The trip to NPH Dominican Republic was a beautiful, eye-opening experience...

Below is a reflection by Emma Towne of Northeast Catholic College who went on a Mission Trip to NPH Dominican Republic. 

 

For me, the NPH Dominican Republic mission trip was a lesson, first and foremost, in giving. Giving on a mission trip sounds complicated and hard, but as I discovered, giving does not consist of many difficult tasks, but in seemingly little things that must be done with your total self.  When first touring NPH, I was swiftly captured by a little boy who proceeded to teach me how to dance the salsa. At first, taken aback by his boldness and not being much of a dancer, I thought hurriedly of ways to politely get out of dancing. But then I realized that the purpose of this mission trip wasn�t maintaining my own personal comfort, but giving myself, even when it was annoying and uncomfortable, or simply a nuisance.

 

Throughout the course of the week, I reflected on what is meant by the words: give yourself. Giving yourself on a mission trip does not mean you show yourself off, or have a set plan in mind that absolutely must work. �Giving yourself� is when you set aside your own desires and focus completely on the person next to you, listening to him, playing with him, enjoying him. You must cast aside your own ideas and visions of glory and be content with playing on seesaws and kicking deflated soccer balls. The paradox of giving yourself is that you also must be receptive to love, in the varying forms it takes. At NPH, love was expressed through the children�s constant hand-holding and playing with our hair, their unceasing hugging and dancing, which made me mildly uncomfortable as an introvert. And yet here was the call to love! Love is simple and uncomplicated, but it demands surrendering yourself, even when it is awkward or painful, or simply not in your comfort zone. It was this that I found the most arduous�because it demanded me to surrender myself for the sake of someone else. Yet when I surrendered myself, I was rewarded with the greatest of gifts: the friendship of a child.

 

Of all the wonderful things that I saw and experienced while in the Dominican, it was playing with the children that struck me the most. At NPH, the children are so joyful and happy, despite the circumstances many have faced. There was a love of life that was delightful to witness, and an energy and enthusiasm that was certainly hard to keep up with! Their openness was a blessing to us on the trip, as we struggled with Spanish, the heat and basketball. The children gave us so much, more than we could possibly ever give them.

 

The trip to NPH Dominican Republic was a beautiful, eye-opening experience, a trip I am very happy to have undertaken. The exposure to an entirely different culture, poorer than America, yet rich in faith, love and joy, has influenced me incredibly; it taught me about love and self-gift, and what happens when you truly open yourself up to others.

 

The Langugage That Everyone Can Speak

Below is a reflection from Sydney Mailloux of Northeast Catholic College on a recent mission trip she took to NPH DR.

Normally we do not think much about language. Most of the time, we are surrounded by those who speak our native tongue�we take for granted the extraordinary ability to understand and be understood. But despite our native tongue�s extreme importance in our lives, there is a language that all people of every race can speak, a language native to all people of all time. The instinctive understanding of this universal language appeared more and more evident to us in different forms throughout the week, in three major areas: in our work, in our interactions with each other, and in our interactions with the people at NPH.

We drove down a highway lined with palm trees to arrive at the Dominican NPH house on Monday evening. Our work began the next day. Throughout the week, we painted a house, worked in the kitchen, and worked on a farm. Despite the sometimes oppressive heat and exhaustion that we earned during our work, we were also the glad recipients of much joy�joy that springs from helping others with love.

We shared that joy with each other. The songs we sang while we worked, the jokes made, the conversations shared, and the friendships forged are all things that we will remember for the rest of our lives. Not only did we have the opportunity to help others through our mission work, we also had the blessing of lifting one another up, comforting each other in our difficulties and sharing one another�s joys.

We learned much from our work and from each other, but we also learned much from the children and others we came in contact with at and through NPH. So many of them come from difficult backgrounds and harsh pasts. Many of the children we met at the home come from weak or broken families�sometimes no families at all. Many of the people we met live in difficult circumstances for one reason or another. The people we met have very little in the way of material riches, but they possess interior treasures one can only marvel at. Their openness and kindness to total strangers was nothing less than inspiring; we went to give and received so much in return.

In the end, we did not come away fluent in Spanish. But we became more and more proficient in the language that everyone can speak. We learned charity for God�s children, friendship with one another, and love and esteem for every individual person�we learned to speak with greater fluency the language of universality, the language of love.

