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LITTLE FRIENDS INTERNATIONAL, INC. a 501 (c) (3) non-profit |
BACK TO HOME PAGE OUR PARTNERS IN THE WORK:
¤ hawkwing
¤ CURE International
¤ NEAT Marketplace
¤ Corpus Christi Church
¤ Connecticut State Dental Foundation's R.E.N.D.E.R. Care
¤ Children's Rescue Mission
Many times Little Friends International can partner with another non-profit organization that is already "on the ground" with the people who need the most assistance toward living a life with any good prospects of survival. This prevents the needless expense of redundant staff and organizational infrastructure. Little Friends also collaborates with groups in Connecticut to resolve some of the crushing problems of the people in Honduras... and now the Cheyenne River Lakota Sioux Reservation in South Dakota, that otherwise would go unattended.
Little Friends International's Modern Miracle of Dentistry
One child's presenting challenge: After a half-hour treatment:
We cannot thank every person enough who helps in this effort to bring health and dignity to others!
¤ hawkwing: www.hawkwing.org
Our newest collaboration is with the new friends we have met at hawkwing. This non-profit helps Native Americans living in the poorest place in the entire United States: The Cheyenne River Lakota Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. It is led by Rochelle Ripley, herself a Lakota, who lives in Glastonbury.
Little Friends hosted a day of making fleece blankets, with the help of the wonderful folks at Corpus Christi Church. Our goal was to turn the yards of warm fleece that a Little Friends' contact donated, into 64 blankets for children and homeless U.S. military veterans on the Rez who must endure a climate in which temperatures can drop down to 40 degrees below zero. On Saturday, April 12th a group of volunteers met this challenge! Now these beautiful no-sew blankets will be given to hawkwing, thanks to the enthusiastic participants at Corpus Christi.
¤ CURE International: www.cureinternational.org
One of the groups we feel blessed to partner with is CURE International. Ruth and Daniel Castro, who live and work with the poor in Honduras, are our hosts from CURE when we go to Honduras. Ruth recently sent us a detailed accounting of a gift of $2,000 U.S. that was donated to CURE, as our people are only in Honduras once a year and the Castro's are there 365 days a year. We thought this would give you a clear idea of the needs of the people whom we are serving in Honduras:
(Please note that 15 lempiras = approximately $1.00 U.S.)
Sonia - A mother from Morazon, who takes her 5-year old child to a rehabilitation center called Telethon for therapy every month... Lps 12,500.00
Jose - A 15-year old who has a congenital defect; funding from Little Friends sent him to the Shriner's Hospital in Boston... Lps 8,746.00
Marvin - A 10-year old from La Lima, Cortes had a tumor in one eye; funding from Little Friends sent him to Fort Myers Children's Hospital for surgery... Lps 6,782.00
Juan - A 15-year old from San Pedro Sula Cortes needed to have an electromiografia test done for Orthopedic treatment... Lps 1,800.00
Adan - An 8-year old from Laguna de la Capa, Yoro suffers from seizures and needed to have evaluative tests done at Mario Catarino Rivas Hospital... Lps 2,900.00
Franklin - A 10-year old needed xrays done at Hospital Leonardo Martinez before an orthopedic problem could be treated... Lps 860.00
Karen - An 8-year old from San Pedro Sula who has ricketts and needed tests done to be treated at Hospital Leonardo Martinez... Lps 295.00
Merlyn - A two-year old who, along with her mother, needed transportation back to their village after Orthopedic surgery... Lps 200.00
Rubenia - A 70-year old woman dying of cancer, needed transportation from the capital to San Nicholas after her cancer treatments... Lps 500.00
Three patients from the Orthopedic Brigade were helped with travel and the cost of food to make their treatments possible... Lps 600.00
This comes to a total of $2,000.00 U.S. and made possible a great deal of healing and relieved the suffering of many people!
¤ NEAT Marketplace: www.neatmarketplace.org
Another outstanding collaborative partner of Little Friends International is NEAT Marketplace in Hartford, CT. NEAT, the New England Assistive Technology Marketplace, was established to provide information and access to equipment and devices that can change the lives of people of all ages, with all types of disabilities, both temporary and permanent. NEAT has generously allowed Little Friends to purchase medical equipment at very minimal cost to supply the Jeffrey Manuck Clinic and other clinics in Honduras. We are deeply grateful for their unending support and tenacity in solving many of the critical needs of the people and children we assist.
¤ Corpus Christi Church: www.corpuschristiparish.net
Corpus Christi has been a key element in helping Little Friends deliver assistance to the children and people of Honduras. They allow Little Friends to store an enormous amount of goods and equipment in large garages. The parishioners have opened their hearts to embrace our work in many ways, including supplying vitally important volunteers to assist us on our trips to Honduras and making donations of every kind. We would simply not be able to be effective without their amazing generosity.
The very special people who came to the church to craft 64 fleece blankets for hawkwing in April 2008 were: Joan Silverio, Linda Dutcher, Donna Gagliardi, Carol Sue Schmidt, Nancy Kiely, Theresa Bibeault, Margaret Valenti, Cara Klimanowski, Jackie Zawodniak, Matthew Nowak, Liz Edgaro, Blanche Trudeau, Mary Gregory, Gloria Gworek, and Anna Greenwood, assisted by Sandra DeRoma, Ed and Mary Pergiovanni, and Noreen Cullen. The blankets were made in the spirit of love and care, and will be respectfully sent to the Cheyenne River Lakota this year. Many, many thanks to all who came to learn the craft of fleece blanket-making, to offer their hands and hearts in this worthy endeavor, engaging in the sacred work of giving to others from one's own skills. You were wonderful!
¤ R.E.N.D.E.R. Care: www.csdf.us./funds
The R.E.N.D.E.R. Care Fund of the Connecticut State Dental Foundation supports collection and distribution of donated dental equipment. They have been a key partner for Little Friends as we have worked hard to outfit the clinics in Honduras. Without their help and the help of many dentists who so kindly donate expensive items, it would not be possible to give the essential tools and professional equipage necessary to perform the needed procedures in this very poor country.
¤ Children's Rescue Mission: www.crmission.org
Little Friends partnered with this group buy giving them money to buy three cows, 1,000 chickens, and a place to house the chickens, as well as a water pump for the farm animals, and shipped a dental suite for them to use to start a clinic (equipment collected by R.E.N.D.E.R. Care). CRM operates in a place quite distant in Honduras from where we go, so this allowed us to extend our donations to a different area of Honduras when we became aware of their specific needs.