The Life Resource Center is a community hub where individuals are trained and empowered to develop a sustainable community.
Our Current Programs
Communities for Life leads various impactful programs at the Life Resource Center in Manchay, Peru. All students take spiritual and vlaues and ethics lessons in conjunction with their regular coursework. We aim to provide holistic education to all who participate in our courses.
Gardening Training Center
This six-month course teaches students to seed, grow, and harvest up to 23 vegetable crops in Manchay’s arid climate, using 40 drip-irrigated plots and guided by a professional horticulturist.
The Home Garden
Led by local engineer Eduardo and a small team, this program provides gardening graduates with seeds, tools, and irrigation supplies to grow food and earn income from home.
Construction and Trades
We offer four trade courses—electrical, drywall and steel framing, carpentry, and plumbing—each taught by a professional, with students earning a trade certificate upon completion.
Baking and Pastry
A professional chef teaches the baking course and runs it twice yearly. Several baking graduates have recently gone on to build their own baking businesses.
Hydroponics
Hydroponics delivers water directly to plant roots while minimizing evaporation and waste, making it ideal for desert gardening where soil is scarce.
Fog Catchers for Irrigation
In rain-scarce Manchay, fog catchers—large mesh nets—collect water droplets from fog, which are then stored in tanks for garden irrigation.
ESL
This two-year, four-level MESL program is taught online by a qualified instructor and supported onsite at the Life Resource Center, helping students learn a second language and qualify for higher learning.
Tile and Ceramics
The tile and ceramics program teaches students how to design, cut, and install tile through hands-on training—offering practical skills suited to Manchay’s desert environment, where tile is a preferred flooring option.
Balloon Making
Our balloon-making program teaches creative skills for decorative art while opening doors to income through event planning and small business opportunities.
Barbering
Students gain hands-on training in modern barbering techniques, hygiene practices, and customer service.
Nail Technician
The nail technician course offers hands-on training in nail care, design, and business skills, preparing individuals to launch their own beauty services.
Youth Development
Manchay youth can join meaningful, thought-provoking meetings focusing on life purposes. The program provides vocational assessment opportunities, guidance counseling, and trauma support.
Self-Sustainable Programs
The following programs, started by Communities for Life, have matured and become self-sustainable in Manchay. Sustainability fulfills our mission of providing programs and training to individuals in the region, with the goal of locals eventually running the programs without our assistance.
Sports Program
This program builds into the lives of the thousands of young people in Manchay who lack education and jobs. The program focuses on the leadership development of youth to help them develop life skills with foundational core values. Currently, we have three soccer coaches and a maxed-out capacity of 110 young people. These young people train three times per week on rented soccer fields. We are considering various options for expanding this program.
Classrooms
During the day, 17 teachers use the Life Resource Center building to educate 180 students in the first through sixth grades. Many children are from parents who attend or have graduated from the C4L programs.
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Projected Program
