No matter age or native language, the pequeños and host families always connect in an extraordinary way that will never be forgotten...

The below blog post is written by Olivia Stephani​, a high school student in Chicago who spent the summer interning at our Midwest Regional Office!

At the height of the Windy City’s unpredictable, frigid weather, 13 pequeños from NPH Mexico flew into Chicago for their musical pequeño tour. Chaperoned by a former pequeño, they were ready for 3 weeks of singing and dancing performances at various locations, including Jones College Prep: a high school located right in the heart of downtown Chicago. 

Soon after they arrived, the pequeños were whisked from the airport to meet up with their first of three different host families. It is with these host families that they would be staying with throughout their visit; the pequeños are temporarily taken into the homes of generous host families and treated as part of that family.

Opening the doors of her home to the pequeños for the second year in a row, Janet Pasquesi was ecstatic “to be around the life” that the girls and boys bring. While hosting during this musical pequeño tour in spring 2019, Janet had many fun activities planned. Together with the girls she hosted during the first week of the tour, she visited The Art Institute of Chicago, looked at Lake Michigan, and went out to dinner in the near suburbs. However, it was at this dinner--among other places--where they ran smack into what may seem to be a daunting obstacle: the language barrier. Most host families, including Janet, do not speak Spanish, and the pequeños speak little to no English; despite this, new ways to communicate are always formed. Whether it was sign language or online resources, there was always a way to talk. At this particular dinner, Janet requested a waiter that spoke Spanish and found herself and her daughter relying on Google translate.

Commenting on the closeness of all the pequeños, Janet explains how she had two separate rooms for the two girls she hosted, yet by the morning they were in the same bed. During her second week, she hosted three boys who she saw “picked up bits of English quickly.” One of these pequeños fell sick, and Janet’s son immediately set the sick boy up with some food and a television show to keep him occupied. Even with one of the boys feeling under the weather, this allowed them to bond even more. 

In addition to their own fun, all the host families and pequeños went to fun events as a group. They held a lively pizza party where Janet says, “Everybody had a great time.” With phrases like “full of life,” “extremely organized,” and “appreciative,” Janet paints the picture of the fun, polite guests that added an extra level of soul to her home for two weeks that sped by. During the third week of their tour, Janet was not hosting; however, she found herself requesting to spend even more time with the pequeños.

No matter age or native language, the pequeños and host families always connect in an extraordinary way that will never be forgotten. In the words of host Tricia Dill, “Learning their [the pequeños’] stories and spending time with them touched our hearts in a way that will make us forever supporters of NPH.”

NPH USA Midwest Celebrates Supporter Rick Reichmuth

As our Midwest Region gears up for the Football Legends Classic 2019 at the Biltmore Country Club in North Barrington, Illinois, we would like to take some time to highlight this year’s Emcee: Rick Reichmuth. Rick, an AMS Seal-certified meteorologist, is the Chief Meteorologist at FOX News and FOX & Friends. After originally pursuing a career in banking, Rick decided to follow his dream and has now been working in the meteorology industry for over 17 years.

In 2017, Rick launched the Weatherman Umbrella, a one-of-a-kind umbrella that can withstand anything. It can endure winds up to 55 mph and effectively repels all water. Additionally, there is an app that allows users to locate their umbrella via Bluetooth and get morning notifications about if their Weatherman Umbrella is needed. The Weatherman Umbrella is currently available in three different styles: collapsible, stick, and golf. Thanks to the hard work of its founder and CEO—Rick, himself--Weatherman Umbrella has taken off.

Before Rick was a nationally recognized meteorologist and CEO, he served as an international volunteer at the NPH Mexico Miacatlán home in the early 90’s. After receiving a degree in Spanish Literature from Arizona State University, Rick headed down to NPH Mexico. Once there, he spent a little over a year focusing on active physical therapy for the home’s special needs children. Currently, our Mexico home supports 719 children and provides 1,677 services.

Rick is generously donating his time and his Weatherman Umbrellas to the Football Legends Classic. Rick, thank you for your continued support of NPH’s mission, and see you on the green! 

2018 Viva La Familia Gala

This year's Viva La Familia Gala was a spectacular night filled Latin cuisine, good vibes, and new and old friends of the NPH USA Midwest Region. Most importantly, it was a tremendous night of fundraising our children.

