On the program: games led by volunteers, distribution of cuddly toys, sweets, cakes and drinks.

Thank you for your donations: they helped fund this activity, and we hope they will help fund many more!

#together, let's distribute smiles!

The bike was donated by a group called "La casa de la mujer" and another group called "Amira Liz", both from Fernández Oro, a town 70 kilometers from Ingeniero Huergo. They donated it to the association and Robando Sonrisas' team, thanks to the Bicicleteria Paulete bike repair workshop, repaired it and put it in condition for another child to use.

Thanks to his mom Yesica Valeria Garcia and his dad, who fight so hard.
Thanks to Angela Nicole Cabrera from "La casa de la mujer" and "Amira Liz" from Cipolletti's ATTS group, for the tricycle.
Thanks to Bicicleteria Paulete!

Thanks to your donations, the Smile Thieves were able to support Roma's mother financially while Roma was in hospital. Roma and her mother, Gise Corazza, originally from Villa Regina in the province of Rio Negro, Argentine Patagonia, had to move to Buenos Aires, where Argentina's public pediatric cancer hospital, the Garrahan Hospital (https://www.garrahan.gov.ar/), is located.

But cars not only pollute, they are also extremely expensive, and the majority of households in the region can neither afford to buy nor maintain one.

To combat this social injustice, one of the association's flagship projects is the free repair and distribution of bicycles. Thanks to a partnership with Bicicleteria Paulete, Diego's father's bicycle repair shop, Robando Sonrisas recovers and rehabilitates bicycles to distribute them free of charge to the region's most disadvantaged residents, especially families with no other means of transport.
 

Since February 2022, the association has repaired and distributed a total of 367 bicycles!  🚴‍♂️
 

And what does this mean in practical terms?

Brisa, who lives in Mainque, used to walk 3 kilometers to get to school. Thanks to Yiyo Mendoza and the Paulete bike workshop. Brisa now has her mountain bike to finish the year. Thanks to her neighbor Valeria Cardoso for contacting us. 

Marcelito (see photo), from Mainque, had his bike, his only means of transport, stolen. The Manos Foundation, represented by Noemi Bascur, contacted us to help.

Since its creation in 2015, in collaboration with the Ancheta bookstore, represented by Matias Gimenez, Robando Sonrisas has been distributing supply kits (consisting of notebooks, pens, grey/wood pencils, erasers) to children in the region at the start of each new school year, thus providing economic relief to parents at back-to-school time. Yes, public school is free and compulsory for all in Argentina, but in order to learn, pupils need a minimum of materials, and here, "special back-to-school" vouchers don't exist. The majority of isolated families in precarious situations are single-parent families, with just one source of income: a low salary spent almost exclusively on basic necessities (water, food and electricity). 

Unfortunately, this kit is not enough, but it does at least provide a basic foundation for every child in need, helping to combat inequality of opportunity at school. However, the rest of the equipment has to be paid for by the parents, and many do not have the means to complete the kit. 

Don't hesitate to support the association's actions in the tab: I make a donation!

Accompanied by Jennifer, her sister Sole Romero and her friend Camila Mardones, in a van, they visited 8 solidarity canteens in the region. They set off from "PANCITO SOLIDARIO" (Villa Regina), "TU SONRISA MI SONRISA" (General Enrique Godoy), "RAYITO DE LUZ" (Ingeniero Huergo), "LOS PEQUES" (Mainque), "LAS LUMBRERAS" (Cervantes), "EL CHAVITO" (General Roca), "ADONAI" (Fernández Oro) and ended their journey in Cipolletti in "EL TREBOL". At each stop, Robando Sonrisas distributes donations collected from Rio Negro smile thieves and food purchased with funds raised in France. 

Many thanks to all the volunteers in Argentina, without whom none of this would be possible, and also to Cyriane Nsimba, who translated and communicated the event from France. Thanks also to Emiliano Gatti's "Juntos Para Sumar" program for supporting us throughout this adventure.