 

A Message of Gratitude from a Peque?o Who Grew Up at NPH Mexico

Dear Friends:

Let me introduce myself, my name is Gustavo de Jesus Ramirez Rodriguez, I was born in Mexico, and I am now 23, and soon will be 24. I am a medical student in one of the most prestigious medical schools in northern Mexico.

Let me offer my most sincere thanks for everything that this great family has done for me, which I have the honor of being part of - Nuestros Peque?os Hermanos (NPH).


If I may, I will try to summarize how amazing it has been to be a part of this family for over 18 years. I mean, I'll try, because I know that words are not enough to describe the difference they have made in my life and the lives of thousands of children and youth throughout the 9 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Everything started out on September 5, 1996, when I was five years old and accompanied by my four brothers and three sisters, after a period of domestic violence, alcohol problems with my father and his abusiveness in our family, we had the amazing opportunity to be part of this amazing family, where, from the first day we had the opportunity to get access to medical and dental services, education, psychological support, services that we never believed we would have access to. At NPH we belonged to an environment full of love, service, solidarity, trust, fun, friendliness and safety, where everyone around us greeted us with an amazing smile and made us feel part of one big family.

For 18 years I had no problem feeling part of a family at NPH; my family is like any other family in the world, I think the only difference is the number of brothers and sisters, as we have hundreds or thousands, and over time more and more come. With the support of this great family, I can say that my greatest success has been in academics. With access to a quality education, good values, and my own personal growth, I received my primary education, high school education, and eventually college education. During the course of my studies, I was always taught a very simple philosophy that shaped my future� to serve my fellow man. So it was that which I studied toward in high school, a technical career directed to biological science, with the aim to help prepare me for medical school.

Upon finishing my upper secondary education, I was required to perform two years of service to NPH as a way of giving thanks for all I had received. I took care of younger siblings, and it's a way to continue sharing and communicating the importance of serving others - that's how I got the opportunity to start a project on the border between Mexico and the United States in Matamoros; Tamaulipas, one of the states with the highest social disintegration in Mexico.

With this project I learned many things during those two years and had the opportunity to share with the children and youth in the hacienda of Miacatlan, Morelos. What I learned: the value of responsibility, understanding, support; and many other things. These years of service were a time of great reflection through which I made the most important decision in my life. It was a time when I realized many of the lessons of life that our father and founder; Father William Bryce Wasson wanted to convey. During this time, I had the opportunity to prepare to take my entrance examination to college, which I passed successfully, and gave me the opportunity choose between attending two very prestigious universities in Monterrey, Mexico with a full scholarship to complete my studies. It was one of the greatest satisfactions that I personally have had, but I think it's the least I could do to make all those who have made this possible for me feel proud.

Currently, I am in the eighth semester of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Monterrey (UDEM), on full scholarship. I must admit that it has not been an easy road, but this is what I am really passionate about, and it gives me great satisfaction to serve those most in need of my services. Most likely we will not be able to change the health system in my country completely, but I'm quite sure that I will strive to give the best of myself every day to those in need.

During my time at NPH, I have had the opportunity to meet many people who help make the dreams of me and my brothers and sisters come true; people without self-interest are able to give the best of themselves for us, like receiving a letter of congratulations on a birthday, spending time with us on important celebrations such as graduations, or perhaps through financial contributions, they have managed to create an atmosphere of security and love, for thousands and thousands of children and young people. We can never thank them for as much as they have given us, but I guarantee that the seed is being planted now, and will provide very good results.

Friends, thank you for all you do for us. We sincerely appreciate the opportunity you give us to gain access to a better future for our lives. Without you this would not be possible. You are loved and appreciated.

Sincerely,

Gustavo

A Year Spent at NPH Mexico

Below is a reflection written by volunteer Leslie Ford after serving at NPH Mexico about how the NPH family impacted her life  

Words fall short of describing an entire year of life, especially one which so profoundly touched my heart, opened my eyes, molded my perspectives, changed my values and lifestyle, and left me with hundreds of new brothers and sisters and a new place to call ?home.?