 

On October 27th, the NPH USA Midwest Region hosted their annual gala at Latinicity Food Hall & Lounge, which is located in Chicago’s Loop. The switch from the traditional gala ballroom setting, allowed us to bring the flavors, colors and cultures of the thousands of children we serve in Latin America and the Caribbean to our guests in Chicago!

The event kicked off at 6 p.m. with a cocktail and dinner reception which included heavy grazing, open bars, silent auction bidding, and lots of entertainment. We were lucky to have our friends and musical performers from Marimba Luna Maya and Live Artist, Regina Simonsen with us for the night as well.

The cocktail and dinner reception was followed by what we call, the Viva Presentation. Each table featured an Edible Work of Art by Pastry Chef, Adriana Martell, of Latinicity. The Corazón Award, which is presented to those who have given their heart to the mission of NPH, was awarded to Nohemí Hernández Medrano, better known as Momo. Honored next was Reinhart Köhler who is the President of NPH International and the founder of NPH Honduras. Reinhart was the recipient of the Alma Award, which is given to someone who has already a recipient of the Corazón Award. Reinhart Köhler was not only honored, but also served as our Keynote Speaker for the presentation. Also featured in the presentation was Bishop Ronald Hicks and President and Chief Executive Officer of NPH USA, Frank Donaghue. Thanks to our hilarious and unforgettable event emcee, Lou Manfredini, the room was filled with laughter the entire night.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the 2018 Viva La Familia Gala. From donors and guests, to volunteers and staff, we could not have pulled it off without the NPH family and teamwork that goes into this new, fun, and very Latin, NPH USA Viva La Familia Gala!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Volunteering Comes Full Circle

The 2018 Midwest Pequeño Tour was amazing again this year! We welcomed 12 pequeños from NPH Guatemala, mostly university students or those completing their year of service at the home, and for three weeks they traveled throughout the greater Chicago area to perform traditional music and dance from their country at various churches, schools, and businesses, helping our Midwest Region to raise funds and awareness for NPH!

About two weeks in, we decided to schedule a morning at Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) in Libertyville, IL. We wanted to switch things up for the group from the daily venue visit. We thought we could all do something to help others together and give back because after all, many hands make light work! What better place to do so than at FMSC, which has set out to feed God’s starving children hungry in body and spirit. Little did they know, better yet, little did WE know, that we were bringing twelve individuals from Guatemala who’d been served by the kind graces of the hard-working hands behind FMSC.

It wasn’t until the group spotted the MannaPack meal that they realized they were helping those who’d provided some of their meals as children growing up at NPH Guatemala! 

 

“Seeing it firsthand at the place they made it for us was such an amazing experience,” David (left) said. “Just the way they prepare it is great to see. I can see the hard work they do and all the passion behind it.”

This moment of realization set in for the whole group and gave everyone a little extra fire in their heart that morning to create as many meals for starving children as they could in two hours. By the time the session ended, enough meals were made to feed 44 kids daily for an entire year! FMSC has a tradition of blessing the food before it is shipped off to countries around the world. The Pequeños took part in this as well before declaring it ready to ship.

“I was working really hard and tried to pack as many boxes as I could,” Jacinto (third from the left) said. “For me, it was a great experience because I could help an organization that helped me before and is still helping my little brothers and sisters at NPH."

Needless to say, our Guatemalan visitors had a wonderful experience volunteering with FMSC in Libertyville. Seeing the impact that they had on the employees of FMSC was also quite powerful. Seeing the joy in their faces and the tears in their eyes was just an added testament to the hard work that is put into this organization and the care they have for feeding the hungry. 

It was really a beautiful coincidence that we brought our Guatemalan visitors to volunteer at FMSC that morning. Thank you to FMSC for all that you do to help serve the children of NPH and to feed the hungry all over the world!

 

 

 

 

 

Celebrating 2016 and looking forward to 2017...

2016 was another year full of great accomplishments at NPH USA - new friends, supporters, volunteers and godparents; successful fundraising and friend-raising events; joyous trips to the NPH homes; and so much more - all to transform the lives of children in need! And it is all possible through the generosity of people just like YOU! If you have yet to make a gift to support NPH USA, please consider making a donation today, and check out the 2016 highlights from each regional office of NPH USA below as well as our Haiti Initiative/St. Damien Pediatric Hospital Fund!

