Friends of the Orphans - Northwest Region Programs
The boys and girls at NPH (“pequeños”) are orphaned, abandoned or disadvantaged. Many have suffered physical and/or verbal abuse, have been neglected, and have been shuffled from one family member to another. Like all children, they are seeking love and security. When they come to NPH, they range in age from newborn to teenager and are told they will never be asked to leave. Our pequeños are welcomed with their siblings and become a part of the larger, stable NPH family where they can focus on education and personal growth.
Children stay at NPH until they are prepared to live independently. While at NPH, education is a top focus. All of our students completing secondary school also receive vocational training in a trade to ensure their self sufficiency. Many of our students continue to high school and university, and some go to graduate school. For example, in Mexico 74% of our pequeños go on to university, supported by NPH. Thousands of pequeños are now self-sufficient adults with families of their own and careers as teachers, doctors, accountants, farmers, artists, and social workers. They also support NPH by sponsoring children, and some even work for us, including the Directors of our homes in five countries.
Our outreach programs address desperate needs in the communities surrounding our homes. Examples of programs include: in Haiti, we operate the only free pediatric hospital; in Honduras, we treat patients in need via a new surgery center, and we provide housing to the elderly and those living with HIV/AIDS; in Mexico, we assist children living in a garbage dump by providing food, medical care, and education. In 2011, the number of children and adults who received humanitarian aid (medical, education and emergency relief) was 116,900.
Recent Successes and Current Challenges
In 2011, we cared for more than 3,400 children living in our homes; over 1,900 children from low-income households attended NPH schools, many of whom received academic scholarships to attend; and in-country job creation and contract work numbered 2,300. One of our greatest successes in 2011 was launching a new youth leadership program, bringing 4 young leaders from our homes to the Seattle area for a year to study English and benefit from leadership development and mentoring programs. Our biggest current need is to meet the economic demands of our ever-growing homes as we continue to welcome as many children in need of help as possible - during economically challenging times.