NPH Mexico has over 700 children and 200 employees, and we were a team of 10 international volunteers working as teachers, caregivers, and clinic staff. I experienced some of the hardest moments of my life there, but every single one of those moments was quickly and completely overshadowed by the opposite: some of the most extreme, pure, genuine moments of happiness I have ever felt. I spent my mornings working as a nurse in our on-site clinic, which mainly involved giving health education chats and providing primary nursing care to children who came as "walk-ins" for minor injuries and sicknesses. In the evenings, I worked as a caregiver for 21 amazing, bright, joyful, absolutely wonderful kindergartners, which is where I learned about unconditional love and the importance of patience, laughter, and the small things. Being able to share love and happiness with those kindergartners (as well as with all the other children, employees, and volunteers in the home) is something I will forever be thankful for and will never, ever forget.

Although it?s time for me to continue on a new path, my actions, perspectives and heart will now always reflect the lessons I learned and the love that was shared together as a part of the NPH family.

I felt so blessed to be a part of this trip...

Below is a testimonial from Teresa Turner who recently visited the NPH home in Mexico with her friends who are godparents to children there. Check out what she had to say about her visit!

In July, I traveled to Cuernavaca with my friend Emma, her family and a small group of other Nuestros Peque?os Hermanos supporters. Emma had told me about the great work done by NPH and I was anxious to gain my own perspective. We planned a short trip, Wednesday to Sunday. But we timed the trip so as to be in Mexico to attend the school graduations. 

The graduations took place on Friday. On Thursday we were able to visit the home in Miacatlan where the children live as well as go to school. Walking into the grounds of the NPH home we met children who knew no strangers, only friends. These children were so happy to have visitors and made us feel welcome in their home. Emma, who had been to the home previously, gave me a tour around the grounds so that I could see where the children slept, went to school, ate, and played. Throughout the tour there were children hard at work completing their chores in anticipation of graduation day. Their attitude was positive and inspiring. I was left with the impression that they were part of one big united family. It was a very different scene than the one that I had pictured. I had incorrectly thought that children separated from their parents could not live a happy life. However, I saw a place where a solid community was founded and consequently a loving environment was provided to these children. 

Friday, we eagerly bused back out to Miacatlan in the morning for the graduation ceremony. The graduation day was wonderful. We sat outside on concrete bleachers that overlooked a sport court. The decorations were perfectly festive. I felt honored as I sat there amongst so many proud parents, supporters, and friends of the gorgeous children graduating. We watched and cheered as the Kindergarten, 6th grade and 9th graders preformed a graduation dance in beautiful authentic Mexican wear. It was a very emotional day for most of the children as they were called individually to accept their diploma from the head of school and each child had their picture taken. One could see from the expressions on the faces of these children�s how special they felt at that moment. The staff and supporters of NPH made this an unforgettable day for these children. 

After the graduation ceremony we preceded to the chapel where mass was celebrated. The mass was beautiful with the children�s choir offering enthusiastic songs. After mass we all shared a meal together and we were again made to feel as though we were part of their family. I felt so blessed to be a part of this trip. I went on the trip thinking I would be seeing things like a tourist but I came away realizing that these children need much more than that from us, they need loving friends. The distance between us is not as great as it may appear on a map.

Marlon

Marlon and his 3 older brothers arrived at NPH in 1996 when he was 6 years old. They arrived from Managua. His mother abandoned the children because of the physical abuse from their father when he was drunk. Marlon and his brothers were being abused as well. A relative from the family asked for help as the abuse got worse. After a few days and under the consent of �Mi Familia�, the government entity that cares for the well-being of children in Nicaragua, we brought Marlon and his brothers into our home. 

Marlon has been always a very respectful child, very focused in school and always ready to help out. During his family service, Marlon helped in the educational area teaching math to the children and also helped as supplier distribution manager. 

Right now he is studying his first year of math at the university. He studies hard and receives good grades. "I plan to do my best in university and hope to take other courses in the future such as English classes to interact with friends, volunteers, and visitors at the home. I really enjoy spending time in the home during vacations and helping my brothers and sisters in math or with their English homework. I am very thankful for all the support I have received from all the caregivers, volunteers, and teachers during my elementary and high school days. But mostly, I thank God for giving me and my brothers the opportunity to be part of this wonderful family. It has not been easy, but it has been worth every moment."

Support Marlon and students just like him in Nicaragua through our Give for Youth campaign today!