Northwest Region

• In the NW, we graduated the fifth (and welcomed the sixth) annual cohort of 6 young leaders from NPH to the Northwest for a year-long program of study and leadership development. We also published a report on the impact of the program on the first 26 graduates!
• The NW Associate Board for young professionals sponsored a variety of fun and successful events in Seattle, including Carnaval for a Cause, Hunt for Hope, and a Trivia Night. AB members also sponsored fundraisers at their companies, including f5, which featured NPH USA during their holiday campaign, and Microsoft, where the Devices Division sponsored a soccer tournament that raised more than $20,000.
• Support of our events grew dramatically, including our second annual NPH USA Northwest Golf Classic, and our record-breaking Gala, which raised nearly $400,000. In particular, we increased our corporate sponsorship significantly from past years.
• We welcomed 180 new child sponsors, and 13 Northwest donors contributed $5,000 each to provide a scholarship for a university student at NPH.
• Nine international volunteers from the Northwest did a year or more of service in one of the NPH homes in 2016.
• Ross Egge joined our Northwest staff team, after 11 years working on the ground with NPH in our homes, and we welcomed Jacqueline Shrader as the new Program Director of the NPH Seattle Institute.
• We moved to a new office space (same building) – come visit us!
• We raised more than $1.7 million in general funding to support our children, plus an additional $1.7 million in legacy and restricted gifts! Thank you to all!

 (photo of Paul Sandoval, AB member!)

 

Southwest Region

• Edwin Mehta joined the team as the SW Region's Development Coordinator, and Jarrett Ransom joined the team as the SW Region's Development Officer!
• The SW Region hosted all of the NPHI Staff and Country Directors for meetings and fundraisers during the National Director Weekend and also celebrated the 10th Anniversary of Fr. William Wasson’s passing. It was a wonderful time had by all!
• The SW Region hosted the Pequenos from the home in Nicaragua for three weeks of Fundraising and Events in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Danville and also had the 2016 SW Get Closer Gala with special guests Ismar and Marlin!
• At the end of October and the beginning of November we had a women’s group that travelled to the NPH Home in Guatemala where 20 women had the opportunity to experience the culture and witness the life that the children have at the home in Guatemala.

  

Midwest Region

• The pequeños from NPH El Salvador provided great music and folkloric dancing during their 18-day Pequeño Tour this past spring. The group spent most of its time in the Chicago area, staying with families in St. Michael Parish in Orland Park and Transfiguration Parish in Wauconda. They also traveled to the far reaches of the Midwest Region for a long weekend at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Lenoir City, Tennessee. We estimate over 3,500 people witnessed one of their many performances. Many thanks to our host families and local organizers. We couldn’t do it without you!
• The weather cooperated this year for our Fourth Annual Golf Outing featuring NFL Hall of Famers and other football greats from years past. We moved the golf outing this year to the stately Biltmore Country Club in North Barrington, and the new venue was everything we hoped it would be and a whole lot more. More importantly, the golf outing set a new record in terms of the amount that was raised.
• For the third year in a row, the beautiful Standard Club of Chicago was the location for the annual MW Region's Gala and After Dark events. At the Gala, the Midwest Region presented John and Cindy Shinsky with its Corazón Award, which is given to those who give their hearts to the children of NPH. John and Cindy have worked tirelessly to build and support Ciudad de los Niños in Matamoros, part of the NPH Mexico network of homes. For the third consecutive year, the Young Professionals Board of the NPH USA Midwest Region hosted the always fun Gala post-party, aptly named After Dark. A good time was had by all. Revenue for the Gala and After Dark was 10% higher than last year.
• Thanks to the organizing and running efforts of Midwest Region Board member Chris Ambroso, in the famous Chicago Marathon Team NPH USA’s runners raised $12,500 for the children of NPH!
• This year, the Midwest Region directed six trips to NPH homes in Guatemala (twice), Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico and El Salvador. Participating on those trips were 135 people who were able to experience for themselves what life is like at an NPH home.

