Mission: Nicaragua ♦ June 16-23, 2012
WHAM participants will return to Nicaragua for their third mission trip hosted by the Fabretto Children’s Foundation.
Fabretto Children's Foundation
After our yearlong study of the Millennium Development Goals in 2009, the parish Outreach Committee unanimously agreed to provide financial support for the Fabretto Children's Foundation in Nicaragua. Serving over 6,000 children and their families, Fabretto enables impoverished Nicaraguans in underserved communities to break the cycle of poverty and reach their full potential through programs promoting nutrition, health, education, community and character development.
Through Fabretto's Adopt-A-School-Program, our students will be visiting rural communities neighborhoods and schools in northern Nicaragua. The grant provided by our Outreach Committee supports the school in El Miramar Community which has a population of 350 and one school with 60 students. The school is a simple structure with four small classrooms, one of which is a computer lab recently equipped by Fabretto, a kitchen and a lunch hall. Holy Comforter's financial support will help pay teacher salaries and provide nutritional meals and school supplies.
The primary focus for high schoolers when they visit in June is to work with the children in their afterschool program which includes tutoring and extracurricular activities. Our students have already begun a "pen pal" program with students in Miramar, sending Christmas gifts, Easter books, and pictures to them. Throughout the year, WHAM will create after school and sports curricula and projects for students served by Fabretto.
This is an exciting venture not only for our high school students but also for the parish as we reach out beyond our borders to get to know people of another culture and let them learn about us. Fabretto's Group Volunteer Prospectus (see below) provides details about their volunteer program as well as a brief history of Nicaragua and the Fabretto Family Foundation. For more information about the Fabretto Children's Foundation, go to
http://www.fabretto.org/.
Mission Trip Details
Mission: Nicaragua is scheduled for June 16-23, 2012. Each participant is responsible for all travel expenses. The total cost of the trip is $1,500. Registration deadline is December 1, 2011, at which time completed application forms and a non-refundable $500 deposit are due to the parish office.
Although the parish has a budget for this annual mission trip, WHAM will participate in several fundraising events throughout the year to raise money for Escuela Miramar - a small kindergarten-grade 6 school in the village of Miramar. Over the next few months, the lay team will work closely with Fabretto's Mission Trip Coordinator in Nicaragua. Adult chaperones for the trip are Ann Barrett, Steve Crawford, and Patti Pateros.
2012 Mission Trip Registration
Fabretto has put together a recommended packing list for those traveling to Nicaragua.
packing List
Requirements
Participants are strongly encouraged to have some knowledge of the Spanish language in order to converse with the people with whom we will be working. Over the course of the year, we will provide opportunities to learn some basic conversational Spanish.
All trip participants will be required to sign the WHAM Participant Pledge which states that there is a mandatory attendance requirement at WHAM's Sunday meetings. The students themselves feel it is important to get to know each other well and build a strong team prior to the trip. Therefore we have made the decision that anyone who wishes to take part in Mission: Nicaragua must attend a minimum of 14 Sunday WHAM meeting.
Space is limited to 20 students. If you have any questions, please contact Patti Pateros, WHAM coordinator.
Nicaragua Weather