Maudiel

Maudiel and his 2 brothers arrived at NPH in 1996 when their mother died. His father tried to care for them, but it was difficult to work far away from home and watch over the kids while working. The family lived in extremely poor conditions and sometimes had only one meal a day. In their community called Waslala, there is no school. Their father wanted to give them better opportunities in life, and agreed that the children should come to NPH Family. 

Maudiel says, "I thank God for the opportunity he gave me and my siblings to be part of to NPH family. I came when I was 8 years old along with my sister Deira and my little brother Victor, and we all have been blessed in many ways since we came here. I finished elementary school in 2003 and high school in 2009. Now, I am 23 years old and I am in the 3rd year of University, studying English to become a teacher. I will get my B.A in English in two more years. So far I have found Mathematics and Psychology to be the most difficult classes, and my favorite classes are Philosophy and History."

As part of the year of family service at NPH, Maudiel has been involved helping with the translation of letters at the sponsorship office in San Jorge-Rivas and now in Jinotepe-Carazo. Maudiel says it requires a lot of responsibility to work in an office.but that he learns lots of things everyday and gets to interact with lots of people. "I thank our mentors, caretakers, and home directors who have trusted me and given me the chance to give back a little after having received lots of love and patience. When I finish my studies I would like to find a job and help those in need as the home has helped me." 

Support Maudiel and his classmates studying in Nicaragua today through our Give for Youth campaign!

Celia

Celia entered NPH in 1994 when she was 6 years old. She is the youngest of 3 siblings. Her mother died when she was young, and her father began a cycle of alcoholism, leaving the children at home alone. The priest from the community knew about the situation and talked to Father Wasson. Father Wasson went to Celia?s house and visited her dying mother, impressing upon her that he would take care of her children, allowing her to die peacefully because she knew the children were in good hands. Her older brothers decided to move out of the home although they continue to visit her on Visitor�s days. Celia finished high school in 2005 and began university in 2007 after two years of family service. She has always been a good student, very responsible and a lovely person. Celia helped in different areas during her family service: caretaker for little girls aged 7-12 years old, as well as office intern. During weekends she would come and help organize activities for the children with other volunteers and caregivers at the home.

Celia writes: �I am very happy that I will finish my career next year and get my B.A. in Economics. I would like to find a job in my field and continue growing and learning as a person. As for all my little brothers and sisters living at the home, I always advise them to appreciate the opportunity given by our beloved Father Wasson and study as much as they can because that�s the key for success in life.�

She is one of the 21 university students from NPH Nicaragua that need our support! Give for youth today!

I learned how very simple it is with some generous, helping hands to help out those in need...

Hey! I am Connor Van Ribbink, and I am a senior at Brophy College Prep in Phoenix, AZ. I have been involved with Friends of the Orphans for the majority of my life. I love everything about Friends of the Orphans. I love the commitment everyone in this organization has to bettering the lives of orphaned and abandoned children all across Latin America, the Dominican Republic and Haiti. I love the countless volunteers who have answered Father Wasson�s call to serve. Above all, I love and admire the pure and untouched happiness of the children of Friends of the Orphans. 

I have had the incredible privilege to witness this inspiring happiness many times, but most notably on my trip to the home in Mexico and my two trips to the home in Guatemala. Upon my latest trip to Guatemala I felt a calling to make a greater impact within my community for Friends of the Orphans. I answered this call in two ways. First of all, I made some changes to the Friends of the Orphans club within my high school with the goal of making our club more active. Our club of high school students now meets during a school break to write letters to our Godchildren. The second change I made was to create a fundraising event that would bring both our NPH club as well as other supporters of Friends of the Orphans in our community together to raise money for the kids of NPH. I thought of the idea to create a fundraiser held at Flip Dunk Sports for students all around the Phoenix and Scottsdale area. 

Flip Dunk Sports is an indoor trampoline park owned by Mrs. Lori Price whose son, Zach, has traveled to Guatemala with me twice. Thanks to her generosity the fundraiser was held November 2nd and half the admission cost was donated to Friends of the Orphans. In total, I am proud to say we raised $400 for all the kids of Friends of the Orphans. My goal is to pass this fundraising event on to my younger brothers to manage next year following my graduation from high school. I further intend to continue fundraising for Friends of the Orphans while I am in college. I learned how very simple it is with some generous, helping hands to help out those in need. I have an incredible passion for the cause, and I am confident this passion will continue for the remainder of my life.