Standing outside the bishop’s residence in Knoxville, Tennessee is the group from

NPH El Salvador with the Most Reverend Rick Stika, Bishop of the Diocese of

Knoxville, in the middle.  In the upper left hand corner of the group is His Eminence

Justin Francis Cardinal Rigali.

Midwest Region sponsor Anita Lambert and her goddaughter are all smiles during

                Anita’s visit to NPH El Salvador in November.

Upper Midwest Region

• The UPMW region celebrated Volunteer of the Year Vic Roers! Vic is valued for her dedication and her enduring amount of time and talent. She shares the NPH story with everyone she meets and wants nothing more than to ensure NPH children have a stocking for Christmas. Vic has been such a supportive and helpful volunteer and is quickly becoming a regular at NPH Honduras and El Salvador! 
• Thank you to all the supports in our Upper Midwest region for making this year’s Cinco de Mayo 5k Run/Walk (our 10th Annual) such a success! We raised $18,593 and had 278 participants! Special thanks to our generous Sponsors: Summit Orthopedics, Valley Pain Relief and Wellness Center, HED Cycling, Modere North America, and Defining You Pilates and Fitness! 
• This August, members from the Upper Midwest Region’s Associate Board of Directors formed a 2016 NPH USA Summer Games event that raised over $8,000! The group created fun and original contests and competed against one another for the Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals. Way to go Associate board!  
• Thank you to the more than 360 guests who attended the 2016 Upper Midwest Gala presented by Nasseff Mechanical Contractors, which was a grand success! Through gala ticket sales, silent and live auction, games, and most importantly an anonymous match and commitments made during Fund-A-Need, we raised over $508,000 to continue Raising Children and Transforming Lives at NPH homes. We are also excited to announce 15 new child sponsors were formed. Likewise, we honored Jean Gray for his 35 years of dedication to NPH with the Rose Schaffhausen Award. A world traveler, Jean has seen the poverty that exists and destroys the potential for children. Jean has given his time, energy, and countless hours to the Fr. Wasson Legacy Endowment. Jean has embraced the NPH mission, furthered our cause and continues to cherish our NPH children.
• In 2016, the NPH USA strategic plan addressed the importance to deepen efforts in philanthropy and restructure staffing to ensure future success. Molly Boyum was announced the Vice President of Development to oversee all of the regional offices of NPH USA, and therefore her previous position, now open, allowed for the new hire of a regional director. Stephanie Pommier, new Regional Director, joined NPH in July with 19 years of nonprofit experience, a great passion for social change, and adherence to sensitivity, collaboration, and ethics in all her fundraising. Steve Schmidt, our new Development Manager, was born and raised in Shoreview, MN and joined NPH in August sharing, “NPH is a family, and I feel as though I have found my home.”  

Mid-Atlantic/Northeast Region

• Many parishes in the MA-NE Region united their church communities and joined NPH USA in helping those less fortunate this year! The generosity that poured out of St. Mary of the Assumption Parishes in Brookline, MA; The Parish of St. Anthony in Cohasset, MA; Most Precious Blood & St. Theresa Parish in Dover & Sherborn, MA; Good Shepherd Parish in Wayland, MA; Holy Family Parish in Duxbury, MA; St. Paul the Apostle in Annville, PA, and St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Herndon, VA resulted in over 90 children receiving new sponsorships this fall with more on the way!
• Eight schools in Massachusetts opened their doors and hearts to the children of NPH Mexico this fall during our 2016 Pequeño Tour. Notre Dame Academy, Immaculate Conception Academy, Trinity Catholic Academy, Dexter Southfield, Hamilton – Wenham High school, Waring School, Rockport Middle School, and Shore Country Day, all welcomed the children and generously supported them in their fundraising efforts. Thank you!
• Generous donors/supporters got together to organize events in support of NPH this year raising over $23,000 for the children of NPH. Brian Orr, Barbara Kelley, and Kara Swenson put together the Windows on the World event on the North Shore of Massachusetts. Eddie & Eileen Bernau hosted Cheers for Children at their home in Newburyport, MA. Patty Tarpey got together passionate donors and sponsors in a Cheers for Children event in Washington, DC and Deirdre & Steven Ginns, Patricia & Paul Mikus, and Charlie & Barbara Sullivan hosted the second annual Cocktails for A Cause in Hingham, MA while the pequenos were here from Mexico. Thank you to all for your support!
• The MA-NE Associate Board and Junior Board have both had a successful year with many fun events and fundraisers in the surrounding Boston area. The associate board has expanded to include members in both NYC and DC! Reuniting returned international volunteers with passionate NPH supporters! Both groups have been helping to raise awareness and funds in support of University Education for the Pequenos.
• The NPH USA Mid-Atlantic Northeast office facilitated many mission and donor trips to a variety of NPH homes this year, including Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Mexico. After seeing the direct impact of NPH and falling in love with many of the children at the homes, trip participants have become some of our most passionate advocates in raising funds and spreading awareness about NPH.

