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Hello everyone! As some of you may already know, I have travelled back and forth to Nicaragua over the past three years, and have met some amazing people in doing so—though particularly, my friend Robyn and his family. Robyn has been such an incredible friend to me these three years—he’s been there numerous times when I’ve needed help and has helped me out in difficult situations. Robyn has made me to feel very welcome with him and his family as I have gotten to know all of them over some time and they have taken me in as family as well. They really have become a second family of mine at home away from home. Through all this, Robyn has never asked for anything in return for the times he's helped me out, and he always insists on buying a round of beers for us at the end of the day.
Unfortunately, Robyn and his family have been greatly impacted by the current state of things in Nicaragua. With the crime, violence, and civil unrest, the tourism industry has taken a huge hit, and this has resulted in the loss of countless jobs for those living in the villages surrounding the beach tourist destinations. I won’t go into too many details about the country, but here are a few good links if you’d like to become more informed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DBGUSog2Tc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dilq-wHh-U
Robyn, his brother, his father, and his grandfather and other family members have lost their jobs in the last year, and have been desperately searching for any kind of work. Robyn’s wife, Raquel, is currently the only one in the family with a job, and she makes about $8 per day—which goes towards supporting the whole family. Robyn and Raquel have a beautiful daughter, Natali, who just turned 6 and they live in an adobe house with the rest of the family—Robyn’s siblings and their spouses, his parents, and his grandparents (some sleeping 3 per bed).
On top of this, there are two new additions to the family, as just this past month his sister welcomed a baby boy and his sister in law welcomed a baby girl.
A portion of the income being brought in has been going towards supporting the new babies, but the majority of it has been going towards Robyn’s mom, as she has been extremely ill. She’s already had a few surgeries, and next month she will need to go in again to remove a tumor from her stomach. Throughout this whole time, Robyn and his family have stayed so positive and kept their spirits up, though it has been a very emotionally and financially stressful time. I’m sure you can imagine how difficult is must be to be worried about costly medical bills and care for two newborns on top of supporting a family of 13 off just one income!
When I was in Nicaragua this past February, I hired Robyn, his father, and his grandfather to help me build a fence and with the landscaping on my property. It wasn’t much, but they thanked me countless times for the opportunity to earn some money, and I tried to help them out as much as I could. Towards the end of my trip, Robyn and I were enjoying lunch and he expressed to me how concerned he and his whole family were about his mother—about how they were going to be able to afford all of her medical bills and be able to get her the help that she needed, all while caring for themselves as well. Robyn, who had never asked me for a thing over our three year friendship, asked me if there anything I could do to help them out—and this is where I hope you can contriubute!
It breaks my heart to see Robyn and his family struggling so much in these difficult times, especially as they’ve been so good to me and really have been like a second family. I’ll be returning to Nicaragua May 16th, and I’d love to help them out as much as I can—but I can’t do it alone!
Robyn's mother will be undergoing her next surgery June 7th so I hope we can reach our fundraiser goal by then. I will share just one photo of the few as I felt the others were too graphic to share..
If you are able to make a donation, no matter how small, it can be life changing to this family. All of the money raised will be going to the family to help with the mother’s medical and transportation bills, care for the two newborns and Natali, and potentially expanding the casita to make more room for the growing family.
It’s not clear when the economy will turn around and if they will be able to find steady jobs anytime soon, so any money donated would help them to make ends meet until things turn around. I really appreciate you taking the time to read this story, and if you decide to make a contribution—no matter how small—thank you so much!
Unfortunately, Robyn and his family have been greatly impacted by the current state of things in Nicaragua. With the crime, violence, and civil unrest, the tourism industry has taken a huge hit, and this has resulted in the loss of countless jobs for those living in the villages surrounding the beach tourist destinations. I won’t go into too many details about the country, but here are a few good links if you’d like to become more informed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DBGUSog2Tc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dilq-wHh-U
Robyn, his brother, his father, and his grandfather and other family members have lost their jobs in the last year, and have been desperately searching for any kind of work. Robyn’s wife, Raquel, is currently the only one in the family with a job, and she makes about $8 per day—which goes towards supporting the whole family. Robyn and Raquel have a beautiful daughter, Natali, who just turned 6 and they live in an adobe house with the rest of the family—Robyn’s siblings and their spouses, his parents, and his grandparents (some sleeping 3 per bed).
On top of this, there are two new additions to the family, as just this past month his sister welcomed a baby boy and his sister in law welcomed a baby girl.
A portion of the income being brought in has been going towards supporting the new babies, but the majority of it has been going towards Robyn’s mom, as she has been extremely ill. She’s already had a few surgeries, and next month she will need to go in again to remove a tumor from her stomach. Throughout this whole time, Robyn and his family have stayed so positive and kept their spirits up, though it has been a very emotionally and financially stressful time. I’m sure you can imagine how difficult is must be to be worried about costly medical bills and care for two newborns on top of supporting a family of 13 off just one income!
When I was in Nicaragua this past February, I hired Robyn, his father, and his grandfather to help me build a fence and with the landscaping on my property. It wasn’t much, but they thanked me countless times for the opportunity to earn some money, and I tried to help them out as much as I could. Towards the end of my trip, Robyn and I were enjoying lunch and he expressed to me how concerned he and his whole family were about his mother—about how they were going to be able to afford all of her medical bills and be able to get her the help that she needed, all while caring for themselves as well. Robyn, who had never asked me for a thing over our three year friendship, asked me if there anything I could do to help them out—and this is where I hope you can contriubute!
It breaks my heart to see Robyn and his family struggling so much in these difficult times, especially as they’ve been so good to me and really have been like a second family. I’ll be returning to Nicaragua May 16th, and I’d love to help them out as much as I can—but I can’t do it alone!
Robyn's mother will be undergoing her next surgery June 7th so I hope we can reach our fundraiser goal by then. I will share just one photo of the few as I felt the others were too graphic to share..
If you are able to make a donation, no matter how small, it can be life changing to this family. All of the money raised will be going to the family to help with the mother’s medical and transportation bills, care for the two newborns and Natali, and potentially expanding the casita to make more room for the growing family.
It’s not clear when the economy will turn around and if they will be able to find steady jobs anytime soon, so any money donated would help them to make ends meet until things turn around. I really appreciate you taking the time to read this story, and if you decide to make a contribution—no matter how small—thank you so much!