NDP Students from the Southwest Region Spend their Spring Break Helping our Kids!

Submitted by Joseph Fagan, Theology/ Friends of the Orphans Club Moderator


If there is no greater love than to lay down one�s life for one�s friends (John 15:13), then in the life of a high school student, �laying down one�s Spring Break for one�s friends� must be a close second, and fourteen members of NDP�s Friends of the Orphans Club did just that.


While many of their friends spent their Spring vacation on the ski slopes or the beach, DJ Seamans, Maura Kelly, Rhett Johnston, Maddie Frazier, Douglas Wong, Patrick Reilly, Allie York, Heather Huennekens, Natalie Wojtanowski, Edmund Wong, Annie Kaiser, Will Seamans, Francesca Decastell, and Daniela Cuellar, spent their Spring vacation at the Nuestros Peque?os Hermanos (Our Little Brothers and Sisters) orphanage in central Mexico. Part service trip, part cultural immersion experience, each of our students takes something different from the experience, but they all describe the trip as life changing. 


Throughout the week, we help the NPH children with their chores; do arts-and-crafts projects and other fun activities with the special education students; play sports with the older kids, especially soccer; we take some of the peque?os (little ones) out for pizza and a trip to a local water park; but most of all, the participants in this mission trip provide a level of one-on-one love and attention that just isn�t possible for the staff in a home of over 800 children.


The Friends of the Orphans Club prepares for the trip each year with a supply drive here on campus and this year we delivered fifteen large boxes of clothing and school supplies when we arrived at NPH Mexico in Miacatlan, Mexico. Some of our students who go on the trip (and their families) support a peque?o at NPH with letters of support and financial help through Friends of the Orphans as a Sponsor, and this trip allows them to meet and really get to know that child. While this financial and material support is essential to breaking the cycle of poverty in which the peque?os would otherwise be trapped, it is impossible to express the emotional impact it has on the peque?os knowing that they have padrinos (Godparents/patrons) who care about them, love them, pray for them, who will write to them, and who may visit them.


Midway through our day at the water park, after Rhett Johnston (NDP �12) had spent three or four hours taking care of his seven-year-old peque?o, I asked Fernando who Rhett was to him. He beamed as he said, �My friend, my padrino, my Daddy!� I don�t think that Rhett or Fernando will ever see themselves � or the world � in the same way again.


Both of Will Seamans (NDP �15) brothers (Graham, NDP �09 and D.J., NDP �12) have been on the trip multiple times, but even so, Will says that it was a different experience than he expected. �I knew what we were going to do; that I would make new friends and that the trip would be fun,� he said, �but no one can really describe the relationships. You just have to experience that for yourself.�


Our students are right. This trip is life changing. For them AND for the peque?os.

Elle and Molly

Last fall, Molly and Elle, two girls from Seattle, were looking for a service project to do at their high school, Bishop Blanchet. After connecting with Friends staff, Molly and Elle started a project to get the entire student body involved in child sponsorship. 


They hosted an assembly to share the project, and Blanchet�s Community Periods (homerooms) paired up, appointed representatives, and chose their new Godchildren. 


School-wide fundraisers have raised money for their sponsorship donations, and the students have become engaged in writing to their Godchildren. The project has continued into this new school year, with Elle and Molly introducing the new freshman class to the project. Their school event hosted Juan Manuel Pineda of NPH El Salvador for an all-school assembly, where he shared his story and his music.


Thank you so very much to Elle and Molly for being great Friends!!!

Here is Elle with Juan when he visited their school.

Do you want to learn more about how you can help spread the word? Click here!

Stories from Honduras #2

Check out another volume of stories written by the students of Glen Urquhart School in Beverly, Massachusetts who visited Rancho Santa Fe at NPH Honduras and learned about the various facilities at the ranch and all the hard work that goes into making this a home for the children who need it most.

