A group of residents from Jardim Panorama is actively working to strengthen female leadership within the community while fostering integration with Avenues São Paulo. Leaders Eliana Souza and Pollyana Ferreira manage a community bazaar, which sells clothes at affordable prices to generate income for ongoing social initiatives within the community.

Over the years, the group has undertaken several social actions aimed at the children and teenagers of Jardim Panorama, including: 

•  Mobilizing the community to encourage enrollment in Avenues' Leap Program classes.

• Facilitating community mobilization for dental care at the Oral Clinic.

• Collaborating on projects with students and teachers, such as the construction of a school bus stop for the children of Jardim Panorama.

• Managing Christmas Solidarity campaigns that involve the sponsorship of children from the Panorama community by members of the Avenues community.

• Coordinating other campaigns in partnership with students and teachers for occasions such as Easter, Mother's Day and Children's Day.

• Mobilizing and managing logistics for social care campaigns during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the distribution of food baskets and educational materials.

Pollyana Ferreira and Eliana Silva Souza, residents of Jardim Panorama, stand at the core of this collab. For the past five years, they have worked tirelessly to build the Jardim Panorama Women's Collective. Initially comprising six members, all of whom were mothers, the group worked to support the community in many ways.

Over time, the collective faced challenges as some of the members had to take time off from volunteering to work and support their families. "For two years now, it's just been just the two of us," said Eliana. "We used to receive clothes to donate but we couldn't help everyone, so we came up with the idea to create a store, a bazaar with quality clothes at affordable prices. That's how Panô Store came about, as a way of generating income and helping people," she said.

Renata Castro, president of the APA (the Avenues Parent Association), acknowledged the initial challenges of setting up this exchange but emphasized that it became an important learning experience. She said that the idea of setting up the Panô Store was a way of including these women through social entrepreneurship. "We donate, sort and send clothes that are in great condition and they sell them at affordable prices. This way, both communities are involved - the school mothers are the ones who collect, organize and send the clothes. The mothers from Jardim Panorama sell the clothes. That's how we do philanthropy - not welfare".

The proceeds are divided equally and help create a fund used for initiatives like providing food baskets or assisting families who are in need of something specific. "It's great to be able to do something to help the community you live in. I've always enjoyed working with children and doing something for the community is a dream come true," says Pollyana.

In addition to helping the Jardim Panorama community, the leaders contribute to the learning environment at Avenues. One example was the Bazar da Luz project, an initiative by Avenues students, who organized an independent sale at a traditional bazaar in São Paulo.

In another initiative, every parent, student or employee at Avenues 'adopts' a child for Christmas. "With the donations we receive, we make gift bags for all 700 children in the community, who are between 0 and 13 years old. This is very important for them at the end of the year because it provides new clothes, toys, etc," stated Eliana.

In addition to Panô Store, the duo wants to create a solidarity kitchen as an extension of their collaborative efforts. While the store offers quality clothes at affordable prices, the solidarity kitchen will be there to meet the nutritional needs of the community. "We have the store and the kitchen, but the space is small and the rent is expensive. It's going to be a big challenge," said Pollyana.

Both of these endeavors show that when schools and communities work together, the positive impact is twofold. Pollyana said that "before this exchange with Avenues, we didn't receive any donations. Nothing was sent here. Seeing the children's happiness is worth it. By investing in them, we are creating a better future," concluded Eliana.

The bonds built between Avenues São Paulo and Jardim Panorama not only benefit the communities involved, but also create a spirit of solidarity and empowerment that has the potential to lead to a brighter future for all those involved.