September 7th, 2006
Madeline Beatriz Sánchez García is a little one year old girl who lives in Santo Domingo de Guzmán, El Salvador. I met her on the last night of my stay this past July when her mother came to the rectory on a rainy night to thank us for being willing to send her oldest daughter Lydia to High School next year. I noticed that she was holding this incredibly tiny toddler in her arms and when she said that her one year old weighed 13 pounds I knew that something was gravely wrong with her. It turns out that Madeline was born with a hole in her heart between the ventricles which is the lower half of the heart. Her condition is called Ventricular Septal Defect or VSD and she has a 5.3mm hole in her heart and a corresponding murmur, or "soplo" in Spanish. When she was 5 months old the doctors did tests on her heart and diagnosed this condition and tried treating it with medicine but it did not work and she continued to have very low body weight. Her lack of thriving is now very severe and she has no strength to stand or even attempt to walk.
When I gave Madeline a big stuffed bear she got this huge beautiful smile on her face and when I placed a rosary around her neck I knew that we were to try to do something to help her. I told her Mother that everything humanly possible would be done to help her daughter. In order to live Madeline needs open heart surgery to fix this hole. Her heart is otherwise fine and her prognosis will be very good, if she survives the surgery itself. Without the surgery she will likely die within the year due to any illness that would take advantage of her weakened condition. Surgery will cost around $17,000 and will be performed on October 4, 2006 by visiting doctors from the U.S. who come each month to San Salvador to do surgeries. Through the generosity of many families and individuals The Least Among Us has received $16,355.78 towards Madeline's surgery and now all we are waiting for is October 4th. Madeline needs to gain some weight in order to be strong enough for the surgery but her condition makes appetite an issue. Please keep this little one in your prayers that God might show His power through her weakness and He might heal her through the generous sacrifice of so many of you, especially the kids that helped make the Yard sale for her such a big success.
August 31st, 2006
The Least Among Us had a Mission Awareness trip to El Salvador June 25-July 10, 2006 with Fr. Pat Keane, Dawn and Christina Neitzey, Joél and CeCe Peters, Sabina Fischer, Jim Rolquin and his niece Jamie. We stayed at the parish rectory in the town of Santo Domingo de Guzmán where we got to experience the lives of the poor in a most profound way. Most people feel that they must "do something" for the poor when they visit them. We simply lived, loved and played with them. We allowed the poor to minister to us by playing with the children, visiting their homes and sharing their hospitality. We brought with us 800 pounds of clothing, school supplies, medical supplies and crafts. But the thing that the people, especially the children, appreciated most was our time and our presence. They were constantly bringing us food to eat and sodas to drink and they showed us the meaning of welcoming the stranger and loving those in your midst. They know that they will be judged by the same Gospel as us, "Lord, when did we see you a stranger and welcome you?"
We rented a big truck and took 30 or so kids to the beach on two occasions and we were fed by a little girl named Nora who brought us all sandwiches, which were wet and squished (Nora is only 8) but were made with extreme love and were absolutely delicious. We visited several of the schools that TLAU is working on and we attended the inauguration of the 5 classrooms and library at San Vicente which was celebrated by the Bishop. All 500 students of the school expressed their extreme gratitude towards the donors of TLAU who made their school possible. At another site, San José Labor, it became evident that by building them new classrooms we are eliminating a dangerous situation where kindergartners were being taught in the basement of a two story building that barely survived the 2001 earthquake and is in danger of collapsing in the future.
On the last day of the trip we met a little one year old girl named Madeline Sánchez who weighs only 13 pounds due to a hole in her heart. To live she would need open heart surgery which costs around $17,000. Thanks to the generosity of several donors and a family who conducted a yard sale on her behalf we haved raised the money for her surgery which will be performed in San Salvador by visiting doctors from the U.S. on October 4, 2006. Our trip this past summer had a deep impact on all who went, especially the three teens, and it will have a lifelong effect on little Madeline who will be given a chance at normal happy life with her family. Check out the slideshows from our trip to get a feel for what we experienced together.
August 1st, 2006
We posted some photos from the July 2006 trip on a new section of the website for photos and videos.
July 20th, 2006
This is the first of several installments of photos from Fr. Pat's visit to El Salvador. We inaugurated the classroom complex and the library at Sants Familia school.
May 29th, 2006
As you can see in the photo album, construction of the four classroom buildings at Centro Escolar Santa Familia has progressed nicely. Foundation work, block walls, and roofing are now all done.
