Thursday, July 29, 2010

Please Pray for Miguelito ( tee tee) He may be reunited with his family.

  Thanks to the tireless work of our social worker, Miguel may go home with his family tomorrow after the family court hearing. He is about 13 or 14 years old now. His family is from a very poor and backwards part of the mountain country.  About three years ago Miguel wandered off and somehow landed far from his county and state. Probably someone gave him a ride.  His parents reported the missing child to the autorities, but the communications and databases in rural areas are way behind the times. Little progress was made. Meanwhile, Miguel ended up in the system and having on identication or verbal skills the closest anyone could guess on his name was tee tee. We leave at 4 am to take him to the family court near his home and if all goes well, he will go home with his family and we will drive five hours back to the capital with hearts of the Lord´s Blessings.
  Now we only have 68 left to place... 

Hermano en Cristo

Sunday, July 25, 2010

The weekend has come and gone... so very fast.

  I was looking at the photo below of the kids in the Special Olympics and I was thinking that I am one of the luckiest men alive. I love each of them so very much and think that each one of them is so very special. God is so good and gives us so many opportunities to grow, learn and care.
   Both Saturday and Sunday were great at the center. Much time spent outside in the yard. The five kids in clinic were pretty good. Ingrid is really able to stand up with help and walk a bit with lots of support. We have the new swing set and a teeter totter. So far they haven't been broken, but give us some time. Thanks to all the kind and generous donations to the Cadanino foundation we were able to help get it installed.

  This week looks busy. One boy has a good chance to return to his family. Apparently, about three years ago, he sort of wandered off. The family is of very limited means and education and they were unable to find him. He has almost no verbal skills and limited intelligence. To top it off he has to be the most ADHD kid I have ever seen. He is a constant motion machine. Anyway, the family wants him back as they have finally found him.  We do have some happy endings and great outcomes.

  Also, Father Michael DellaPenne donated a couple of wheelchairs, some food and some sheathed cable. The wheelchairs are rock solid and very sturdy. We really on the cheaper folding wheelchairs that are poorly made and of course mis-handled by us.

  Moving into the new apartment piece by piece. Finally have some Internet connection there, so I slept there last night. WOW!!  It was quiet. What a nice change.

  There is a scheduled tour of the city on Thursday for the new City Bus System. Apparently, after the gangs actually bombed one, the government thought they needed more ways to promote their use. Just kidding, I really don't know the why and wherefore of the trip, but there was a driver and several passengers killed last week with a bomb. Did I mention that bus driving in this country has one of the highest mortality rates?

  I missed the Speculator Parade on the Fourth and am missing the entire month of July at home. I will be there in late August and can't wait to see friends and family.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Special Olimpics Today in Guatemala


Lot's of Gold, SIlver and Bronze Medals today at the Special Olympics. It was truly a special day and a wonderful event. If you have never been to one with a kid you care about, you really should go sometime. Awesome.
This is the half way point in the year. There is another competition in Septmber and the winners go to Greece for the International Competition. Some coaches and teachers are working pretty hard to develop their talent. We did remarkably well and with our new training regime you can count on us to bring home the gold.





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Sunday, July 18, 2010

Thanks Brother Peter



We took Mohamed for a Doctor's appointment today at the hospital in Antigua: Hermano San Pedro. The group of doctors were from Faces of Hope. Really great group that comes out of the Rotary. They have people here that coordinate and they send teams of medical folk all over the world as volunteers. Our little boy has a Cleft Palate, but is ineligible for the procedure because of his age and the likelihood that he'll never learn to speak. Also, there may be scar tissue from an earlier botched procedure and that would make the surgery significantly more risky. The Doctor turned to me and said that he needed dental work. I thought to myself, "no more than the other 70 kids he lives with." but I kept quiet and think we may actually have a new dental connection here in the capital.
Coincidentally, today there was a half Marathon in Antigua. I was able to watch a bit as we had a five hour wait in the waiting room to see the docs. We also lucked out because there was a miscommunication where we were told they were going to lunch and to come back at 2:30pm. We started out and the rain started. Then we learned they were closing the admittance area at 2:30 and we would have missed the opportunity to learn that our kid can't have the operation. We could have spent another full day waiting to find this out. God definitely has a plan.
Also, I attended a really moving Mass. The hospital is also a residential center for many disabled and wheelchaired folks. It was quite emotional to see the different levels of participation and attention to the Mass. Most are in wheelchairs or hybrid transport beds. Many new the words to the Prayers and were attentive. I felt so Blessed to be able to share this special time with them. Also, our social worker, Marcia was with us the entire day. I have the utmost respect for her professionalism and commitment to the children. Many of the government employees do not want to give up their days off for work related initiatives. She is not like that and really makes things happen for these kids. We have had several children able to return to their families. That is  a huge success. Thank you Marcia.








