

These two children are responsible for roughly 350 alpacas here up in the highlands. Their mother has gone to the village to buy food, because, up here it is so rough and arid that the only thing growing here is stiff, sticky grass, cactus and different types of mash. If it had been raining the last months they could probably grow potatoes or grits (quenoa). But now everything is dry...

I get a strong need to give something to these children, but the only thing I have in my pockets is lip gloss with sun block. I rub it at Alex' cheek and give the rest to Mirasol. I know she will use it carefully.

Then I go back to our car and my tears are running. How can I contribute? I think of the abundance we live in Norway and how little it takes to help these children. They need warm, practical clothes that isolate against burning sun, nagging wind and sometimes snow. No luxury. They also need education so they can have a profession, take their pride back and learn elementary things as nutrition, hygiene and so on.

We decided to give a part of our sales every year to build and run a boarding school for children at the top of the Andes, close to the Titicaca Lake, where the village of Munani is situated. Here is a possibility to help, directly, to those who need it. No middlemen. Everything goes directly to the children and their families. We can help the people who give us the fantastic yarns that give us a living. So please help us starting a school for the children of the alpaca farmers in Peru.

The idea is to give these children the chance to choose their future. To choose they need to take back their pride. An important part of this is to adjust to the modern times at the same time as they take care of their rich culture heritage.

Education gives knowledge

Knowledge gives possibilities

Possibilities to choose

Good teachers - parents that are involved in their children’s education - knowledge about nourishment - hygiene and help to be independent are important keys for this project.