Coffee and Conversation with our International Volunteers!

Stacie Henrickson, Office Administrator/Volunteer Coordinator in the Northwest Region of Friends of the Orphans shares about their recent “Coffee and Conversation” event, held quarterly and featuring a different topic each time. This quarter’s topic was the International Volunteer Program.


One of my favorite aspects of Friends of the Orphans is our International Volunteer Program. I love being able to travel and experience the NPH homes vicariously through our 60 amazing international volunteers. Each week I take time to read a few of their blog updates and step directly into NPH and all the adventures and challenges they are facing. One of my favorite blogs is Carrie Daut’s - technically, she was a volunteer and is now an employee, but she still counts in my book. 


So, when I found out the topic for our last quarterly “Coffee and Conversation” event of 2011 would be the International Volunteer Program (bonus: the event was at Starbucks Headquarters with free coffee), I marked my calendar right away.


About 20 Friends of the Orphans supporters gathered to hear from a panel of four former international volunteers:


Jim Hall, NPH Honduras (2002-2003) – Jim lived in Honduras with his wife Chris and son Isaac. He is now on our Regional Board of Directors and a child sponsor. Jim recently launched his own photography and video business.

Joe Cotton, NPH Nicaragua (2005-2006) – Joe served as President of our Regional Board of Directors and is also a child sponsor. Currently, he is enrolled in the Masters Program at the Seattle University School of Theology and Ministry. He is also an experienced youth minister who works with the King County Detention Program.

Angela Klaassen, NPH Honduras (2008-2010) – Angela graduated from the University of Portland and now lives and works in Seattle. She is a child sponsor and will be helping to launch our Associate Board for young professionals who want to support Friends of the Orphans.

Malia Cranmer, NPH Guatemala (2000-2001) – Malia is now a pediatrician and is also a child sponsor. She recently hosted our annual former volunteer gathering and also brought a table of guests to Faces of Hope this past spring.


It was so wonderful to hear from such a varied group of former volunteers – they served in different homes, held different positions, some returned several years ago and others more recently, and they have followed very different career paths. Even with these differences, they all shared some of the same joys (being part of a big family and spending quality time with the kids) and frustrations (language barriers and culture shock when coming home). It was also enlightening to hear the unique experiences of each volunteer – for example, Jim built relationships with the maintenance team and still sends money each month to help support one team member’s children through school. And we’re pretty sure Joe is the only volunteer who has ever opened a locker and found a live owl! He had some of the older boys to thank for that one.


The audience also asked a few challenging questions, for example, is there a negative impact on the kids from having volunteers come in and out of their lives? The panel agreed that the kids are happy to have attention for any length of time, and the kids also feel volunteers are part of a big family and know that when one family member leaves, another will come to spend time with them. In addition, all of the panelists keep in touch with children and/or staff at the homes and sponsor a child, and some have even been able to return to visit.


Guest pequeño Emir Ricaño, in Seattle for a year participating in the International Leadership Program, was able to share what international volunteers have meant to him at NPH Mexico – that an additional person cares about him and takes an interest in his life – and really reinforced how impactful and important this program is.


I believe everyone, myself included, walked away from this event feeling warm and fuzzy thinking about the kids at NPH and how great it is that people will volunteer for a year to help others feel cared for and important. 


If you are in the Seattle-Bellevue area, we encourage you to keep an eye on our Northwest page for upcoming events, including our quarterly Coffee and Conversation events next year, and events featuring the International Leadership Program Participants.

Father Wasson Angels of Light Program in Haiti

Dear Friends,


Today is a very special day for all involved in the Father Wasson Angels of Light (FWAL)
program of NPFS Haiti.


WE ARE CELEBRATING OUR 2ND ANNIVERSARY!!


Four days after the earthquake of January 12, 2010, our program began operating out of a few tents where children could come to spend part of the day, away from the misery and share in a little joy and comfort of playing games and receiving a meal.


Now, two years, later FWAL has two homes where 183 children are living in a safe
environment, and we just finished the construction of our beautiful new primary school for a total of 800 children (including those who live in our homes). We have 128 staff working for our program, working for our children, with energy and a lots of love.


We are very grateful to all of those who helped and supported us from the beginning and who are still doing so. All our children thank you, and we hope that you will celebrate this day with us in thought and prayer.

We are a family.

We grieve again on this second anniversary of the Haiti earthquake, for those who lost their lives, for those who suffered so terribly, and for those dealing with its aftermath.


We must continue to do what we can to help, to show that we have not forgotten, to offer our love and support to the people of Haiti as they continue to recover.


And we must not lose hope, even if we must do this work alone. For we are not alone; we are a family. And God loves our family.


God bless.


John Iberle
Interim CEO, Friends of the Orphans

Click here to learn more about the work Friends and NPH is doing in Haiti. 

