The Village of Paredones San Juan

On the official Mochumi District map the name is Paredones. Ask anyone who lives in the village and they will tell you the name is Paredones San Juan. The San Juan part has an interesting story behind it. An unofficial village historian who seemed to know what he was talking about told Magali that on July 16, 1624 when the Spaniards were governing the area the villagers protested to the governor that the village had no water. In response a canal was built that to this day brings water from some distant source. The canal was named Saint John.

No one is sure how the name Paredones came about or even what it means, though it is possibly associated with the hill (in Spanish ‘huaca’) the village was built upon.

The huaca was apparently part of a Moche culture village dating back to approximately 800 AD, and like all such huacas associated with the Moche culture it has been illegally excavated over time by individuals hoping to find pottery to sell. Those people are referred to as huaqueros. They usually work at night with hand shovels. Wherever they have been the landscape resembles a cratered moonlike surface.

There are over 200 families living in and about Paredones San Juan. Like most villages in this area, the economy is based on agriculture with mangos being the dominant crop.

The name of the pronoei is Las Fresitas, meaning little strawberries. The teacher, Mariela Sandoval (right) has been there 8 years. This year she has 24 students. The building is a crude structure and there is little inside that would suggest it is a classroom.

To equip this classroom as we normally do would be an expensive proposition:

6 tables - $166.26

24 chairs – 369.46

4 storage shelves – 104.68

1 whiteboard with markers – 60.04

Teaching aids – 96.06

Transport – 65

Magali’s salary – 49.26

Total = $910.76

That’s a lot of money. Promesa Peru has $35 so we have a long way to go but we believe this village and these kids are deserving. We’d like to try to help them, or at least see how far we can get. Please help by visiting the Promesa Peru website to donate whatever you can. Thank you.