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Our Work
Our Work
Nuestros Pequeños HermanosTM (NPH) helps address the devastating cycle of poverty by providing for the basic needs of highly vulnerable children: security, an education, and the material and emotional support they need to shape a prosperous future for themselves. NPH also cares for medically fragile children, including those who suffer from chronic, debilitating conditions. Without NPH, many of these children would likely fall into the social traps plaguing their countries, or worse yet, not survive. NPH empowers children and youth with confidence and practical skills so they can become productive, self-sufficient, compassionate role models in their own communities. Below is just a sampling of the operations and 2021 highlights, in both the homes and in the communities, across the nine countries where NPH operates.
NPH Bolivia
Founded
April 17, 2005
Location of NPH’s Casa Padre Wasson Home
San Ignacio de Sara,
50 miles north of Santa Cruz
NPH Operates
Family-style home
Primary school (grades K-6)
Farm
Medical clinic
Community Programs such as the Createens art program and training workshops for children and youth in the surrounding communities
Supports
0
children, youth, and adults
“At NPH Bolivia, we understand that education is the last and perhaps the most important link in professional formation, through which young men and women solidify their independence and become active members of the community.”
Patricia Rueda, National Director
Patricia Rueda with two graduates
2021 NPH Bolivia Highlights
The formation and roll-out of the Createens art program provided a multifunctional safe space for teens to be creative, strengthen self-confidence, and develop problem-solving skills while reducing depression and anxiety. This program is offered to both teens in the home and community.
NPH workshops prepared youth from both the home and community for independent living by focusing on personal development, finances, cooking, employment opportunities, and vocational training.
The new dairy milk project provided children with fresh milk and improved the self-sustainability of the home.
NPH Dominican Republic
Founded
January 6, 2003
Location of NPH’s Casa Santa Ana Home
Outside of San Pedro de Macorís, about 40 miles east of Santo Domingo
NPH Operates
Family-style home
School (grades K-11)
Vocational workshops
Farm and Greenhouse
Medical clinic
Community Programs, such as transitional homes, the Extension San Marcos Program for people with special needs, and the Ambulatory Surgery Center - a collaborative project with our partner organization, One World Surgery.
Supports
0
children, youth, and adults
“We also wish to grow our San Marcos programs to more of the outer community, bringing direct help to families with children with disabilities. We invited some of these families to our home and it was humbling to hear how appreciative the parents are with the little assistance we can offer at this time. The gratitude shown by them is a sign of just how important our work is.”
Kieran Rigney, National Director
Extensión San Marcos participants
2021 NPH Dominican Republic Highlights
The Extension San Marcos Program provided economic support, food, medicine, and transport to people with limited resources who live with severe disabilities or health conditions. More than 100 people were served in just the first few months after opening.
More than 5,000 people in the town of Batey Nuevo received primary-and family-healthcare services from NPH.
Procured employment opportunities for youth in the home and in the community by creating alliances with companies who provide training via internships and job placement.
NPH El Salvador
Founded
June 29, 1999
Location of NPH’s Casa Sagrada Familia Home
Near the border of Guatemala in Texistepeque, about 30 miles from San Salvador
NPH Operates
Family-style home
School (grades K-9)
Vocational workshops
Farm
Medical clinic
Community programs such as Centro Bienestar Infantil (CBI) daycare center and the NPH school
Supports
0
children, youth, and adults
Students return to school
2021 NPH El Salvador Highlights
Created an inventive system of protocols and schedules to welcome students back safely. This resulted in a return to school for 100% of the kids living in the home and 90% of the students from the Community Programs.
Implemented a variety of mental-health activities and workshops that promoted resiliency.
The agriculture program started to yield a variety of vegetables, such as corn, bananas, cashew, papaya, and native plants such as loroco, which is a prominent ingredient in main dishes such as pupusas. This farm will provide nourishing food for children and staff, and also serve as a living-classroom.
NPH Guatemala
Founded
November 11, 1996
Location of NPH’s Casa San Andres Home
In Parramos, 16 miles from Antigua and an hour northwest of Guatemala City
NPH Operates
Family-style home
School (grades K – 9)
Vocational workshops
Farm, Greenhouse
Medical Clinic
Community Programs, such as the “Sagrada Familia” Daycare Center in Parramos, the NPH Guatemala Education Center, and NPH OneFamily which provides services to families in need
Supports
0
children, youth, and adults
“For 2022, our goal is to continue supporting vulnerable families, children, and young people by extending our programs into the community and promoting workforce development through vocational training.”
National Director, Orlando Ramos
Student and teacher
2021 NPH Guatemala Highlights
Celebrated the graduations of nearly 100 pequeños (K-12) from both the homes and the community, and served 250 community children through the NPH Guatemala Education Center.
