Two years ago, folks representing education, science, child welfare and animal advocacy came together to promote principles of humane education in elementary schools in the Lakeside area.

Expats keen on soaking up local holiday customs should keep an eye out for Lakeside's traditional posada festivities through late December.

As a mission of the Little Chapel by the Lake for more than 20 years, the congregation has taken food to 25 of the poorest folks (down from 50 due to hard times) each month in the little town of San Juan Tecomatlan. The famous “blue box” (now painted white) in front of Little Chapel by the Lake is a repository for all manner of donations that are taken directly to the village and the homes in need of the items. Folks have been generous through the years, donating doors, windows and lumber torn from their homes during remodeling. In fact, seven bathrooms were built with sink, toilet and showers with hot water – an impressive accomplishment in a town where 220 homes out of the 330 homes there do not have functioning bathrooms or no bathroom at all.

Canadian donors to Programa Pro Niños Incapacitados del Lago will be able to receive tax receipts thanks to a three-way agreement.

Apparel fashioned from high quality “manta” and linen manufactured in the nearby Lakeside town of San Luis Soyatlan will be featured at the annual Tarahumara charity Christmas party on Sunday, December 16. The Tarami company has been producing garments from the highly practical and comfortable cotton fabric for more than ten years. Besides focusing on high quality, the company is proud to have kept 25 local women employed sewing and embroidering the garments in typical colonial patterns. For those with more subtle tastes, clothing is enhanced with softer-toned delicate machine embroidery. Another point separating Tarami from the average is that the sizes in both men’s and women’s garments run from extra small to 4X in stock and to 7X by special order. Tarami will also be showing beautiful children’s clothing.

According to all who attended (and it was a full house) the recent ANIKAN charity bash held at the Lake Chapala Society to benefit the Los Niños de Chapala y Ajijic (NCA) scholarship fund took ‘success’ to a new level.