Finding a New Path through Peace
For Carlos Andrés Muñoz and Jhony Fernando Fernández, their stories don’t begin like many typical community leaders. For them, it began on the other side.
Jhony wanted a change. "I'd seen many friends die and I wanted to end this war, because I wanted to see my daughter grow up, so I started a peace process with the Nuevo Latir school."
"I became a social leader by first being an agent of violence," Carlos says. "A promoter of violence. I was doing the complete opposite of what a community leader should do." Then came the realisation that changed everything: if he had the drive to lead for bad, he could lead for good.
A New Beginning
In 2016, Jhony started the peace process. A few years later, Carlos joined a city programme that helped him channel his natural leadership. From there, they both worked on a project where they learned to lead participatory life skills building processes with children.
Their work on the project helped them strengthen many skills that VoleiPaz would later be built on. They learned about socio-emotional techniques, managing conflict, and promoting gender equity. Most importantly, they learned to create safe spaces for the families they would later support.
Trusting One of Their Own
In El Poblado II, trust isn't something that is given lightly. But for leaders like Carlos and Jhony, who know every family, every corner of the neighbourhood, it’s different. They know the challenges and strengths that outsiders always miss.
Carlos and Jhony also take what VoleiPaz wants to teach, managing emotions, resolving conflicts, building peace, and puts it into their own words. They make lessons tailored to the context more relevant and more engaging. For many, a lesson lands differently when it comes from someone like them. Someone who has lived the same reality as the kids sitting in front of them.
The Joy through the Journey
Carlos and Jhony make sure that for every session, they support with life skills activities before getting to volleyball. They have been in these children’s shoes before, so they know what they face. And as they’ve aged, the challenges don’t get easier, they just change.
The biggest challenge for Carlos? Making sure kids actually get home safe after practice. The neighbourhood gets more dangerous after dark. “We can't walk them all home, so we check on them, make sure they made it. The biggest challenge for Jhony? The project stability, keeping the project going with many of its members being in different locations.
The challenge they share? Losing Sara, a girl who meant a lot to everyone in the project.
But with challenges, comes rewards. For Carlos, the most rewarding moment is always: “Seeing them smile. Seeing children, who could easily be pulled into violence, gangs, drugs, having a safe space to grow, to laugh, to have fun. That fills my heart and soul." For Jhony? "Seeing them help and support each other at all times," he gushed. "Seeing them worry for each other, and seeing the grandmothers who are at every practice, they never miss one. To me, those are real achievements."
Growing the Dream
The dream of VoleiPaz is scaling it up. To other schools, other neighbourhoods, other cities. Carlos believes that "the most beautiful part of leadership is not keeping it to yourself. It's sharing it so it can be replicated."
Jhony hopes to see them compete. "There is a lot of talent here," he says. "I think we can create a competitive team, a team that represents our neighbourhood, because they have what it takes."
Carlos and Jhony want VoleiPaz to be not just a passing moment, but a mark. A footprint. They want more children to have what these kids have: a safe place to play and to grow.
A special thank you to Natalia Lleras, former captain of Impact and head of VoleiPaz, for her generous support in gathering content for this post.