Hortaliza
by Jack Hay


We walk down the never-ending rows and the dust springs up in our faces, as if to warn us. The plants are still; there is no wind to cool us. The sun beats down, and beads of sweat have already begun to form on my forehead. We walk through the fields of the hortaliza or gardens. An endless desert of rows awaits us as we put down our bags. We have to put the plants in the holes and then cover them up. Anything is easy in a small proportion. Transplanting these plants is no exception, but when you add the element of quantity, that changes everything. We are working for a good cause though, not for money. That seems to make it a bit easier for me. The orphanage is one big ecosystem. Everything makes something else work. That�s the beauty of a place like this. They don�t need outside food. They make it, and the other pro is that it�s fresh.


I begin work. The sun still lurks behind me, but also behind three layers of 50 SPF sunscreen. The plants that we are working with have been cut from the ground in another location, so we have to twist them in the holes so there is enough space. In some places the men have left more than one plant, which complicates things. As you try to hold several plants down and put dirt in the hole, there is a big margin for error.


We were given about 20 rows and we were halfway done. Katya and Cobo move toward the backpacks for a water break, and Sra. Kelley, Jenny, and I soon follow. �Can we eat these oranges?� questions Katya. �I suppose,� replies Sra. Kelley. �As long as you peel them.� The oranges in question look as if they came from a compost pile, but as Cobo and Katya peel them, they begin to look more inviting. Before I can join in, it�s back to work and the hot, blistering sun. We now plant in the rows that have been drowned by water. The holes are filled to the brim. This makes it much harder to fill them in. It makes a mud bath. I start draining the holes in an attempt to make the work more manageable and to save the plants from drowning, but the young men tell me to stop. There are about four of them helping us, the a?o familiares. They are the kids who will go into high school after their year of service.


We are almost done. There are only three more rows left. As we take a final water break, one of the young men runs down the field and the three others start throwing the hard, concrete-like chunks of soil at him. Luckily for him, they usually miss. We soon finish planting the rows. The sun has risen in the sky, and it will soon be time for lunch. We grab our bags, bid our fellow workers farewell, and take our leave of the fields. As we duck under the barbed wire fence near the road, I think about how muchwork goes into growing this food. The staff in the hortaliza is so dedicated. They work so hard for the orphans.

Tortillas
by Ra Gordon


I actually thought I already knew how to make tortillas before I went to Rancho Santa Fe. In fact, I had recently made them at home before the eighth grade trip to Honduras. Making them at the orphanage was certainly quite different than making them at home.


When we make tortillas at home, we start with something called �masa harina� that you get in little bags at the grocery store. It is a kind of prepared corn flour. We mix it into a batter with water and oil and roll out tortillas with a rolling pin. Then we cook them on a griddle, like pancakes. We usually make a batch of about eight at a time.


At Rancho Santa Fe it was somewhat different, although we did work with corn flour mixed with water, into a paste. There were four of us working together: Se?ora Cardona, Phoebe and Madison. We each took parts of the paste and would take small amounts of it, make it into the right shape, press it, and put it on the large grill. The tortillas had to be made flatter than I was used to. About six hundred tortillas had to be made, although there were other people working in the kitchen. Halfway through, we ran out of paste. We had to go back to the place where the kernels were ground. The corn kernels were in a big plastic tub and we had to wash them under an outdoor faucet. The tub then had to be carried to a small mill to grind them into flour, although we did not do that part. After that, we continued the repetitive process of making tortillas. We worked for about four hours altogether.


The next time I make tortillas at home with my family, I will remember my experience at Rancho Santa Fe. I will think of the people who make tortillas there every day, starting with the big yellow kernels from corn they grew themselves.

La Granja
by Madison Tremblay


Working on the farm was a very exciting experience. Although I was very sick that day, I still enjoyed collecting eggs, feeding chickens, and playing with the bunnies. The farm was one of my favorite workdays; it�s really cool that the Ranch sustains itself by growing and raising their own food. 


When we first arrived at the farm, we fed the chickens. Then we were able to hold the 2-week-old chicks, and they were adorable. The chicks were so soft and fun to hold, that is, if you could catch them. Next we began the never-ending task of collecting eggs. We each got a grey egg carton that held 30 eggs to fill. Each chicken coop had a different name after a certain country; one was called Honduras and another was called Alemania (Germany). When you first entered the chicken coop, it was like stepping into a room crammed with hundreds of people milling around, except instead of people these were chickens. The edge of the coop was lined with wooden boxes where the eggs were laid. Some boxes had up to 15 eggs while others had none. We went around the perimeter of the coop filling our cartons and clearing boxes. By the time we finished, however, there would be 20 new eggs laid. Those chickens can really pump out the eggs! After, we visited the bunnies, which was a lot of fun. We fed them left over cabbage from the garden and played with them. 