May 3rd, 2006
We have started a project to build four classrooms, a chapel, and a library at Centro Escolar Catolico Santa Familia. This project is in memory of Professor Norman L Johnson of Chapel Hill, NC, who was a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. We have signed contracts and broken ground. Please see the photos of the construction project as we move forward with construction in the town of San Sebastian, in the San Vicente province of El Salvador.
March 17th, 2006
We have posted some photos of the lifecycle of the classroom construction project at Centro Escolar Santa Monica in Quezaltepeque, El Salvador.
February 16th, 2006
Walter has compiled an extensive list of 16 potential projects sites for TLAU in 2006. We will narrow down the possible project sites based need, community contribution, available resources, and donor input. If an individual or a group would like to take an active role in sponsoring a project or a piece of a project, such as desks for a new classroom, please contact John Nelson or Fr. Pat Keane (contact info here).
February 5th, 2006
We are proud to announce the TLAU scholarship recipients for 2006. Although we typically invest in primary education for capital building projects, another vital component of our mission is providing high school scholarships based on need and achievement. The scholarship recipients this year include returning seniors Jorge Perez Elias and Bessy Yamileth Alvarez. Jorge and Bessy have performed very well in high school thus far, and upon graduation will join five past TLAU high school scholarship recipients to be among the select few in El Salvador with the opportunities that a high school education offers. In addition to the three seniors, we are sponsoring seven new high school freshman: Tatiana Ramirez, Milagro Garcia, Emilia Maribel Ramirez, Karla Lorena Cabrera, Yensi Areli Osario, Cruz Antonio, and Alfredo Ramirez. Scholarships are tailored to a students specific needs and cover the cost of bus fares, books, tuition, and other required expenses.
All the students are from very poor families that would not otherwise have been able to send their bright children to school. Walter administers the program for us, and doles our funds on a weekly basis and checks reciepts. Walter encourages each student to give back to their community through volunteer work and tutoring. We salute the 2006 scholarship recipients who have worked hard and excelled despite difficult circumstances and the generosity of TLAU donors who make our work possible.
February 5th, 2006
Since The Least Among Us is recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) public charity, your donations to us are tax deductible. If you deduct over $200 for donations to a 501(c)(3) organization, you must be able to substantiate your donation with a reciept or record in the case of an audit. We try to send out a reciept immediately following donations with a thank-you letter, but if you did not receive or lost a donation reciept, please contact us and let us know. You can call TLAU President John Nelson with any questions at 919-906-3806.
November 26th, 2005
We are building two classroom buildings in the rural town of Quezaltepeque. Project work has progressed more quickly than expected, with the projects about 75% completed. TLAU President John Nelson will travel down to Quezaltepeque to view the project inauguration and inspect a few potential sites for new projects.
October 13th, 2005
I recently revised our website. The new site design is a little more simple, and it will be much easier to update with new information. Thanks for your patience over the last few months as I have been putting this together. Please let me know if you see any mistakes or have trouble with the new site.
October 12th, 2005
Our project to build a classrom at Arambala, a small town in the province of Morazan, has drawn to a close. Once again, Walter has seen the project through to completion earlier than expected. Arambala is an extremely poor town that was ravaged in El Salvador's civil war. It was the scene of heavy guerilla activity and atrocities from both sides. The school is somewhat of a cross between an orphanage and a school. A nun runs the program there and takes care of 16 children, most of who are either orphans or in some state of neglect.
October 10th, 2005
The volcano Ilamatepec, also known as Volcan Santa Ana has erupted in El Salvador. Luckily, officals were able to evacuate the area and limit fatalites, but since the inital reporting on the incident the death toll has risen significantly. Santa Ana volcano dominates the landscape of western El Salvador and is clearly visible from both Santo Domingo de Guzman (the site of many of our projects) and Apaneca (Walter's hometown). We have heard from Walter via email, and fortunately his family and all of our project sites are okay. However, the phone lines are jammed up, so we don't know any specifics. Also, mud slides triggered by tropical storm Stan have killed hundreds in Western Guatemala and dozens in El Salvador. El Salvador has been very unfortunate with natural disasters for a country as geographically small as it is. This article from the BBC discusses some of the misfortune that they have been through in recent history. Please note that TLAU is not endorsing any given political or social view that may be on the linked news sites.
August 8th, 2005
Please see the attached photos of Johnny and Fr. Pat's visit to El Salvador. There are pictures of the inauguration ceremony at San Patricio in San Salvador, El Salvador's capital city. The chapel, or Capilla at San Patricio was paid for by a special gift from the ADR foundation. There are also some inital pictures of work at Arambala, where we will be building a classroom building for a small school.
2000 - 2005
I will be posting a new archive once I can get all the information put together from the prior two websites in a suitable format.