Please Read and Maybe Give a Little Bit

This coming Saturday, I will be traveling with a team of my coworkers on a Mission Trip to Ventanilla, Peru. We will be volunteering at Sagrada Familia (La Comunidad de Niños Sagrada Familia), which was was founded in 1989 by Miguel Rodriguez and is located in one of Lima’s poorest districts, in Ventanilla. The community gives abandoned and neglected children exposed to drugs, violations, prostitution a caring and loving home. Over the years, Sagrada Familia grew into a large school and orphanage with a K-12 School, dormatories, a medical clinic, and then the introduction of vocational workshops, as now most children are able to find jobs upon graduation. Alumni of Sagrada Familia are now working as successful teachers, lawyers, and other professions.

I will be working mostly in the health clinic, along with some opportunities to help out with other tasks and work that needs to be done in this community that houses 300 kids, with another 900 that come daily to attend school.

We had received a list of requests from Sagrada Familia, as well as from families in the area where electricity and running water are a luxury, of donation items that they need if such donations were to be made. As a Team, we are bringing a large number of donations, but I decided to ramp it up, and try to add more. The things they are requesting are not things that I was ready to expect. Lice treatment for the kiddos, bug spray (because their mosquitoes can carry Malaria or any number of other nasty things), Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen for the kids, and of course, children’s clothes. The thing that overwhelmingly stuck out to was the list was all items for the kids. The adults all want the same things... For the children to be taken care of.

I started a GoFundMe to see if anyone may be willing to throw in a couple bucks as a donation to the children and adults in this area, an area that certainly appreciates any help they can get. This is very last minute, but if you’d like to donate a little bit, please do. Tomorrow night (Friday) I will go out and buy another bunch of supplies to bring with us when we fly out Saturday morning. Thanks in advance if you’re able to throw some spare change in.

This is something I’ve always wanted to do and I’m blessed to have the opportunity. I’ve worked on the ambulance in many, many different areas, both cities and small towns. This will be a completely different experience, one that I know is going to make me a better Paramedic, and better person.

Jeff