El Salvador Band in London New Year’s Day Parade

* Update *

We are very excited to report that the Boinas Verdes Marching Band have been very successful in fundraising. We can now confirm they are coming to London, arriving December 25, for The London New Year's Day Parade and returning to El Salvador on January 3!

The project now urgently needs an additional £760.48 to pay the remainder of accommodation costs for Safestay, Elephant and Castle.

Nuala Riddell-Morales, Director Carnaval del Pueblo went to San Juan Opico in El Salvador and stayed within the community to know the families and to work on fundraising. By working closely with a variety of people key funding has been raised. The children themselves raised funds by making and selling arts and crafts and winning prize money at band competitions. Their parents also fundraised and the band Founder and Director, Renzo Fuentes has worked tirelessly with the children performing throughout the country.

Working closely with the British Ambassador David Lelliott, OBE, and his team in El Salvador, Director of the Academia Británica Steve Lang, the local Mayor Roberto Alas, and companies such as Avianca and Dataplex, each band member is now the proud owner of a passport, British Visa, uniform including coats, return plane ticket, transport to and from the airport and most of the Safestay hostel accommodation in Elephant and Castle, as well as a rehearsal space and a free meal at the lovely Mercato Metropolitano. El Salvador Ambassador to the UK Vanessa Eugenia Interiano Elfarnawany at the Embassy will also receive the band at the Embassy.

They will perform on BBC breakfast, The London New Year's Day Parade and St John's Square LNYDP concert series (December 29) and enjoy a workshop on wearable architecture with Neil Pinder, Honorary Professor, Bartlett School of Architecture and Home Grown Plus.

The Story

The Boinas Verdes Marching Band has been invited by Carnaval del Pueblo to participate in the London New Year’s Day Parade. The Boinas Verdes works with children and young people from San Juan Opico, providing them with a safe haven from the potential dangers of gangs and street crime and the opportunity to benefit from the positive effects of being in a band. Carnaval del Pueblo has been working since 1998 to empower the Latin American Community in London by exploring, celebrating and sharing Latin American Culture. It became a registered charity (Charitable Incorporated Organisation - CIO) in 2017. The London New Year’s Day Parade (LNYDP) attracts over 10,000 participants from the UK, USA, Europe and beyond to delight a street audience of over 500,000 and a television audience that reaches more than 500,000,000 annually. If you would like to help the young Salvadorans of the Boinas Verdes achieve their ambition of playing in London, you can find out more at https://www.gofundme.com/f/bring-children-musiciansfrom-el-salvador-to-lny

La Banda de Música “Boinas Verdes” ha sido invitada por el Carnaval del Pueblo

para que participen en el Desfile de Año Nuevo de Londres. Boinas Verdes trabaja con niños y jóvenes de San Juan Opico, proporcionándoles un refugio seguro frente a los peligros potenciales de las pandillas y la delincuencia callejera, y además tienen la oportunidad de beneficiarse de los efectos positivos de pertenecer a una banda musical. El Carnaval del Pueblo lleva trabajando desde 1998 para potenciar la comunidad latinoamericana en Londres, explorando, celebrando y compartiendo la cultura latinoamericana. Se convirtió en una organización benéfica registrada (Organización Caritativa Incorporada) en 2017. El Desfile de Año Nuevo de Londres atrae a más de 10.000 participantes de Reino Unido, Estados Unidos, Europa y más allá, para deleitar a una audiencia de calle de más de 500.000 y una audiencia televisiva que llega a más de 500.000.000 anualmente. Si quiere ayudar a los jóvenes salvadoreños de las Boinas Verdes a lograr su meta de tocar en Londres, puede obtener más información en https://www.gofundme.com/f/bring-children-musicians-from-el-salvador-to-lnyp