More than a Chance to Study… (Santa Matilde)

    Those of you who have been following my blog posts, know that I have been overseeing our student sponsorship program for almost 2 years now. It's become one of my favorite parts of my job here. I love to see the faces of the children and their parents light up when they find out that their child has been sponsored. For these families, this is a huge answer to prayer and a giant burden removed from their hearts. Now there child will be able to study consistently- when there is work and when they find themselves unemployed. For the majority of families in this area, work is nearly impossible to find. Most people only work seasonally cutting sugar cane or working on local farms. This seasonal work makes it very difficult for families to afford necessary school supplies and for their children to study on a consistent basis.
    Amazing things are happening through this program! While the primary goal is to open doors to education that will give children a chance to rise above the poverty that surrounds them and dream for a better future, sponsorship is SO MUCH MORE than a chance to study…

   I want to share with you a couple of the stories from our sponsored students in Santa Matilde. I would like for you to meet Nuvia (11), Josue (9), and Luis (4). They are all siblings and are all three sponsored through our student sponsorship program (visiting with the sweet Dolmos kids in Santa Matilde- pictured right).
    These three sibilings are completing their first year in our sponsorship program. This blessing has provided these three beautiful children with the opportunity to study consistently, but it has also done so much more for them and their family.
     During one of my first visits to their home, I discovered that the family didn't have a bathroom. Indoor plumbing is mostly non-exsistent here in the villages. Most families have outhouses and outdoor showers, but this family literally had NEVER had a bathroom at their house. They told me that they ran to the neighbors house everytime that they needed to use the bathroom. I couldn't imagine never having a bathroom of your own. Through the sponsorship, we were able to help the family purchase the cement that they needed in order to build an outhouse in their yard (their new bathroom- pictured left). Their sponsorship provided the materials and the family provided the labor. When I went back to visit the family, they were showing off their new outhouse to me. They were thrilled! Small things like this that we are able to help families do at their own homes really helps to give families greater dignity. Many times living in poverty strips individuals and families of their dignity and gives low self-esteem. It is a beautiful thing when you can return dignity to a family!
     These beautiful children have also received much-needed medical and dental care during this year of sponsorship. Luis has been able to see a pediatric specialist and receive medication that he needed after developing an infection earlier in the year. Josue was able to have a tooth removed that had become absessed. Nuvia received anti-biotics to remove an infection from from her toe. All of these illnesses would have likely gone untreated if it hadn't been for their sponsorship and subsequent access to free medical and dental care at the New Song clinic. But thankfully this program has provided them the means to receive treatment for these illnesses and kept them from having long absenses from school due to illness.
   Yes, all three children are in school. They are enjoying their classes and getting an education. They are dreaming for their future. Their parents no longer fear that their children may not be able to attend school the following year if they do not have work at the moment. Sponsorship allows these children to study consistently, but it is so much more than just education. 

    I would also like for you to meet Paula (7). She is also new to our sponsorship program this year (Paula and her younger sister Gloria- pictured right). Paula's dad, like many people in our area, only works six months of the year harvesting sugar cane. When he has work, their family is able to meet their basic needs, but when he is without work they struggle to survive. Food, education, medical care, etc. are available when their father works. During the six months without employment, the family never knew where their next meal would come from or if their daughters would have the means to finish the school year. Now, Paula can study consistently. She knows that she will be able to complete her schooling and can dream for her future. The generosity of her sponsor is opening a whole new world for Paula. It is also relieving a huge burden off of her parents wondering each year if she will be able to complete the school year. 
   Once again, this program is also going beyond just opening doors to education. Through giving of generous sponsors we are able to do so much more!! In Nicaragua we have two seasons: rainy and dry. During the six-month rainy season, we get intense storms nearly every day. Last month as rainy season was ending, lightening struck a nearby tree causing a branch to crash through the roof of Paula's house creating a giant hole in the roof. Around the same time, Paula became ill with bronchitis and had to be taken to the hospital. All of this was occurring at the end of the six month period of unemployment for the sugar cane workers. Even if these two things had occurred when their father had employment, most families are barely putting food on the table and find themselves in serious financial difficulty when emergencies come up. However, when these things occur without employment, families find themselves in an impossible situation. Without sponsorship, the family would have spent the next month at least living with a hole in their roof rearranging their beds so that hopefully no one got wet when the rain came pouring into their home. Their daughter's bronchitis would have remained untreated because there just isn't any money for medication. Thankfully, this story has a happier ending! Through Paula's sponsorship, we were able to provide her with medication to treat her bronchitis and buy a new piece of tin so that the family was able to repair their roof and protect their family from the elements (the family's house with the newly fixed roof pictured above left).

    These are just two of the beautiful stories coming out of this program. Sponsorship is making a HUGE difference in the lives of children whose families are trapped in the cycle of poverty. Our hope is not to give hand outs, but to give children a hand up so that through education they can rise above the poverty that surrounds them. If you are interested in helping one of our children, check out our new student sponsorship website, www.educatenica.org, and select a child to sponsor for only $25/month.