Living in Peru : your everyday companion

By Milagros Leiva Gálvez
for El Comercio

Translated by Diana P. Olano

She strains the bread, dry and chopped, and transforms it into flour that will later be used to fry hamburgers and other fried foods. She strains in silence. In each of her movements one can notice what it took for her to be sitting here, today, in this confectionery workshop which wants to say that people with disabilities can work; that they can making a living and that they won't spend the rest of their lives studying the way some may think. This woman with a child-like face doesn't speak, but it's possible to understand her.

Claudia Freire is 39 years-old and can walk. She began to make use of her legs when she turned seven. She was born with shut eyelids, closed ears and without a very promising diagnosis. However, her mother, a wise and generous woman, didn't let this bring her down and educated her daughter. This morning, Claudia asked for her surgical gloves and her mask to work with; she also asks for bread. It's that language of her hands which is important. Her face shows that she enjoys straining, but in a few seconds her eyes get lost in something she can only see. That isn't a problem. Claudia knows she has a distinct rhythm: not better or worse, just different. That is why she can work.

The way things are

It's not easy to have a child with Down Syndrome. It's not easy to have a child with syndromes with strange names. It's not easy to have a child who doesn't speak, who is distressed by noises, who walks with difficulty. It's anything but simple, but one learns their way of communicating, one comes to see that if they're well stimulated, they can finish school and that if they're included in a society without prejudices, they can work. That's the way Anité Puente Arano talks, the director of Kallpa School. She too has a son with Down Syndrome and perhaps that is why she better understands the worry of parents who year after year questioned the future. The questions repeated themselves: And for how many more years will he only continue to study? And for how much longer will I buy blunt scissors and crayons? And what will happen when we are no longer here? Those doubts made Anité and a group of specialists organize what today they display with pride: A small business dedicated to baking and pastry-making, of which members are people with disabilities. It is called Manos Peruana Kallpa. In Quechua "Kallpa" means strength.


The work group

Willy Graham doesn't explain with difficult words the mission of this recently-formed business. He doesn't need to say much for us to understand that all his work is worthy of recognition: It took a lot for me to learn how to fill the alfajores, but I did it. I like to work. Willy likes to take the plastic cone filled with dulce de leche and add exact pressure and precision so that the perfect amount is dispensed. One by one the alfajores are made. They're worth the wait, but no one tries them. With his salary, Willy will pay for his cellphone and he'll buy movies, CD's and paint. That's what he likes to do in his free time: paint. To his side, Diego Castillo listens attentively while he cleans his glasses. He also wants to say something: it's a bit difficult to make a "selva negra" cake, but you can learn. With patience. Diego likes to beat eggs and his specialties are chocolate cakes and alfajores. However, he says the expert beater in the group is María Delfina and points to a girl who is beating egg whites into stiff peaks. And she does it with a smile that is contagious. This is the way one likes to work.

It must be said, the cakes are fresh and delicious. Anité smiles: that's the idea, that no one buys out of pity. The objective is to compete and because of that, they seek perfection. The goal? To sell in Wong, Vivanda, Plaza Vea and Tottus; in whichever supermarket that will open its doors. The dream? Sign a contract with a bank or an AFP to prepare birthday cakes for its personnel. A wish? An oven, please.

What I've learned most about them is that nothing is impossible, that everything is possible if you're persistent. The training and respect to keeping the exact measurements has been difficult, but they are learning. The person speaking now is Dina Anglas, professor at Manos Peruanas Kallpa and main coordinator. She not only studied Special Education, she also studied confectionery. Today she enjoys combining her two passions. Dina's assistant is Juana Choque, a young educator who doesn't tire of celebrating the successes of the group. At the work tables Willy Graham, Claudia Freire, Cristian León, Rodrigo Arévalo, Diego Castillo, Pablo Barbe, Edgardo Farra, Cecilia Lengua, Fernando Ramírez, Rodrigo Serna, Dalila Mendoza, Luis Félx Dulanto, María Delfina García Miró and Adrián Manrique beat and mix. They're working and only wait for orders to demonstrate their abilities.


Pictures courtesy of Lucero del Castillo


For more information:
Manos Peruanos Kallpa
Av. Primavera 1860, Surco.
345-0805 or manosperuanos at hotmail dot com
Desserts available: Chocolate cakes, English cakes, Orange cakes, brownies, alfajores and chocolate bars.