by Dagmar Reinhard
Two years ago, Elisabetta Zanettin began envisioning a youth center, administered and managed by the young people of the Uvita Bahía communities, a safe and positive place to share, learn and develop skills to discover the worlds of Arts, Culture and Sports.
After many contacts and meetings with different teenager groups in San Isidro and Osa, local businesses, entities of the canton and at government level, such as the Ministry of Culture and Youth, Elisabetta was still not able to acquire support to clear the land provided for the youth center and refurbish the abandoned buildings.
This changed the day she met Stephen Brooks, bilingual co-founder of the Envision annual event in Uvita who offered ample collaboration for community projects.
Elisabetta did not think twice to ask the envisionaries for help. So, two weeks of work by a builder sent and paid for by Envision, a welder paid for by Iguana Verde Hardware Store, followed by a large group of young North American, European, and Tico volunteers, the Pérez Zeledón Youth Center who worked hard for four days, and managed to give the existing installations a fresh new look.
On February 24, the grand opening of the Youth Center Casa Envision was held with participation of Costa Ricans and foreigners, sharing good music from Los Geckos and Camilo Poltronieri. Participants admired the art of some local artisan painters, enjoyed delicious snacks and broke the ice between people who had not met before by playing hula hoop.
The “Youth Center Uvita Bahía” committee and its members are ready to begin working on their projects without interference of adults. This is a place where members can give free rein to new ideas, practice arts and different sports, participate in vocational training or simply sharing a hobby.
We wish the Envision House a future with beautiful initiatives!