Finally we did one more round of egg collecting and then headed back to San Crist?bal. It was an exhausting day, but it never got boring.

Stories from Honduras

Enjoy these candid pieces written by students of Glen Urquhart School in Beverly, Massachusetts who visited Rancho Santa Fe at NPH Honduras and learned about the various facilities at the ranch and all the hard work that goes into making this a home for the children who need it most.

Rancho Santa Fe
By Cole Symes


As you drive through the gate of Rancho Santa Fe, there is a clinic, pharmacy and surgery center on the left. Most people would think of a surgery center in a Central American country as not the best, but when I had a tour it was as good as, or better, than some in the United States. Once you pass the clinic, you see a sign for the school and a walking path leading the other way. It is a small Montessori school for all of the kids at Nuestros Peque?os Hermanos (NPH) Honduras and a couple of kids from a nearby village. It has classes up to eighth grade, and each kid can learn at their own pace. After eighth grade, NPH will pay for them to go to high school, but they have to do a year of work or a?o familiar first.


Soon after passing the school, you reach an intersection; one road goes to El Buen Pastor (the Good Shepherd, or the boys� homes), while the other leads to Talleres (vocational workshops) and San Cristobal (the visitors� home). After sixth grade, the kids learn a trade at talleres. They can learn metalworking, tailoring, woodworking, shoemaking, carpentry or electrical systems. The last path would bring you down to the farm were they raise bunnies, chickens, and cows.


After San Cristobal, there is the bodega where they keep all of the donations and clothes for NPH. Next to the bodega is the kitchen, where they cook all the food for 600 kids every day. Most days, the food is beans and rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Near the kitchen is the tortilla house where they make 2 tortillas for every child�s dinner. On the other side of the Ranch from the boys� homes are the girls� homes. 


Finally, between San Cristobal and the kitchen are the canchas, consisting of two cement basketball courts and a cement soccer field. Next to the canchas is Casa Suyapa, the coed home for children under six. Rancho Santa Fe is surrounded by mountains on three sides, and has trees and animals everywhere. If you climb one mountain, you can see the whole Ranch. It is one of the most beautiful landscapes you could see.

The Bodega
by Katya VanAnderlecht


The large steel door clangs shut behind us and we descend down the cement stairs into the bodega, temporarily feeling cooled by the slight drop of temperature in the basement. To my left I see almost half the room filled with black garbage bags, and to my right three mounds of shoes ranging in various sizes, baby, child and adult. The ground is littered with sneakers, sandals and the occasional fur-lined boot (Yes, because it's definitely going to snow in Honduras!), which leave only a small section of open floor for us to sit down and start sorting.


We commence searching for the long lost pairs in the stragglers left behind from yesterday�s work, excitedly calling out once we reunited a pair, followed by a chorus of under-enthusiastic cheers and weak clapping, for to be honest what�s so exciting about matching shoes? The matched shoes are either tied, velcroed, rubber banded or taped together and tossed into the corresponding pile. As we settle in, there is an ever-constant flow of talking, singing and occasional shoe pun made by Cobo or me in an attempt to keep up our ongoing pun battle throughout the week. Once it is clearly hopeless that another pair will be discovered, Se?ora Kelley tips over one of the bags, revealing what that half of the room was full of, bags upon bags of shoes. A layer about one foot high (haha) fills the remaining floor space with footwear and we go at it again, shoes flying every which way after we all claim a type of shoe, collect that type and sort through. I ended up with the task of matching girls dress shoes; you would be surprised at how many makes of practically the same shoe there were. Although it was nice to have so many shoe donations, it is amazing what you can find. There was this one pink snow boot that kept showing up, being a different size and for the same foot, none of them matched. Right on cue, as if he had been planning it the whole time (which he probably was), Cobo comments on how he is experiencing d?j? shoe.


