I WILL RUN THE ATRAVESNICARAGUA MARATHON ON JANUARY 18, 2015 TO BRING ATTENTION TO CHILDREN LIVING IN EXTREME PROVERTY AND PEOPLE UNDERGOING AMPUTATIONS OR DYING FROM TREATABLE DISEASES. AND ATRAVESNICARAGUA IS IN NEED OF VOLUNTEERS TO COME TO NICARAGUA (OUR HOME STAY PROGRAM AND-OR SPANISH IMMERSION PROGRAM.) AND WE NEED DONATIONS. Please take a moment to read, look at a few photos I took and share and see why survival is a very serious struggle here. I live in the second poorest country in the western hemisphere—Nicaragua. I work in a town called William Galeano (subdivision of Managua) and the economy is classified as “extreme poverty”. There is not enough food, many children are malnourished and it is a very dangerous place to live. Thirty percent of the household income is earned by children in primary school. They do this by selling snacks or trinkets on the street, picking up recyclables or doing other jobs that pays pennies for an entire days work. Many will not receive an education as they must miss school for several weeks during harvesting season. I am Director of Programs for a not-for-profit organization called AtravesNicaragua. AtravesNicaragua’s programs consist of a primary school with 250 students, a clinic and pharmacy. Education, health services and medicines are free to everyone in the community. Though our health program is a success, we function on a budget solely funded by donations. AtravesNicaragua does not receive one cent from the government of Nicaragua or any other state or local governments. Tragically, this also means we cannot treat the 4 of 10 people in our community who have diabetes. There is not enough insulin, test strips, monitors or medicine. Some patients will have their limbs amputated, many already have and many are double amputees. I visit them every Wednesday. And of course, too many simply die. But AtravesNicaragua, together with the Foundation with Social Responsibility, a non profit organization in the United States, has made a tremendous impact. Until 2004, there was neither a school nor a clinic in William Galeano. Parents could not afford the cost of a few cents to have their kids use public transportation and there was no bus system. There still is not. Children simply did not attend school. This is why Leticia Rojas, a former nun and Elieth Silva, a Master’s in Pedagogy (art and science of teaching), bought the land and built a small school for 15 children here in William Galeano. Their initial goal, this the Foundation for Social Responsibility was to provide a free education. However, early in the first year of the program, school administration realized half of the students had serious malnutrition deficiencies and other serious health issues. Students simply had no ability to learn. For those reasons AtravesNicaragua and the Foundation for Social responsibility established a nutritional program that provided two free meals and a vitamin supplement, every day, for all students. Now, the preschool is a grade school, extended to 6th grade and we are still feeding 250 students two meals per day, while providing an education. My largest challenges and concerns are not having enough money to feed our students, to buy medicines, to pay our teachers and doctors and to tell students we can no longer afford to give them an education or treat patients. This is why I am trying to raise funds for AtravesNicaragua. I am going to run a 26.2 mile marathon on Sunday, January 18, 2015, from Reston, Virginia to Purceville, Virginia, to earn the funds I raise and to show how committed I am to our programs. What I know you will appreciate about donated funds is that I can tell you exactly where every penny will be spent. For example, it costs $200 per student, per year for enrollment. AtravesNicaragua must buy rice and beans, medicines, pay salaries of teachers, doctors, 2 culinary workers, and other staff. And finding volunteers to come to Nicaragua and donors from the United States are critical for our program. My goal is to raise $3,000.00 by January 15. And I will run every mile for these kids who I know each by name. Because I am in Central America and cannot directly collect funds, I am asking you to send a check or money order to my parents in the United States, and they will directly send the money to the Executive Director of AtravesNicaragua. At this time I am not able to use electronic payments because of the laws of Nicaragua (astronomical fees). I know many of you who have supported me in the past prefer to do this electronically but I am pleading with you to not be discouraged by sending a check or money order. ATRAVESNICARAGUA is a not-for-profit organization so all donations are tax deductible. And we will provide you with a receipt and thank you keepsake. Also, I will update you on my marathon training, including while I am running the marathon. Finally, I hope you please take a moment to “like” the facebook page of AtravesNicaragua, facebook/pages/Atraves-Nicaragua/179333972265942 Some of the photos and postings will make you leap for joy or break your heart. And I also hope you post to the page and AtravesNicaragua will immediately respond. I CAN BE REACHED ON MY MAGIC JACK NUMBER (LOCAL FREE CALL FROM THE UNITED STATES) AT 202 280-7323, IF YOU WANT TO TALK OR IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS. MY EMAIL ADDRESS IS [email protected] PLEASE SEND CHECK OR MONEY ORDER TO Mr. Kevin Taylor 11525 Old Baltimore Pike Beltsville, Maryland 20705 Kt9090@yahoo 202-280-7323 (my magic jack number here in Managua....local to U.S. residents) or 505-7799-9525 (direct while in Nicaragua) Thank you very much and I hope to hear from you very soon. Please let me know if you or any person or groups you know would like to come volunteer in our homestay program from 3 to 30 days (or more). ill be glad to give you more information. Your truly, Kevin
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 16:23:05 +0000
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