Nica trip 2010
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Transcript of Nica trip 2010
Nicaragua
Our Summer 2010 Trip
Dear Friends and Family
This was the first trip in which my family (Dan, Ivy and Ian) and my friends (Ilene and Anevay) joined. We took off from LAX with the 6 of us and a total of 12 pieces of luggage full of donated clothes.
We arrived in Managua, where we were picked up by Aaron and Lola to help us navigate out of the city. It was hot and humid, and non-stop rain welcomed us.
I had not seen the shelter in person after we started working on fixing it up. We were very excited to see the state it would be in, as we have been working on getting it up and running for many months.
Our Trips AccomplishmentsThe security wall and gate:Most importantly we finished the security wall and the security gate. Until that project was finished , we would
not be able to leave anything in the shelter. Unfortunately, poverty does bring a lot of property crime . We had to deal with this during our construction period as many building materials had to be replaced due to theft.
Painting: Casa Oma was painted on the inside and the outside. Electricity:Electricity is running. Kitchen: We bought the sink, stove, propane container, and a kitchen table with chairs. Furniture:We bought living room and bedroom furniture all built by local craftsman. We needed to make sure that Casa
Oma was not too fancy. We are trying to be part of the community.Managing the Shelter:We also met up with Lola, our shelters manager. She has been in charge of the construction. She will be working
with the battered women and their children 7 days a week. We had to go over our shelters’ rules and regulations to ensure that Casa Oma will be a safe haven.
Hand out the Donations:We had a great day handing out all the donated clothes to the families in the neighborhood.
Before picturesThe Shelter Building . The basic structure is up.
The floor is still dirt throughout the house
Dividing up the inside living spaceDividing up the space for each rooms walls Three bedrooms will be made here
Adding the Bedrooms
Building the walls with concrete And they are looking good!
Electricity
Adding Electricity to the house And let there be light!
Pouring concrete FloorsDividing Walls are up and they look like real walls
Pouring Concrete Floors thoughout the whole house
The old outhouse/bathroom
Ivy with the toddler ‘Siad’
The new bathroom
The Septic tank is dug and put in The spot next to the wall is dug out
Bathroom being built
The walls start going up And up
The Security Wall goes up
The place where the gate will be The wall is all around the house
Painting the Shelter
The outhouse is ready with the roof The painting begins
Painting the Bedrooms
Primer goes on In every room
Fun Colors
First coat of paint is applied Bedroom #3 is done
The blue room
The other bedroom is painted Blue
The Kids love it
Playing games with the local kids And hanging with people we met
JamieJamie (Lola’s daughter) is a girl we met there She was very cute and sweet
Making friends is easy
This is Siad Jamie's little brotherPlaying outside with the neighborhood kids
Security first
Serpentine is being put up All around the perimeter
Start of the front gate
The front gate is going up Making the front gate
Installing the gate
Continuing on the gate Putting in the gate
Casa Oma sign on the gate
Putting up the Casa Oma sign Dream coming true…..
Final touches on ‘Casa Oma’Oma, means grandmother in Dutch. This is to recognize my grandma and my mother, my kids grandma
They would be proud if they could see me trying to make a difference
Painting Outside of the Shelter
Painting outside and bathroom Or at least the first color scheme
Hand washing machine
Hand…Washing machine New border colors
Kitchen
Start of kitchen counters Counter tile is put in
Furniture shoppingOur truck full of beds and living room furniture
Lola is holding the couch we picked out . All is made by local craftsman
Furniture arrives
Stored at Lola’s home
Bedrooms
Bunkbed's in the rooms Beds and mattresses
Living room
All bedrooms filled, ready to be used The living room couch and chairs
Donated Clothing Handout
Dividing clothes by gender and age
Shoes/Flip-flop's
Shoes all lined up All sorted out in to size and gender
Families with new outfitsEach person got a new outfit, and each person got a new toothbrush
She loved the striped dress, we pictured her wearing it the day after. (see below)
Waiting in Line
Kids are patiently waiting their turnA thankful girl. She found a cute new outfit
One family at the time
We had to stay organized At least 100 people showed up
FamiliesIf it does not fit, they will trade within the neighborhood.
We saw him the next day with his new T-Shirt ( see picture below)
Babies
How sweet…. We ran out of boys clothes too fast….
Little princess
A little princess With her potential boyfriend
The Line outsideMany single mothers have 4 plus kids to take care off Waiting, the line outside
Lots of Excitement
Many families waited for their turn Anevay and Dan handling the boys clothes
Girl’s clothing
Ivy finding the girl a cute outfit If it fits…its good
Party time
Of course cake and soda tooBaked by Jessenia, a battered woman living in the barrio with her 5 kids
Aaron and the Cake
All hand made by Jessenia Aaron (Lola’s husband) adding more cakes
Kids in town with their new clothesFun to see them in town wearing their new T-shirt
She was so happy with her new dress, we ran into her the next day
Downtime and visitingXiomara Sandino, 14 years old got an English Scholarship donated The gang of kids
The VolunteersMy friend, Ilene and her daughter Anevay Strike a pose
Family helpers
My lover, DanMy daughter, Ivy. She wants to go on every new trip to San Marcos
Friends and family
The boy, Ian. He loved Nica Lola , the Shelter’s Manager
Last Day
Last night in the Barrio Final farewells in front of the shelter
Our goals for the future
Running water:Municipal water is infrequent. We need to build
an underground water reserve container and a tower to create water pressure.
Kitchen: We need cabinets built, so the women can cook
store food.
Thank you’s
We had a great trip, my kids thought is was the best place they had been to (who needs 5 star accommodations…..)
We left feeling fulfilled, our goal was met and we could not have done any of this without your support, Thank you…..
• My special thanks goes out to all my dear friends and family who believe in my mission. I love you all……
Donors and volunteers, 2010
Thanks to: Ilene and Anevay (my trip volunteers), Thom Treen (Casa Oma’s
first volunteer and co-founder), Connie & Michi, the Lei/Schaberg family, the Hovland family, the Coleman family, Stuart Yanling, Winnie Lam, Harriet Sustarsic, the Dutch family Donkers, Mariette and Nelson Verhoeven, Donna & Billy, Gioconda Quant, the Klein/McKenna family, Renee Bell, Shannon Bell, Marilyn Darracq, Rebecca Balogh, my dad John v.d Velden, Marlena, Shannon Bell, Yolanda Beckers, the Sutton family, Miss Anne and Eric Sharp, Louie and Ethan Rodriguez, Trina Gagliano,
If I forgot anyone to name anyone please forgive me, and contact me immediately, many donations were given anonymously to all those….thank you.