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LITTLE FRIENDS INTERNATIONAL, INC. a 501 (c) (3) non-profit |
Special Stories of Support
"Once there was a spark
A little seed of light
Drifting through the dark
Just wanting to be bright
Lyrics shown throughout this page by James Nihan, www.jamesnihan.com, "Seeds of Light"
¤ Generic OTC Meds
¤ East Haddam Elementary School's Generosity
¤ College assignment creates Little Friends project
¤ A Mask is Removed, a Life Rescued
¤ A Lost Limb, Nearly a Lost Life
¤ First Graders for a Cause
¤ Why Wheelchairs?
¤ Generic OTC Meds
Here is a story of people joining hands to help others. Little Friends ordered some meds months ago to put into the container from a site that Mary Pergiovanni found on the web, Generic OTC Meds, LLC. She ordered the meds because they had a nice selection of the basics that Little Friends needs for Honduras, at fair prices. Shortly after receiving the order of meds, Little Friends got an email out of the clear blue sky from Felix Mauro Torres, the president of the company. He manages the company and two of his sisters are pharmacists. He had noticed that the order said, "Little Friends International", and he googled it out of curiosity and found out about our work in Honduras. He called Mary and very kindly offered encouragement to us in our work and told also about his work founding the American Hispanic Pharmacy Association. This group is trying to help poor people in Central and South America.
Felix and Mary concluded the conversation with the agreement that Little Friends could contact him shortly before leaving for Honduras this October, to see if he had any short-dated medicines that he could donate to us. Felix's group sure did have medications to donate... over 200 pounds! The supplies that Generic OTC Meds gifted us with will be perfect for our mission: multivitamins, vitamin C, and iron supplements, plus anti-allergy tablets, along with infant and adult pain relievers, cortisone and antifungal creams. These are just what we had hoped to bring to the children and adults in Honduras so that we can leave behind a supply that will last long after our trip is completed. It will make a positive change in their health, as a lot of their problems are due to poor diet. The children will greatly benefit from the vitamins. The adults will be overjoyed to receive the pain relievers, as they do hard farm labor. Allergies and skin issues are also a big problem and these meds will be just the thing to relieve their suffering. There are no paid sick days in the mountains of Honduras.
Our generous new friends at Generic OTC Meds LLC established their group as an online pharmacy selling OTC (over the counter) medication. It has expanded its product line to include First Aid Supplies, Dental Supplies, and Durable Medical Equipment. Generic OTC Meds helped found the American Hispanic Pharmacy Association (AHPA) to help address the language barriers and disparities that exist in Pharmacy care in the USA. It also has begun making medication and medical supplies more accessible in impoverished regions of South America. Generic OTC Meds sponsored a fact-finding mission to Venezuela in 2007 to evaluate pharmaceutical care access. A team of pharmacists and evaluators traveled to Caracas and Barquisimeto to assess the level of need and to establish representation in those regions. It dispensed a variety of OTC medication and provided patient care. Since its visit to Venezuela, it has attempted to begin exports of OTC medication and first aid supplies, but has decided to delay exportation until the political climate improves. Pharmacists from the AHPA have also traveled to Ecuador, Peru, and Honduras on care missions.
We are both thrilled and deeply grateful for the generosity of Generic OTC Meds. Thanks to them, we will be bringing tremendous palliative care to the children and adults in Honduras as a result of their truly kind donation. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone at Generic OTC Meds!
¤ East Haddam Elementary School's Generosity
Four students who are part of the Student Council at East Haddam Elementary School decided to do a project collecting toothbrushes for the children in Honduras. They made posters to be put around the school and went to the different class representatives who then spoke to each class. They have a total of about 550 students whose efforts they were coordinating. It required a substantial amount of organization on their part to decide on and execute a plan for how this would be done. The project ran for just three weeks and was facilitated by their teacher, Mary Beth Havens. The principal of the school is Cindy Mello who gave the project her full support.
The students went to great lengths to ensure success. They downloaded a photo from the Little Friends web site and created posters using it to describe the project. The custodians came up with the idea of collecting the toothbrushes in empty Poland Spring bottles so the children could see their progress as the bottle got filled with the children's and staff's generosity.
When we go to Honduras, we see children of a similar age to those at East Haddam and are able to give every one of them their very own toothbrush, thanks in large part to collections such as this. When we gift them with their own dental care products, the people and especially the children will have a better chance at staying healthy. Often we see children who are too poor to have enough food, let alone a luxury like a toothbrush, and their eyes grow large and light up when we give them their very own brushes. It's like Christmas and a birthday rolled into one.