NPFS Haiti 's 25th Anniversary Right Around the Corner!

Below is a message from Father Rick Frechette, discussing the fast-approaching anniversary of the St. Helene home in Haiti and the mission of NPH.


In just two weeks, on January 23, 2012, NPFS Haiti will celebrate 25 years of existence. It is not easy to celebrate festively in the face of the ongoing devastation in the country, but to celebrate every other way is surely in order!


During January, we will ask our new Archbishop, Guire Poulard, to celebrate mass at Kenscoff (St. Helene). It will be a mass of thanks-giving, remembering all of our children, staff, benefactors, those who have died and Fr. Wasson. 


We have every intention of using our anniversary as a time of evaluation and redirection. We will spend 2012 reviewing the trajectory of these 25 years, analyzing if we are still on track with our goals, suggesting ways of improvement, and getting feedback from those who have benefitted and worked in our programs in order to improve.


Please keep us in your prayers for this new year, that it might be a year of great grace for all of us.


Best regards,
Fr. Richard Frechette, CP

Click here to read an article by Father Rick about the history of NPFS Haiti, the great accomplishments of our collective work and looking forward to the future there. 

It's a Brand New Year!

All of us here at Friends bring in this new year with strong pride in last year's accomplishments, great hope for future successes, and a steady motivation to continue transforming the lives of children in need. I want to thank each and every one of you for all that you do to help us realize our mission – supporting the children of NPH. It is only with your generosity and support that we can care for the Pequeños providing them with a safe and loving home. It is because of you that Fatima from Honduras knows someone will always be there for her; that Silvia from Peru will always have a nutritious meal to eat; that Jesel from the Dominican Republic has clean clothes to wear and the chance to be a happy child. I can not stress enough how important you are to our NPH and Friends family. 


Thank you for all that you do. We look forward to a wonderful 2012 where we continue to work together to raise children and transform lives.


John Iberle
Interim Executive Director

What YOU Helped to Accomplish this Past Year

2011 was a year full of successes! Thanks to YOU we were able to complete several different projects that benefit the children we support. Because of YOUR generosity the 3,700 children in the NPH homes throughout Latin America and the Caribbean have a loving and safe home, food, education, access to healthcare and a family that cares for them. Here are just a few highlights from the past year!


In the Family Services division, the International Leadership Institute Pilot Program was launched where five pequeños were able to begin studying English and leadership courses in Seattle, Washington.


Our Vaccine Catch Up program, part of our Medical Services division, was a huge success this year for our children in need.


At NPH Mexico we had our largest university group yet with 105 students and 18 graduates this year!


Construction on a new bakery, cheese making facility and greenhouse was completed this year at NPH Honduras to help make the home more sustainable.


Over 100 new children arrived at the St Helene and Fr. Wasson Angels of Light homes in Haiti, and the construction of a new housing complex for Don Bosco students was completed. We are also very happy to say we successfully treated  20,000 Cholera patients this year.


At NPH Nicaragua construction of a primary school, clinic, visitor house, and the National Director house was completed.


NPH Guatemala saw the construction of their Montessori school completed as well as their first solar panels installed.


El Salvador's brand new leadership group was formed this year, and we are excited to say this is one of the first groups from NPH ES that will engage in outreach with the surrounding community!


Everyone at NPH Dominican Republic is thrilled about our new speech therapy program, empowerment groups, sign language and pottery classes.


In Bolivia our family grew this year from 86 to 104 children.


In October the children and staff of NPH Peru finally moved to their brand new home in Cañete.

Everyone at the opening of the new NPH Peru home!

Thank you so very much for making 2011 a wonderful year! There is always more work to be done and children to support, and we are looking forward to another successful year in 2012. Happy New Year! Thank you for being a Friend!!

2011 was a Wonderful Year!!!

This past year has been a truly great one for everyone at Friends of the Orphans and the children we support. Thanks to the hard work of Friends' staff, volunteers and supporters, there have been many wonderful things to highlight throughout the regions this year.

NPH Peru

As many of you know, in the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast Region, Friends opened a brand new regional office just outside of Boston. Our MANE office officially opened its doors in June 2011, and we have been busy meeting with both new and familiar faces in the community. We've succeeded in creating a successful Regional Board with 10 active members including board chair, Dr. Brian Orr. Our 2nd Annual Irish Hearts for Haiti event held in April was (again) a great success raising $38,000. We also held an exciting Donor Appreciation Event at the historic Fenway Park in July. Likewise, our Faces of Hope events in November went splendidly and had nearly 150 attendees! We were so fortunate this year to welcome Elzer, a pequeño from NPH Honduras, who stayed from May until August. He participated in events, spoke at various churches, schools, and civic functions, and was able to work on perfecting his English while interning at a local elementary school. Our gratitude goes out to the Henry family for hosting Elzer!

