Mr. Waldir Echeverri has been teaching in Mano Amiga Colombia since February 2006. Mr. Waldir has a Bachelor’s Degree in Primary Education with an emphasis in English and Spanish. He graduated from the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana.

Mr. Waldir says that he has various feelings for the school, but they can be described with two words: love and gratitude.

When Mr. Waldir came to Mano Amiga, there was an erroneous perception about learning English at the school. Both parents and students thought that English was a difficult language to learn and a totally unnecessary subject. Mr. Waldir started a campaign to provide awareness to parents and students on the importance of learning an additional language at school.

He is now the head of the English department and teaches all English courses in the elementary school. During his tenure at the school, in addition to adding English language as a second language as part of the curriculum, Mr. Waldir feels that he has made it possible for students to be happy in class and have Christ in their hearts as a model of life.

His greatest strengths are being very organized, consistent, responsible, respectful, and thoughtful. His relationships with students and academic peers is based on good communication and the understanding that personal issues should not impinge on the professional world.

He feels that Mano Amiga has transformed him. He was Catholic when he came to Mano Amiga, but not a person who practiced his faith. Thanks to Mano Amiga he has grown spiritually and feels strengthened both personally and professionally. He hopes to continue working at Mano Amiga for many years to come. He is very happy here and feels no other institution offers the peace that Mano Amiga does.