HELP Story of the Month

Remember the organization I work with - HELP International? Well, here's our little PR story for this month. I don't know if this story will have he same meaning for you as it does for me, but after having worked at this orphanage several times over a few years, I feel like I have seen some of these kids grow up and it just drives it home that they really will spend their entire lives in this institution. I am so glad that we have volunteers there year-round now. I have seen the difference it makes! Enjoy this little feel good story . . .

While most newlyweds are saving up for their first house or spending money on extravagant honeymoons, just four months into their marriage Sam and Laura Webb spent their summer volunteering at Hogar del Niño, an orphanage for disabled children in El Salvador with approximately 140 residents. Not only were they not paid for their work, but they also funded their own travel and living expenses. “It was worth the money,” Sam says. “It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and this was the perfect time to make that sacrifice.”

Sam and Laura spent three months living in a small house on the orphanage property, teaching classes and playing with the children. Every day was filled with planning and activities. Though the activities may seem simple, Sam and Laura put thought and effort into every activity. “The hardest and most stressful part was the planning,” Laura says. “We had to come up with new and fun activities all the time.”

They planned multiple activities each day. In the mornings they played games with children with severe disabilities, afternoons were spent teaching classes to children with only moderate disabilities and every night was play time. While working at Hogar del Niño, Sam and Laura organized talent shows, glamour shots, a trash bag fashion show, a hunt for Bigfoot and pirate day—just to name a few. At first Sam and Laura were worried about coming up with new ideas, but soon realized the children did not care if they repeated activities. They were happy to have people to play with them. As Sam and Laura soon learned, a little love and attention went a long way at Hogar del Niño. For instance, something as simple as a hand-me-down bicycle is all it takes to make the dreams of a child come true.

For Roberto, a resident of Hogar del Niño, the nuns found him a bike for his 16th birthday. Although he did not know how to ride the bike and it was pink and purple, he immediately named his it the Speed Racer 6,000 and refused to let it out of his sight. He spent all day walking his bike around the grounds. Eventually training wheels were added to his bike so he could ride. He announced to everyone before pedaling away, “Watch out, I'm going to increase my speed!”

“You'll never meet more fun kids,” Laura says. “They are well cared for, but the orphanage is understaffed so the children rarely get personal attention.”

The Hogar del Nino Orphanage in El Salvador was founded in 1986 by a Catholic priest named Padre Vito Guarato. It currently serves as a home for 138 persons with physical and mental disabilities. Residents of Hogar come as babies or young children and stay there for the rest of their lives. Unlike many orphanages in Central and South America, the Hogar is a safe, clean, and loving environment for the residents. However, the orphanage caregivers have their hands so full caring for the physical needs of the residents, that they cannot plan activities or spend time with individual children. Before HELP International partnered with Hogar, many of the residents spent all day every day sitting in their wheelchairs. For this reason, HELP International teamed up with Hogar del Niño in 2006 to send volunteers to live and serve in the orphanage.

“I gained a love for people with disabilities and more understanding of a whole different culture and had fun doing it,” Sam says.

To read more about our work at Hogar del Niño visit their blog at http://hogarproject.blogspot.com/ or click here to learn more about the program and how to get involved.