The Chicas Poderosas program helped prepare and empower several dozen girls by promoting self-esteem, self-awareness, and confidence.
Women from the local community were supported by NPH through vocational workshops that focused on skills and empowerment. These programs resulted in many of these women successfully opening their own businesses.
“Sagrada Familia” Daycare Center
NPH Haiti
Founded
January 26, 1987
Location of NPH’s St. Hélène Foyer Home
About 25 miles from Port-au-Prince in Kenscoff
NPH Operates
St. Hélène Foyer in Kenscoff: home, clinic and school (grades K – 10) for children in need
Father Wasson Angels of Light in Tabarre: home, clinic and school (grades K – 12) for vulnerable and displaced children
Medical clinics
Don Bosco in Tabarre: a higher education program for youths who are attending high school, university or technical schools.
Community programs such as three rehabilitation outpatient centers providing therapy and education to children and adults with neurological disabilities
St. Damien Pediatric Hospital in Tabarre (Scroll to section on SDPH)
NPH Haiti Supports
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children, youth and adults, plus thousands of women and children at St. Damien Pediatric Hospital
2021 NPH Haiti Highlights
NPH Haiti celebrated the graduations of 72 pequeños (K-12) from the homes, and 180 pequeños from the community.
Kay St. Germaine rehabilitation center provided education and therapies to nearly 400 children with neurological disabilities from vulnerable families.
368 local people were employed at NPH Haiti, including 214 in childcare and education
Kenson Kaas, National Director of Childcare and Hermano Mayor (“Older Brother”) with youth at St. Hélène Foyer
NPH Haiti
St. Damien Pediatric Hospital
Haiti was again beset by extreme challenges in 2021: the assassination of the president, an earthquake, a fuel shortage, and unrelenting violence. These devastating events exacerbated the nation’s political instability. However, even in the face of dire circumstances, St. Damien Pediatric Hospital remained open for the entirety of 2021 to provide essential, life-giving and life-saving services.
In 2021, the staff of St. Damien provided over 52,000 critical services to high-risk pregnant women and to babies and children suffering from chronic medical conditions. Beyond their essential daily work, the leaders of St. Damien also endeavored to plan for its future and increase the safety of its staff and patients in the following ways:
Vaccinations: St. Damien realized a staff vaccination rate of 90% in a country with an overall vaccination rate of less than 2%. This robust vaccination rate kept patients, families, and staff safe during a pandemic.
Improvements: St. Damien installed cameras and fences around the hospital to increase the security and safety for staff and patients; especially important in a country with high rates of kidnappings and violence.
An addition was built, which now serves as both a maternity triage and an isolation unit for any infectious or immunocompromised children who require quarantine.
Planning: St. Damien completed and approved its 2022-2026 Strategic Plan which lays out ambitious goals and strategies to sustainably provide the women and children of Haiti with life-saving care. A primary focus for the coming years is to improve the quality of service, increase the ratio of health professionals to patients, update facilities, and modernize equipment.
St. Damien is the only hospital wholly dedicated to pediatric and prenatal care in Haiti - a country of 11.5 million people. Without the valiant dedication of the people at St. Damien, several thousand children with treatable illnesses would suffer or die, and thousands of mothers would either perish in childbirth or not receive the necessary pre-natal support that leads to bearing healthy children.
A baby in the neonatology unit
Oncology patients
Dr. Jacqueline Gautier - A Pioneer at St. Damien Retires
After 30 years of accomplished service, Dr. Jacqueline Gautier, National Director of Health/CEO of St. Damien, retired and passed the baton to Dr. Pascale Yola Gassant Heurtelou. Dr. Gautier was appointed as the very first medical director of St. Damien in 1993, helping Father Richard Frechette, CP, D.O., transition from a hospice center for dying children to an esteemed pediatric hospital for the vulnerable children and pregnant mothers of Haiti.
Among her many achievements, Dr. Gautier helped establish the HIV/AIDS department and co-founded a pediatric residency program at St. Damien. Due to her leadership and collaboration, several hundred children living with HIV/AIDS received life-saving therapy, hundreds of pregnant women received pediatric AIDS prevention training, and future generations of pediatricians are trained to care for Haiti’s most vulnerable children and families.
Dr. Gautier has given decades of outstanding service to St. Damien, and we could not be more grateful for the changes she instituted. She filled many roles and generously gave her time, knowledge, compassion, and energy to St. Damien.
