Inside Blas Garay: Breaking a culture of violence and silence

Photo: Rosanna Menchaca playing with children at Blas Garay school

Poverty is complex. Helping isn’t.

If you’ve been following our social channels, you may have heard about CommRISE — a way to support Children Believe’s work in hard-to-reach, isolated communities where poverty hits hardest. But what does that really look like on the ground?

This month, we walked the dirt paths of Blas Garay, a rural and isolated community in Paraguay, alongside Rosanna Menchaca, a local Children Believe team member. She guided CommRISE supporters through the community and shared first-hand why safe spaces for children here are essential.

Where poverty hides: 

In Blas Garay, distance, poverty, and lack of access to basic amenities, coupled with frequent floods, keep families isolated. Limited essential services and poor infrastructure leave families vulnerable.  “If someone has a health problem,” Rosanna explains, “they may have to walk many kilometres just to reach an emergency room.” Such isolation doesn’t just limit access; it weakens protection systems. And when systems fail, children are often most affected, leaving them vulnerable, unseen and unheard.

Photo: Rosanna Menchaca in front of the early childhood development space at Blas Garay school

The obstacle: Child violence and silence

As Rosanna walked through the local primary school, she didn’t sugar-coat the reality: “Every two hours, a child — a girl, a boy, or even an adolescent — suffers sexual abuse.”

In Paraguay, child abuse, sexual exploitation, and child labour are key obstacles that prevent children from staying in and finishing school. In communities like Blas Garay, these harms are made worse by silence that has lasted generations. Many children grow up without knowing their rights — or that what’s happening to them is wrong. When no one shows them where to go for help — or how to advocate for themselves — children stay quiet. Violence remains hidden, passed down through families who never had protection themselves.

Community response:

Even in the face of these challenges, parents and community members are stepping forward to protect their children. They are now participating in positive parenting workshops that help caregivers break long-held discipline practices and learn safer, more nurturing ways to raise their children.

Project-in-progress: Safe spaces

Through CommRISE, safe spaces are being created and strengthened in Blas Garay — places where children can learn, connect, belong, and feel protected.

Rosanna takes us inside a brightly lit early childhood development classroom supported by Children Believe. Children are seen wrapping up their lesson — laughing, learning, and, most importantly, safe.

Photo: Children from Sounds of the Earth playing their guitars during rehearsal

Today, CommRISE supporters are helping around 400 children in Blas Garay through child protection programs, including:

• Early childhood development spaces: Safe learning environments where children build confidence, trust, and the ability to speak up from an early age
• Child-Friendly Accountability groups: Where children learn their rights, practise advocating for themselves and others, and learn where to go for help — supported by trusted adults.
• Technology for safety: Children now have access to a fully equipped computer lab. They’re learning digital skills—and how to use technology safely to protect themselves from exploitation and abuse.
• Sounds of the Earth: A children’s guitar orchestra that creates connection, friendship, and belonging - reducing vulnerability while bringing joy.

“These spaces help prevent many harmful situations before they happen,” says Rosanna.

A child’s voice

Valeria, aged 10, shares what daily life in Blas Garay feels like. “Children cannot go out at night because of adults who are drunk or people who might want to harm them.” She loves being part of the orchestra. “I like it because we meet new friends. It’s fun. I like music. It’s a place where I learn about my rights.”

Photo: Valeria enjoying a walk in her community.

What's next:

The work in Blas Garay is far from finished. The next step is expanding safe spaces — while continuing to work with parents and community members so children are supported both inside these spaces and at home.

Made possible by our CommRISE community

CommRISE is a community of Canadians who show up every month where help rarely reaches — and poverty keeps children from school.

Each month, we bring you inside a new community. You see, hear, and feel what life is really like through:

• A short monthly dispatch with a child‑led selfie video
• A live session from the field — including a community walk-through and Q&A
• Honest updates — the wins, the setbacks, the reality

You step into places few people ever get to see. As close as you can get to being there yourself.

If you want to follow the work as it happens — and be part of what comes next — you’re invited to join us.

Learn more about CommRISE here.