Many shoes were not even worth pairing and were thrown into the reject pile, destined for a dump. In some ways, I felt like people thought this was a way of justifying getting rid of something that was no longer usable, because of dirt, grime and heels separated (the poor little souls!) just because you were donating it. Giving up my position of dress shoe sorter to Jack, I make my way across to Jenny to aid her in untangling a mass of tennis shoes that were all tied together. There were probably seven pairs with very similar white laces all bound by the mother of all knots in the center. We successfully got a few pairs loose but it was obvious that no progress was being made and after spending at least 20 minutes on it, that was abandoned.


We probably paired more shoes than we will ever own in our lifetimes, but it still felt like we didn�t make a dent on what was left to come. We may have done a lot but I didn�t feel exactly fulfilled at the thought that I had played a big game of matching the whole morning while I could have been cooking a meal for the children or collecting eggs at the farm. If you take away something from this speech, just let it be to please, and I repeat please tie shoes together when you donate them!

La Cocina
by Orren Fox


Six-hundred hungry mouths needed to be fed each day. Not once or twice, but three times. The kitchen ladies wake up many hours before any of us would ever consider in order to cook breakfast. No days off, and three times a day. The least we could do would be help. If it involved chopping, sweeping, or scrubbing we would do it. It did not matter what task we were assigned, we would do it and we would do a good job.


With my work group of Chris, Cole and Steve, we headed up to la cocina on Friday to start our final work job. That day we would chop about 50 pl?tanos for the soup. We would make a shallow cut down the center of the banana, and use it to help us peel. After we peeled the plantains, we would chop them to a specific size and shape and then toss them in a large bowl of water. On the outside, they were a dirty green color and very tough. On the inside they were a beautiful color. A mixture of vanilla and peach, this banana-like formation was truly beautiful.


We also chopped many potatoes and luckily, did not have to peel them. Instead, all we had to do was select the rotten ones, throw them out and move on with the edible ones. We then took our huge bowl of potatoes and walked them over to the machine. This 40-inch- high, metal cylinder required a key to turn it on, but unfortunately, the woman with the key came to work around 8:00 a.m. and it was only 7:30. The nice young man who showed us how to do everything in the kitchen had an idea. He grabbed two knives, kneeled down behind the machine and jiggled the knives until the machine seized and turned on. He picked the lock with two kitchen knives! We only had to pour the potatoes in, wait a minute, and pull them out when ready. The machine turned and rumbled the potatoes around until they came out, scrubbed and peeled. The bi-product was a brown mush of potato skins oozing out the bottom into a large, square tub.


While shucking corn and inspecting the cob, it was terrifying to peel back one of the leaves and find an inch-long caterpillar squirming around inside. There were some terrifying moments and some mouth watering ones, but all together the kitchen receives five stars in my book for being a great place to work.

Students in Miami making a difference!

Below is a piece shared by Arleen Rosenthal, Guidance and College Counselor and a great Friend who has helped the Southeast Friends of the Orphans office in Miami, Florida connect with many high school students who are passionate about making a difference. 


Several years ago, I read about Friends of the Orphans in a feature article in my local neighbor�s section of the Miami Herald. I was struck by the organization�s mission, particularly in sending orphans who have grown up in one of the homes to college, thus opening a world of opportunity for them. This resonated with me because I have spent the majority of my professional life working with high school students as a Guidance and College Counselor. What I have noticed throughout the years is that volunteer work is perhaps one of the most significant ways that a student can begin to feel empowered and see themselves in the adult world, use their talents to enrich the lives of others and find a venue to explore their own interests and passions. And so, I began referring some of my students to our local Friends office to see how they could help this worthy cause, and in turn, grow from the experience. I must say that the devotion, creativity and enthusiasm of Sherman Humphreys, the Regional Manager of Child Sponsorship has been contagious and that each student I have referred has benefited from their volunteer efforts. Like ripples in a pond, the impact of their projects on behalf of Friends of the Orphans has involved others in our community from the home schools of the students to their own circles of family and friends. For example, the very first student I sent to Mr. Humphreys ended up involving the Language Department Chair of her high school in a letter translation project. Several orphans were sponsored by students at her school and her parents became donors as well. There are all kinds of ways to help Friends of the Orphans and volunteering provides a wonderful experience for personal growth and self-fulfillment for the volunteers while contributing to a very admirale cause.