Since our inception, Adoptions International has been committed to providing Humanitarian Aid in the countries in which we work.  We are currently working closely with a licensed children’s home in Guatemala City and fund raising to help meet their many needs.

Like hundreds of other licensed Children’s Homes in Guatemala, Nuestra Senora de Piedad is the result of private and volunteer efforts to improve the lives of children who would otherwise be on the streets or in impoverished, abusive or negligent family situations.  When we first visited “Nuestra Senora”, we were overwhelmed by the love and commitment its volunteer Director was making to the children in her care.  Originally licensed twelve years ago for 30 children between the ages of 0-5, because many public orphanages have been closed in Guatemala, we found 58 children from 2 to 15 years of age living in this large, deteriorating home.

All of the children have been sent to “Nuestra Senora” by the courts.  There is no government assistance provided for these children.  The Hogar depends entirely on the contributions it receives.  At the time of our first visit, food was coming from private donors and some assistance groups.  Child care was being provided by the Director, her adult daughter (who are there every day from 8A.M. to 8 P.M.) and other volunteers. Their donated “used” washing machine, dryer, stove and refrigerators were barely functioning. Bathrooms were hardly useable and beds were overcrowded.  The needs seemed overwhelming.

Yet, it was not the extreme and obvious needs we perceived, which unfortunately are duplicated in hundreds of similar Hogars which moved us to “adopt” the Hogar -- it was an indefinable spirit, engendered by its committed Director and Board, which changed the depressing “half empty cup” into one that was “half full” with hope and promise.  Because we saw the older children holding and nurturing the younger ones, we saw the children working together to clean and cook, helping each other with schoolwork in an environment which was filled with safety and love.  We knew that this was a project which would be able to fully use whatever help we provided; and that even a little bit would go a long way.

In the months since then, we’ve engaged the “partnership” of another agency.  Together we’ve raised funds for child care workers, appliances, new bathrooms, rewiring the building, and carpentry to better utilize the space. We’re supplementing their very basic diet with milk, fruit and vegetables. Thanks to the donations from our families and a grant from a small Foundation, we’ve been able to meet our initial goals.

However, there is a great deal more we’d like to do to make this into a model orphanage. The Hogar desperately needs a Van.  The children need educational toys and supplies. The older girls (between 12-15) need socialization and skills to be able to survive once they leave the Hogar.  Many of the children have had experiences of abandonment, sexual and physical abuse.  Their wounds are deep and we’d like to provide therapeutic services to help them heal.