Reducing crime rate by rebuilding the outside wall of Agustin Melgar Elementary School

There are still traces of earthquakes that overtook Mexico, last September. The government set out to restore the damages, but even a year later there are many places where no recovery work has been done at all. It is the same with children’s educational environment.

The Intl. WeLoveU Foundation decided to help out a school that was hit by the earthquake and yet received little government support in Mexico City. On June 1, the WeLoveU had a talk with the person from the office of education and managed to find a school in desperate need of support. On the 20th, the WeLoveU met Agustin Melgar Elementary School Principal and looked around the school outside wall that crumbled due to the earthquake, and promised to rebuild it.

Agustin Melgar Elementary School was vulnerable to various crimes as the wall was left unrepaired for a long time. Expensive educational devices often got stolen, and the students were not safe from outsiders. The government and a few other agencies promised repairing the wall but they put their promise on hold for a long while, and so the teachers, parents, and students had been all worried about that.

Having learned of the seriousness of the situation, the WeLoveU members hurried to prepare for rebuilding the school wall. In the midst of great interest of teachers and parents, the repair work began in earnest on July 4. One month later, on August 11, they managed to build a 120 meter [131 yd]-long wall with the height much taller than an adult. Afterward, they installed security wire fence on top of the wall, and also painted a beautiful mural on it. On October 10, all the repair work was completed.

The teachers and the parents were greatly delighted that the children would be able to safely receive education without being exposed to crimes, thanks to the repaired wall. As a token of appreciation, the school performed a traditional Mexican dance at the completion ceremony, and cooked a variety of food for the WeLoveU members. The completion ceremony turned into a party.

“At first, we thought the WeLoveU too would put off repairing the wall, but they immediately began to work. We came to trust the WeLoveU, seeing how they promptly fulfilled their promise.”

Revealing his inner thought he had when the WeLoveU promised repairing the wall,
School Principal Hector Salomón Zavaleta Buendía expressed gratitude to the WeLoveU for swiftly keeping their promise.

The city hall and office of education in Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico, delivered a certificate of appreciation to the WeLoveU

Actually, the office of education had built 50 meters [55 yd] of the wall, but halted the repair work. Since there was nothing that could support the wall and was just built with bricks stacked up in a hurry, there was a danger of collapse. The WeLoveU members did the groundwork anew after a discussion with the office of education, and built up structures in between the wall to supporting it.

Superintendent of Education Office for Elementary Schools in the city of Nezahualcoyotl delivered a certificate of appreciation to the WeLoveU at the event held in commemoration of Mexico’s Independence Day on September 14. Also, on October 11, the following day after the completion of the wall, Mayor of Nezahualcoyotl City delivered a certificate of appreciation to Honorary Chairwoman of the WeLoveU Zahng Gil-jah in recognition of her efforts.

Now, the front of Agustin Melgar Elementary School wall is crowded with residents. They gather there to take photos in front of the mural. The WeLoveU’s small volunteer service has turned the place which was previously vulnerable to crimes into a tourist attraction which serves as a perfect spot for a picture.