Born: 27 May 1842, Peru
Died: 2 August 1932
Country most active: Peru
Also known as: Juana Alarco
Peruvian philanthropist Juana Alarco Espinoza de Dammert was known as The Grandmother of the Children. She founded the Children’s Aid Society for the care and teaching of orphaned children from 7 to 12 years of age, as well as a daycare for the children of working mothers.
After marrying a German merchant in 1861, she traveled to Paris, where she became interested in social medical care for mothers and children. Returning to Peru in 1886, she was faced with both the damage the war and foreign occupation had inflicted on her family property and the death of her eldest child. This spurred her to take action to support other mothers and children.
In 1894, de Dammert formed the Auxiliadora to help the injured in hospitals and prisons, with support from President Andrés A. Cáceres. The organisation provided invaluable services during the following year’s civil war, with a facility in the Plazuela del Teatro with 50 beds, that cared for 227 wounded patients.
After the civil war, her attention turned to the conflict’s orphans. With the support of other society ladies, the Children’s Aid Society was founded to feed and educate children in 1896. A free medical clinic was later opened as well, and the daycare opened in 1902. De Dammert’s work also lead to the distribution of milk in public schools, the creation of the government hildren’s Defense Board and the founding of the Children’s Hospital in 1927.