Dr. Jacqueline Gautier
NPH Honduras
Founded
November 4, 1985
Location of NPH’s Rancho Santa Fe Home
One hour northeast of Tegucigalpa
NPH Operates
Family-style home
Special homes for severely disabled children and elderly adults
School (grades K – 9)
Vocational workshops
Farms
Medical clinic
Community programs such as an economic empowerment program for community youth, a temporary home for at-risk children, a daycare center for working mothers, and the San José Family Center, located in the mountain town of Mata de Plátano, which provided services to nearly 300 vulnerable children, adolescents and their families
Supports
0
children, youth, and adults
“Our community outreach programs continued to grow, and NPH now serves hundreds of families in impoverished communities with academic scholarships, gender equality programs, as well as medical and therapeutic support for people with disabilities.”
Stephen O’Mahony, National Director
2021 NPH HOnduras Highlights
NPH Honduras received an award from the national childcare authorities for their contribution to the Child Protection System in Honduras.
An economic empowerment project provided seed capital and business management training to 70 young women and men between the ages of 18 and 29.
To meet the needs of the a disabled child, vital improvements were made, such as remodeling five homes, constructing wheelchair accessibility paths/ramps, and expanding therapy services.
A child and a caretaker on the grounds of Rancho Santa Fe
NPH Mexico
Founded
August 2, 1954
Location of NPH’s Casa San Salvador Home
In Miacatlán, 77 miles south of Mexico City
NPH Operates
Family-style home
Primary and secondary schools
Farms
Medical clinic
Technical high school and home in Cuernavaca
Ciudad de los Niños (“City of the Children”) home in Matamoros
Group houses for youths attending university in Monterrey and Mexico City
Community programs such as an academic scholarship program, meals and health care for children/youth in the community, NPH OneFamily which provides services to families in need, and support for Hermanos Mayores (“Older Siblings”) who were raised at NPH and now live on their own
Supports
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children, youth and adults
“I have hope in the future; I place my trust in a better tomorrow, and this is how I see the life of each of the children.”
Rafael Bermudez, National Director and Hermano Mayor (“Older Brother”) who was raised at NPH Mexico
Rafael Bermudez age 5
2021 NPH Mexico Highlights
NPH Mexico welcomed 33 new children into their homes.
Remote learning created challenges for many students so classes were held in large open areas outdoors to adhere to preventive health measures. As a result, 165 boys, girls, adolescents, and adults celebrated graduations.
Offered a youth educational program that provided resources on independent living, job skills/job seeking, and public transport. All youth who participated in this program secured employment.
Rafael Bermudez
NPH Nicaragua
Founded
May 10, 1994
Location of NPH’s Casa Padre Wasson Home
45 minutes southwest of Managua in Jinotepe
NPH Operates
School (grades K – 11)
Vocational workshops
Farms
Greenhouses
Medical clinic
Community programs such as an academic scholarship program, meals and health care for children/youth in the community, NPH OneFamily which provides services to families in need, and the “Good Samaritan” and San Jorge programs.
Supports
0
children, youth and adults in the community
“We want to work not only with children, but also with their parents, to provide them tools and knowledge to give them the ability to generate income to sustain their families.”
Marlon Velásquez, National Director and Hermano Mayor (“Older Brother”) who was raised at NPH Honduras
A child receiving therapy at Casa Samaritano
2021 NPH Nicaragua Highlights
The “Good Samaritan” program provided physical, motor, intellectual, and sensory therapies to children living with disabilities, and also supported in-house instruction for parents of disabled children.
NPH improved the lives of nearly 80 children living in the San Jorge community by providing therapies, transport to medical appointments at external hospitals, and primary medical care by NPH doctors.
Despite challenges brought on by COVID, NPH Nicaragua provided tools and resources to help youth transition into self-sufficient adults via vocational training, certifications, and workshops.
NPH Peru
Founded
November 10, 2004
Location of NPH’s Casa Santa Rosa de Lima Home
Two hours south of Lima in San Vicente de Cañete
NPH Operates
Family-style home
Farm
Therapy center
Medical clinic
Community Programs such as an academic scholarship program, meals and health care for children/youth in the community, and NPH OneFamily which provides services to families in need.
Supports
0
children, youth and adults
“For 2022, our main vision is to expand to be able to serve and support the vulnerable families in our community. Our aim is to guarantee an integrated and functional home, where there are no children or youth suffering from violence and abandonment.”
Rafael Antonio Arce Guillén, National Director and Hermano Mayor (“Older Brother”) who was raised at NPH Honduras
2021 NPH Peru Highlights
NPH Peru supported youth and young adults through the Higher Education Program, which offered vocational training, university instruction, and resources for transitioning to an independent and prosperous adulthood.
To further improve the health and wellbeing of children and staff, fruits and legumes were added to the daily menu and a magnetic water softener system was installed.
NPH made it possible for six students to study careers at technical institutes, eight to pursue university degrees, and one student to complete a degree.