 

Haiti Initiative/St. Damien Pediatric Hospital Fund

• We celebrated a matching grant challenge this year when a very generous foundation pledged $500k per year for three years if we could find two other donors who would join them for the same amount and duration, and thanks to two additional generous donors, we completed the challenge and received the support for St Damien Pediatric Hospital!
• Fr. Rick and Jennifer Rayno, President of the NPH Haiti Board of Directors and Director of the St. Damien Pediatric Hospital Fund respectively, visited St. Louis Church and the community of Pittsford, NY in August. This generous and faithful community has been supporting St. Damien for over thirty years and raised nearly $60k this year through various efforts!
• St. Damien graduated the first group of 6 new pediatricians trained at St. Damien in October! After 3 years of training, these 6 new pediatricians are ready to take care of children’s health in Haiti. There are approximately only 300 pediatricians supporting 3 million children under 5 years of age with great vulnerability in Haiti. We have retained 3 of them for our own needs. The 4th class of 6 physicians started their training October 1st.
• St. Damien was able to offer continuous care during a 5-month strike of all governmental hospitals in Haiti from the end of March to August 2016. The hospital experienced a 2% to 25% increase across departments in the volume of the population served during the first 3 months of this strike. St. Damien proved once more that it is poised and always ready to help the Haitian community during crisis. St. Damien was recognized by the executive director of the Ministry of Health for the role it played for the country during a press conference when the strike ended.
• The heart program at St. Damien has grown significantly. 11 children received heart surgery in February 2016. A second mission scheduled for September 2016 was postponed until January 2017 due to insecurity in the country. More than 150 children were screened during 5 visits of pediatric cardiologists from the US, France, India (from an Indian hospital established at Cayman Islands). A wonderful partnership with Haiti Cardiac Alliance, Gift of Life International and a foundation from Health City Hospital in the Cayman Islands support this program. A significant proportion of children with heart defects were dying at home or at health centers as families are not able to send them abroad for needed surgeries. St. Damien is the only hospital in Haiti able to offer heart surgery locally thanks to this support our partners. One of our own pediatricians has currently completed 6 months of a one-year training in pediatric cardiology in Martinique. The program will continue to grow offering screening, surgery, and follow up care to the children with heart disease in Haiti. There are 3 surgical cardiac missions that are scheduled at St. Damien during 2017.

 

 

I fall more and more in love with the home and the pequeños...

Below is a blog post from MW sponsor Maeve Dowdle! Enjoy!

I have been to the NPH Guatemala home twice now and each time I go, I fall more and more in love with the home and the pequeños.

 

This past summer I traveled once again to NPH and met a girl at the home who is my age. We instantly became great friends. I don’t speak much Spanish and she doesn’t speak much English, so it was difficult to communicate. At first I thought that since I couldn’t really talk with her that we wouldn’t be able to get to know each other. We would play a game where I would give her English words and she would have to translate them and then she would give me Spanish words and I would attempt to translate them.

 

By the end of the trip I had learned so much about her. I learned that she is an amazing artist, she loves to play soccer and is a very good goalie, and she loves listening to all kinds of music. She and I became very close and would be together a lot of the time. She would try teaching me the things she loved. She tried teaching me some of her favorite songs, how to play goalie the correct way, and how to draw. None of it went very well but, we had a great time, laughed and bonded over it.