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Friday, July 16, 2010

A typical Friday morning... if there is ever such a thing.

  I've been thinking that I need to blog more about the kids: individually and collectively. Our group of five are outside right now under the tent like structure. Safely seated on rolls of mature carpet. It's safe and clean. The air is fresh and the sun is finally shining. Great to be outside and rolling around on the ground. Free at last ... they are free at last.

  My struggle with them and the support systems is to give them as much time and space to explore. Before this program started they were in wheelchairs (and restraints- appropriately) or in their bed for long night times. Minimal stimulation. Perhaps my lack of background in this area of development has helped or hindered. My message has consistently been to get the kids out of the wheelchairs. The can crawl and roll around. Today we have a group of college kids helping as part of their field experience. They are a blessing and I wish there were more.

  Ingrid is able to standup with help for longer stretches of time. She can put food into her mouth if she likes it. Or should I say that she can put something into her mouth eventually. Years of being fed institutionally, has not given her any chance to develop her fine motor skills or even to understand the reason to use her hands. This has been a very slow process. Her warped and twisted arms and legs are very difficult to remediate and operations to meet her needs are very unlikely. At the same time the profoundly low intelligence makes progress difficult.  It is well known that she is my favorite and I work hard to be referred to as Uncle Jamie and not Papa Jamie. Her vocabulary consists of a short scream of greeting when she sees you and a motor boat like noise that I think we refer to as a raspberry. Tongue extended from lips and teeth and a vibrating saliva propulsion. I would prefer words, but who knows.
Each day we get her to stand up a bit. With two people she can take small steps, but sees no apparent need to walk or do much. I am hoping that the more time she spends standing  up and viewing the world that she we develop a level of curiousity.

  Since I started writing this a few minutes ago a group of clowns have come to entertain the older kids. They are part of Smiles Unlimited and are the best!!  Philanthropic volunteerism is just starting to be part of the culture here. Many people express interest in volunteering but rarely follow through.  There are tons of fotos of these folks in my blogs and web albums. They truly are a blessing.

  

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Christian humor.... hope you think it's amusing...

Changing  a light bulb the Christian way:  How  many Christians does it take to change a light bulb?  
( A Few of my favorites) 

Episcopalians: Three.  One  to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks and one to talk about how much better the old one was.
 
Mormons: Five.  One man to change the bulb, and four wives to tell him how to do it.



Lutherans:  None.  Lutherans don't believe in change.
 
Amish:  What's a light bulb?



For the full list      The link to Christian Lightbulb humor





Friday, July 9, 2010

All work and no play....

Fun outing. Basically, our summer picnic. Two days at a neat retreat center.   The water appeared dirty but was really just filled with volcanic ash and gravel from the recent explosion.

Lot's of fun and a much needed break for the woman at the center who work so hard day to day.


Great activity Thanks Jose!!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Day 1 Sabanas Grande













  

Are these the cutest kids or what?


These are the grand daughters of my friend Gloria. They attend a Franciscan boarding school for kids. The Priest that leads there is my new pal Father Michael.

I attended Mass their yesterday and had lunch. The place is awesome. Serene, new and clean. The vision of the founder Father Rocco is truly to be admired. They provide education, growth and accomodations for around 240 kids and the kids get to go home on summer vacation to be with their families. Most families are of limited eceonomic means (read poor) and all the kids attend the school for free. The Sisters that teach and nurture the children are wonderful. A truly worthy organization.

IHN
waldo

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Saturday, July 3, 2010

Score!! And thanks for Generous Clothing Donation

    Went yesterday to visitors day at a special place called,  Valle de Los Angeles.  
  There is a terrific Franciscan Priest there named Michael Della Penne and he had some clothing donations in sizes too large for the children at his center. We went to his storage facility which happens to be at Fundaninos and loaded up my car. Great coincidence to make this new friendship on a personal, spiritual and professional level.
 

Followers