I'd heard that being a tia was hard work...

Below is an excerpt from a blog post written by NPH Guatemala volunteer, Jessica Heintz. Jessica shares about how rewarding her experience being a "tia" last December was for her! 

I was pretty nervous leading up to December. I�d heard that being a t?a was hard work, and it certainly was. The hours could drag on, the kids wouldn�t listen, etc. At the same time though, it was an experience I really enjoyed. My position as clinic assistant doesn�t provide a lot of direct contact with the kids. Thus, the intense time I spent with so many peque?os in December was great! Also, because I had a new group of boys for the most part, I got to know a lot more kids within the home.

One of my favorite parts of the t?a experience was doing �vela�, or night duty. I would drag my blankets down from my house to the section, rocking sweat pants and glasses. My partner would leave and I would put on some lovely Latin bachata music until my boys fell asleep. Then, when everything was quiet, I too could snuggle up on the t?a bed until the morning, when I was in charge of waking everyone up for another day. While I missed my own bed a bit on these nights, it overwhelmingly felt like such a position of honor to be able to have the privilege of keeping watch over the kids while they slept.

Read her full post and see more pictures here!

Happy Mother's Day!

At all of our NPH homes, even though many of our children come to us because their biological mothers can no longer take care of them, our peque?os are not motherless by any means. They have many "mothers" in their lives, and a strong and supportive family that lets them know they are truly loved.


"To them, I was a mother figure (yes, some of my girls called me �Ma� and �Mommy�), a sister, an aunt, a friend, a teacher and a mentor. What they were to me was an inspiration. Each day, I was encouraged by their ability to overcome any and all obstacles. They made my time at NPH fulfilling, and I was able to fill a void in their lives." -Kelly Hettic, volunteer at NPH Mexico 

"When the sun sets and the moon comes up, our mothers don't tire; they continue their work. As Charly, a T?a from Casa Santa Maria Reina, says, "there isn't a day to say everything that we as mothers have done, because every day is something special for a mother." Every day is Mother's Day; however, on this day we open up and remember all the help, encouragement, and love that each mother has brought into the lives of all the children here at NPH and in Honduras." -Benjamin Katz, Home Correspondent at NPH Honduras

"In their service, the mother figures live out and offer the very core values that NPH works to instill in its children: love, security, sharing, work and responsibility. Their presence of positive motherhood is vital for the healthy growth of our children, many of whom have experienced loss and abandonment by loved ones. Learning by their example, we hope that our peque?os will know the gifts of service, love and responsible motherhood in their own futures." -Hailey Rademacher, Communications Officer at NPH Honduras