 

Spending time with her and seeing her laugh made me realize how in order to make a difference in someone’s life, there is no need for a huge grand gesture, but simply being there and being present makes a big difference. I hope that I made a difference in her life because becoming close to her and being with her has made a big difference in my life. NPH and the pequeños have grown so close to my heart and I cannot wait to visit the home again. ​

You can visit an NPH home on one of our many trips too! Learn more here!

Some highlights from 2015 by region!

Midwest

1. In February and March of 2015, the song and dance group from NPH Guatemala toured the Chicagoland area for 18 days in order to spread awareness of NPH. Their performances touched the hearts of our many generous supporters and brought a little bit of Guatemalan sunshine to the chilly Chicago winter!

2. The NPH USA Midwest office directed multiple mission and donor trips to many of the NPH homes this year including NPH Honduras, March 20th to March 27th, NPH Guatemala, April 6th to April 12th, NPH Guatemala, June 8th to June 15th, NPH Nicaragua, June 22nd to June 29th, NPH Guatemala, July 28th to August 4th, and NPH El Salvador, November 11th to November 15th!

3. The 2015 NPH USA Midwest Gala was held on Saturday, September 12th at The Standard Club in downtown Chicago where hundreds of guests joined us for a live and silent auction, dinner, and a program featuring keynote speaker Wilmer Arias, a current pequeño at NPH Guatemala. After the Gala, guests headed to the After Dark, the after party hosted by NPH USA Midwest Young Professionals Board, for drinks and dancing.

 

Upper Midwest

1. The UPM celebrated two new events; the Sizzling Soiree and a photo gallery/competition where everyone who visited one of our homes was encouraged to submit a poem or photo to be featured on their Holiday card.

2. Teresa Ritzinger, Sarah Molitor and Dana Parisi organized a Faces of Hope event in Eau Claire, Wisconsin where 200 people attended to learn more about NPH and our kids.

3. UPM volunteers organized many events and trips throughout the year to support our homes. They included the East Ridge HS Golf tournament, HNOJ trip to Mexico, Christmas stocking project, St. Thomas More trip, and HelpSystems tacos and auctions. UPM volunteers are making a difference!

 

Northwest

1. We graduated the fourth and welcomed the fifth annual cohort of 6 young leaders from NPH to the Northwest for a year-long program of study and leadership development.

2. We had 10 volunteers from the Northwest who lived and served at one of the NPH homes in 2015.

3. Our Associate Board for young professionals ended its fourth year with a bang, sponsoring a variety of fun and successful events in Seattle, including Carnaval for a Cause and Hunt for Hope.

 

 

Southwest

1. In November, the Southwest Region had its first vision trip to Guatemala. Vision trips are designed for supporters to experience first-hand how NPH transforms the lives of our children. Guests stay in visitors' housing at the NPH site, eat and do chores with the children, but most importantly, they get to spend time with the children to form lifelong bonds. Time is also set aside to meet with the country director, as well as visit a nearby attraction. These trips are shorter, but are great for supporters who want to gain a deeper understanding of the ins and outs of NPH, or for those who want to become familiarized with NPH.

2. The Southwest Region was able to introduce many people to NPH through our Power of One luncheons in Phoenix, AZ and Danville, CA as well as through the Pequeno Tour where the Grupo Musica y Danza from Guatemala shared their culturally rich musical and dance performances in Danville and San Pedro, California.

3. 2015 marked the year the Southwest Region celebrated its 50^th anniversary. Guests and staff alike were honored to support Father Rick Frechette during the gala event held in November!

 

 

Mid-Atlantic/Northeast

1. Over 20 passionate NPH supporters have joined the Child Sponsorship Ambassador Program and are helping to connect more people with children in our nine NPH homes through promoting child sponsorship.

2. Our 6th Annual Irish Hearts for Orphans event was a huge success and an amazing time was had by the over 300 people who attended from the Boston area Irish Community.

3.  Seven schools in Massachusetts opened their doors and hearts to the children of NPH Mexico this fall during our 2015 Pequeño Tour. Notre Dame Academy in Hingham, Sacred Heart Academy in Kingston, Duxbury High School in Duxbury, Thomas A. Blake Middle School in Medfield, Pingree School in Hamilton, Governor’s Academy in Byfield, and Glen Urquhart School in Beverly all welcomed the children and generously supported them in their fundraising efforts.