When we go to Honduras, we see children of a similar age to those at East Haddam and are able to give every one of them their very own toothbrush, thanks in large part to collections such as this. When we gift them with their own dental care products, the people and especially the children will have a better chance at staying healthy. Often we see children who are too poor to have enough food, let alone a luxury like a toothbrush, and their eyes grow large and light up when we give them their very own brushes. It's like Christmas and a birthday rolled into one.
The students and staff at East Haddam Elementary School are to be commended for having such big hearts. We deeply appreciate their delightful and generous efforts on behalf of the children of Honduras. We are never too young to experience the power of goodness that brings such joy as we reach out to help others. Thank you all so very, very much!
¤ A College Assignment
A college student named Brittany Nuzzaci saw the Everyday Heroes TV piece on WFSB about Little Friends and was inspired to help. She goes to Berkely College, where she is an international business major. The teacher for her International Trade course is Dr. Minkus-McKenna. Her assignment was to investigate: Does trade help or hinder developing countries? She was studying Honduras in this regard and saw the piece. That caused her to break her project into two parts, the second part showing what is being done to help Honduras. It was in this context that she wrote about Little Friends. She, Dr. Minkus-McKenna and her class wanted to help our efforts, so they did a collection of toothbrushes and toothpaste for us, and donated clothing, as well. Ed and Mary Pergiovanni picked up the items at her home and got to meet her; she is absolutely delightful. She says that she will continue collecting for us. What a wonderful girl--she has so much enthusiasm to help others. Thank you so much, Brittany!
¤ A Mask is Removed
A handsome boy named Jose Litto came to the Little Friends' Clinic in Honduras and was asked what we could do for his teeth. He said, "I'd rather you do something with my face, please." He was born with a dark mask on his face, which continued to grow as the years went on, compromising his eyesight. He had become marginalized in his village and had no hope of being helped in a country where parents often must carry their children three hours to a clinic to bandage severe wounds. Mrs. Nancy Kiely, an RN on a Little Friends' Honduras trip, Healing the Children Northeast, Inc., the Springfield Shriners, the Hepburn family, American Airlines, Ruth and Daniel Castro of CURE International, and the Pergiovanni's all collaborated on the project of getting him medical help in the United States, a place for him and his father to stay (at Mary Anne and Fred Hepburn's), transportation, and all the many details involved in this major project. He has had a number of surgeries now, a painstaking process that will return his face to its full beauty and allow him to thrive in his society.
Before Surgeries 
2006 
2008 
"It gently fell to Earth
And joyfully it grew
Emerging in its birth
As the miracle of you
¤ A Lost Limb, Nearly a Lost Life
The realities of life in Honduras can be extremely harsh. One young girl named Erica had lost the bottom portion of her leg and was left for dead, as there was simply no way to save her. Little Friends marshalled the resources to provide her with her first crutches and then a prosthetic device, with the critically-important therapy that these devices require. This brave youngster has now graduated from high school in Honduras and has moved herself on to post-high school education. Erica has been an inspiration, and a reminder of the profound impact that appropriate medical intervention can make.
"We are seeds of light
Children of the sun
We are born to shine
Angels, every one
¤ First Graders for a Cause
A first grade teacher at Our Lady of the Hamptons in Southampton, New York created a project for her students to support Little Friends International. Her name is Erin McClain and here is her story:
"I have 35 first graders who each wrote a letter to a dentist, along with a letter from me explaining the drive. We received responses from ten dentists and got approximately 700 toothbrushes, 1 case of floss, and 3 cases of toothpaste. The other 700 brushes were donated by the families of children in our school. We have 1496 toothbrushes!! We held our drive for two weeks and the students are going to be putting together thank you cards for the doctors, to be sent out next week."
Little Friends International is deeply moved by the understanding and enthusiasm of these children to so unselfishly help other children in such a beautifully practical way. There will be many more smiles on the faces of the children in Honduras as a result of their kindness. Big thanks go to you, Erin, and to your very wonderful students!
"We are seeds of light
Sown with love
Pieces of the dream
God was dreaming of
¤ Why Wheelchairs?
Axel is a Honduran boy who has dealt with spina bifida with great courage throughout his young life. He was only able to attend school by being carried back and forth by his parents. Little Friends provided Axel with a child-sized wheelchair and with that one, simple act, Axel was suddenly empowered to get himself back and forth to school and to also achieve becoming a full member of his class. He has his own wheeled vehicle now and to his classmates, he is cool! What other $100 purchase can be so instantly healing?
"We are God's design
We are born to shine
We are seeds of light"
Words and Music by James Nihan
Published by Composure Music (ASCAP)
Used by permission
For more information, go to www.jamesnihan.com