Luis Soriano Bohorquez
Luis Soriano Bohórquez has a degree in Spanish and Literature, graduated from the University of Magdalena. He works as a teacher at the Vista de la Gloria rural school in the Nueva Granada de Magdalena municipality and is the creator of the BiblioBurro.
The professional training was carried out in the distance modality due to economic circumstances, time and displacement. He was one of the first graduates in this modality, with a beautiful smile, he remembers that he would run to the library to fulfill his academic homework and although it was not easy, it was very inspiring for his life.
The BiblioBurro, his life project
As a child, when Luis began his studies, he experienced a moment of uncertainty, because he was aggressively removed from his environment to be taken to Valledupar where he studied primary school. His classmates laughed at him for being a peasant boy who wore a three-pointed sandal typical of the region) “Imagine you, that I only needed my hat” LS
For this reason, the teacher says that he does not judge anyone and that he has a life commitment that consists of making children literate and helping communities to get ahead through the project that today is called ‘Biblioburro’
At first it was a complete mockery, but today it is recognized nationally and internationally even by the UN. They no longer make fun of Alfa, or Beto, or Professor Soriano, but instead take off their hats, take photos, and interview them in the media.
“They are all recognition of the effort that you make, within your life commitment, because when I started this project of Alfa, Beto and me. I did not put a price on that work, life itself began to put values on it, and added values that are recognition, knowing the world, having the opportunity to share the experience with other worlds, cultures and countries, and there is the result when you do not put economic interests in your life’s work” LS
Initially, the professor carried the books in backpacks, but he quickly realized that his body could not hold so much weight, so he began to load them on a donkey that was unoccupied in the patio of his house, then he decided to find a donkey to make them. company and carry more books.
He already had a donkey and a donkey, therefore he had to find a name, it was the same boys from the rural part who told him “Profe, why don’t we name the donkey Alpha and the donkey Beto, to make it Alphabet because they are letters what you carry there” and thus this dynamic duo that everyone knows today was born.
arduous displacements
The journeys that the teacher in the company of Alfa and Beto make are long, the minimum distance is 8 kilometers, they are rough roads that are difficult to access, they must also fight against the adversity of the weather, which is a natural enemy because when it is not raining, it comes an incandescent sun The departures begin in the morning to avoid fatigue from the sun and when the afternoon begins to fall they start their way back.
Among the adversities they have faced are the setbacks with the social system in Magdalena, and it is no secret to anyone that between 2000 and 2010 it was unlivable due to the paramilitary weapons that operated in that area of the country. . Fortunately, today they no longer occupy that territory. Thus, the project has advanced in its construction as an institution that builds citizens, supports teachers and strengthens the knowledge of the family. “When we pick up a book it seems that everything becomes magical because everyone stops to listen to what we read aloud and participate in activities such as coloring, watching plays, at night right now we are running a small power plant that it produces energy for us to take ‘cinema to the stars’.
The BiblioBurro books are donations from Colombians and citizens of the world
Some Colombian writers who are familiar with the project deliver their books to him. On his way through Pereira he received some of them, and thus, little by little, new titles are becoming part of the BiblioBurro.
But in addition, it also has protective entities that accompany it and the fact is that the BiblioBurro process is not only owned by Professor Luis Soriano, it is now a network of BiblioBurros in the department of Magdalena, accompanied by the Magdalena Compensation Fund (Cajamag) of In this way, the entity strengthens the process by delivering books and school supplies so that the network can continue working. But also giving a salary to the people who work in this network that is made up of indigenous groups in this department.
You can help too
If you are interested in helping by donating books, teaching materials, school supplies, and even clothing and shoes for these communities, you can do so by sending it to De La Gloria corregimiento, Nueva Granada municipality, Alto Prado neighborhood, Carrera 8, number 807.
“The BiblioBurro project is not only based on sharing the need for reading, but also the basic needs of families who are experiencing a very tough economic situation right now in the country and above all it is reflected more in the countryside where the summer in these moments is crucial and has us on the verge of madness” Luis Soriano.
If you wish to contact Professor Luis Soriano to learn more about his project or even replicate it, you can contact him at +57 311 5732019