In Calimio Norte, Comuna 6 of Cali, Julio César Fernández leads Fundación Calimio Cultura, an initiative protecting children and youth from violence through recreational and integration activities. Formalized in 2022, the foundation began in 2015 with a community nativity scene and Christmas gifts. Today, it offers year-round programs engaging hundreds of minors in a neighborhood marked by territorial divisions.
Julio César Fernández is known to all children in Calimio Norte, in Comuna 6 of Cali. A decade ago, in 2015, he and a group of neighbors started a community nativity scene and collected gifts to give Christmas to the youngest without toys. This improvised idea evolved into Fundación Calimio Cultura, formalized in 2022, which now provides real life alternatives to girls, boys, and youth in an environment of violence and invisible borders.
Each December, the foundation organizes a Christmas event for 750 to 850 children, though its database lists over 2,800 minors. For 2025, deliveries start on December 16, but only 20% of needed toys have been collected, which must be playful, educational, or sports-oriented, without violent elements. Donations are accepted via Instagram @fundacion_calimio_cultura.
Year-round, the “Antes de ir a la cama” program gathers 150-160 minors on Tuesday and Thursday nights from May, with games, sports, readings, and snacks to keep them from risky idleness. Julio César coordinates with two others, supported by volunteers like mothers, teachers, artists, and neighbors. The focus is integrating children from different sectors, resisting gang divisions; in six months, they dialogued with three armed teens, inviting them to join without weapons.
The foundation has earned respect from gang leaders, some donate and protect the neutral space. It involves children in event organization, fostering belonging and commitment. “We want the children to learn from now on the sense of belonging and commitment,” says Julio César. Open to volunteers after an interview, the initiative strengthens community fabric, with Julio as an unexpected role model for the minors.