NPH Dominican Republic

Our Northwest Region has had much to be proud of in 2011 including a group of interns who have been invaluable this year! Our two Development Interns planned a very successful Family Summer BBQ event with a great turnout, and our Salesforce Intern has been there giving us weekly database support. We also hosted another amazing trip to NPH Honduras (our 8th annual!) We made so many great new Friends, not only bringing in two new tables of people to our Gala (and all our desserts being donated), but also a new mission trip in collaboration with a Montessori school in the Midwest region. Our outreach in Portland, Oregon, and Spokane, Washington, keeps gaining momentum with Faces of Hope Portland being our biggest yet, and we had many new attendees in Spokane. Our open house FUNdraisers in Portland, Spokane and Boise, Idaho were also great times for everyone involved. In Seattle we had a very special event with Jean François Seide, pequeño and member of the newly launched NPH Leadership Program, along with Fr. Rick Frechette of NPFS Haiti allowed us to raise over $62,000 for our programs in Haiti!

NPH El Salvador

Down in the Southeast Region 2011 has been a truly blessed year. In April we moved in to our new office with a view of downtown Miami, the financial district, the water and the new Miami Marlins stadium. Our 5th Annual Faces of Hope Luncheon and our 2nd Annual All the World to One Child Gala were both generously sponsored by great Friend, Chevron. Over 300 guests were in attendance for the luncheon, and this “friendraising” event, featuring special guest Clara Grove, a former pequeña from NPH Mexico, raised more than $45,000! Our gala, which was held at Fairchild Tropical Gardens in Miami, had over 200 guests in attendance and raised over $50,000. We also had a particularly special accomplishment this year that directly affected 3 of our children at NPH Honduras. Thanks to the great connections and efforts of one of our board members, Aid for Aids continuous to donate ARV’s medications for these 3 children to keep them healthy and provide a HUGE savings for our home (about 30k a year). We've also been lucky enough to have wonderful volunteers this year such as Danixa Lopez who has not only helped with several translations, but has been instrumental in our branding and outreach to the Hispanic community. Finally, our total in kind donations this year added up to over $5.5 million, helping provide for countless individuals in need in mainly Haiti and Honduras. Similarly, in Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Guatemala, our partnership with FedEx helped to provide over 15,000 books for the children we support.

NPH Guatemala

In the Upper Midwest Region we celebrated our 25th anniversary this year, and what a year it was! We welcomed over 230 new child sponsors to our family of nearly 2,000 total Upper Midwest child sponsors. Over $400,000 was raised through various events at churches as well as our annual Gala, run/walk and triathlon events. We also held our first ever fundraising event in Iowa, which brought in over $30,000. We had great volunteer involvement this year with a total contribution of over 2,000 hours. We also welcomed two new staff members, Sara Joyce and Sue Lovegreen, who have been wonderful additions to our team. Our team has had an incredible year celebrating welcoming a baby, a marriage and an engagement! We've also been so very proud of Sean Breininger, our Regional Director, who had his “second birthday” through a bone marrow transplant this December, praying that 2012 will boast a fully successful bone marrow transplant.

NPFS Haiti

In the Midwest Region we once again conducted a very successful Gala event, raising even more funds than the year before! Gala attendees were entertained by the music and dance group from NPH Mexico, and they also heard a compelling keynote speech from Aurora Zacarias, a former pequeña from NPH Mexico. Our 2011 Pequeño Tour also went fabulously, exceeding our revenue goal. We were so happy to have the sixteen pequeños from NPH Mexico perform at various venues in Chicago and throughout Indiana, including the University of Notre Dame. We also hosted an exciting and successful donor appreciation event this year in a donated skybox at a White Sox game. For the first time in several years we conducted a donor trip out of our region. Unlike most donor trips that visit a single NPH home, this trip visited NPH homes in two different countries – Guatemala and El Salvador! Juan Manuel Pineda, a pequeño from NPH El Salvador, performed a concert for almost 500 guests in our hometown of Chicago. We've also had great support this year from Friends in our region like John Shattuck, Vice Chair of the Midwest Region Board, who arranged for six shipping containers of donated medical equipment and other supplies valued at $1.425 million to be sent to Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

