News

  •  

    In May of 2011 SMF finally acquires its first house situated in the small town of Chia an hour drive north of Bogota, This beautiful house will now become home to deserving children who have been abandoned or orphaned.

    November-December 2010 & January-February 2011 Santa Maria Foundation is monitoring the efficient operation of the homes and organise Christmas parties for the girls.

    March – October 2010   Santa Maria Foundation holds a number of events at acclaimed venues.(See events page)

    January 2010   Government meetings for the creation of a new home continue and a lot of research is still conducted for the purchasing of a new house.

    December 2009   Beatriz Franco and Lady Y Rodriguez organise festive activities and Christmas parties for all the 3 homes. One of the events is filmed by a TV crew, a fact which generates a lot of fun for all the girls.

    November 2009   Lady and Peter arrive in Bogota and immediately begin discussions with the government officials, negotiating the acquisition of a property for the children’s home.

    October 2009   Peter’s efforts to purchase the house in the private sector fail. He gets gazumped at the 11th hour.

    September 2009   Santa Maria Foundation’s excellent work is being recognised by The UK Charity Commission  and is awarded with the Charity number 1131864.

    May 2009  In the past six months enormous progress has been made. Lady Yomara has focused her efforts on the smooth running of the administration and the official creation of the charity. At the same time, Peter has continued researching the countryside around Bogota for suitable premises that will house the new home. Meanwhile, the foundation is already donating and supporting existing Colombian orphanages.

    January 2009  Peter is in the advanced stage of negotiating for 3 large houses, all suitable for the purpose of housing orphaned girls, and with this in mind pledges up to thousand millions of pesos to purchase a building in the countryside around Bogota. Donations to Santa Maria Foundation will support the ongoing overhead costs of the home.

    December 2008  Lady Y. Rodriguez and Beatriz complete the documentation and achieve all the criteria required for the official setting up of the charity foundation, which is now registered under the Colombian Charity Numbers 2677 and taxes RUT 900260914-6, and has applied also for the British Charitable recognition.

    November 2008  Peter Mowland and Lady Yomara Rodriguez arrive in Colombia with the idea of forming a Charity for orphans.