NPH Honduras

Last but certainly not least, in the Southwest Region we have also had a tremendous year! We have a wonderful new donor who became involved during our Pequeño Tour and continued on to attend our Gala, sponsor a child, go on a donor tour, sponsor another child, organize a FUNdraiser for February 2012 and collect clothes and games to be sent to the homes! We are so very appreciative of all that our donors do. We also had over 150 teens and adults participate on our mission trips to Guatemala and Mexico to spend a week with their 128 Godchildren that they sponsor. In addition, we collected and delivered 104 boxes of new clothes, shoes, school supplies and sports equipment. We also had some awesome events this year including both of our Power of One events in April where Eligio Villegas Cruz, a  pequeño from NPH Mexico, was our guest speaker. Eligio graduated from the University of Monterrey in Mexico this June with a degree in International Marketing. The two events raised over $40,000 and was underwritten by Wells Fargo Private Client Services. We also secured 18 child sponsorships at these events. For our annual Pequeño Tour throughout Arizona and California, we hosted the dancers and musicians from NPH El Salvador, and as of October 19th, the event netted $281,850 and secured 101 new sponsorships with an annualized income of $52,680. These children left lasting memories with their host families and the communities they visited. We also conducted our 12th Annual Diocese of Phoenix Catholic School Mass and Cultural Day with the 11 schools that are part of our school sponsorship program and support over 70 godchildren.

NPH Mexico

It has truly been an amazing year, and we are so thankful for all our Friends like you who help us to raise children and transform lives. Thank you for all your generosity and support throughout 2011, and we look forward to 2012! Happy new year!!!

Christmas Stories from Honduras

Fatima (11 years old) 


Fatima and her younger sister Natalie were abandoned by both parents. They lived with their grandmother who was unable to properly feed them and care for them before coming to NPH. She says that what she remembers about Christmas before coming to NPH was food; they usually cooked special tamales and received gifts of chips or candy.


Christmas is an exciting time for Fatima at NPH with the goodie bags, parties, and Christmas tree. She especially loves Secret Santa. She loves talking about whom each girl has, and the secret gift exchange with her friends of hair ties and candies.

Marisol (13 years old) 


Marisol's mother left her family when Marisol was only one year old. Her father was not able to take care of Marisol and her two brothers so he left them with other family members. Every Christmas before coming to NPH Marisol remembers going with her cousins to get new clothing. Presents (usually clothing, chips, sweets) were placed under the Christmas tree for the children the night before Christmas. The next morning everyone would wish each other “Feliz Navidad” and open presents. She remembers spending the rest of the day with neighbors and family having a fiesta; cooking, eating, and spending time together.


If she could have one wish for Christmas, Marisol said she would wish for the ability to travel. She would go and visit her “Padrinos”.


Her favorite part about Christmas at NPH is sharing it with friends, caretakers and volunteers. "I love how everyone comes together during Christmas time to have fun."

Marisol (far left) with her friends.

Christmas Stories from Guatemala

Pablo (13 years old)


My name is Pablo. I am 13 years-old. I came to NPH Guatemala just over one year ago. Before moving to NPH, I lived with my mom and four siblings. I have two older sisters and two brothers who are younger than me. Each year we celebrated Christmas with a big family gathering. Everyone was there except my father. He disappeared from our lives when I was little. My mom, my aunts, my uncles and siblings always celebrated together. 


Each year, we ate tamales (a Latin American dish made from corn, wrapped in a leaf, and steamed). Tamales are a tradition here in Guatemala. For Christmas my brothers, sisters and I would receive gifts. Each year my mom gave us a box of fireworks that we would set off the night before Christmas. This is another tradition where I live. We also received a little box filled with grapes.


After living at NPH for a year, I’m happy. I feel welcome and safe here. I am grateful to attend school each day. I am learning a lot here. I am learning to read, to write and to respect. Although NPH is my new home, I still think about my mom a lot. She visits me during Visitor’s Days when she can. If I could have any wish granted, I would invite my mom to eat pizza; that’s what I’d do. I would make our pizza. If I could have any gift for Christmas, I would give it to my mom—a beautiful blouse, or a skirt, or a pair of earrings. She deserves it.


At NPH we give homes to children in need like Pablo, where they can feel loved and secure and grow into caring and productive members of their communities. 

Christmas Stories from NPH Mexico

Daniel (8 years old)


NPH Mexico offered care and support to Daniel in 2009, when his mother was incarcerated and could no longer care for him. When Daniel arrived, he worried that he could no longer continue family traditions, such as celebrating Christmas with cake, piñatas, holiday movies and games. Fortunately, Daniel can still experience these Christmas festivities, and many more, at his new home, NPH Mexico’s Casa San Salvador. 


Daniel now has Godparents that donate funds so that he can receive his dream Christmas presents. When Christmas comes this winter, he hopes to receive a Max Steel action figure, candy, tennis shoes or clothes. If he could have one wish granted for Christmas, he said, “I would have my mom and my entire family live at my home here at NPH because I love them so much.” We are all so happy to hear that Daniel enjoys living at Casa San Salvador so much that he would invite his entire family to live with him if he could. 


This Christmas, thanks to Friends like you, Daniel will be provided with enough sweets and toys to keep him happy all year long, and more importantly, a safe and secure home where he can enjoy his life.