Update on Brayan in Mexico

I just got a new photo and update on Brayan.  It looks like the IGP is going well as his income has gone from $0 to $233 a month!!!!  I am so happy for him and his family!  Here is his report:

Age: 7 Sex: M Date of Birth: 3/13/2003
Height: 4 Feet 3 Inches Weight: 71 Pounds Hair Color: Brown Eye Color: Brown
2. Attends School: Yes
3. Favorite School Subjects: Grammar
Favorite Pastimes: Playing with friends, Playing soccer, Playing with toys and cars
Chores at Home: General housework
Talents or Hobbies: Drawing
Languages Spoken: Spanish

INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR CHILD'S FAMILY:
4. Approximate monthly income for the family (in U.S. Dollars): $233.00
5. Name of Father: Ausente Occupation:
(If not present, why?) Unknown reason
6. Name of Mother: Marlen Occupation: Homemaker
(If not present, why?)
7. Brothers and Sisters:
Name: Adán Age: 19 Sex: M Name: Alfonso Age: 16 Sex: M
Name: Blanca Age: 23 Sex: F Name: Brandon David Age: 4 Sex: M
Name: Noé Age: 19 Sex: M
8. Child lives with: Mother

INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR CHILD'S HOME:
9. Description of Home: Bathroom, Kitchen, Two bedrooms
Construction: Walls: Concrete block Roof: Concrete block Floor: Concrete
Cooking Facilities: Gas Stove
Sleeping Accommodations: Beds
10. Facilities and Services:
Water Source: Running water in home
Electricity: Available
Sanitary Facility: Toilet

A Letter from Brayan

While I am still waiting on the special needs follow up report for the donations that Brayan and his family received, at least I am still getting his letters. Here is his latest letter:

"Dear Sponsor Heather,

The house is still not ready because the rent is expensive and we can't pay it. The business is growing little by little. On my birthday, I didn't have a party, but I had a very nice time. The dolls in the picture you sent me are very pretty and my mom liked the dolls very much. I'd like to meet you in person. See you soon!

Brayan"

Summer Reading Package Received- Brayan in Mexico

Here is Brayan with his Summer Reading package. I just love how his little brother and mother get in a couple of the pictures as well. They almost always do. I haven't received the report from the fundraiser for their IGP and home. However, I know the IGP is up and running because Brayan tells me so in his package thank you letter. This is what he wrote:

Dear Heather,

Thank you for the gifts that you sent me. They are really nice. Yes, I use the computer you gave me a lot, and my mother's business is going well. The house isn't ready yet because there are some small issues and some things. The business is growing little by little. My mom sells the clothes, but business is kind of slow right now. My mom is very grateful for the help you have given us. We love you very much and we send you our best. My mom, my little brother and I send you lots of kisses and hugs with affection for you and your family. I hope you and your husband are doing fine. God willing, I will start the 3rd grade of elementary school, and I am learning how to read and write better. I will have vacations soon. I love the video games a lot.

Sincerely, Brayan

Brayan received 2 video games (the ones filled with candy), 1 toy car, 3 books, 1 tic tac toe game, and a letter. The comment was: "Brayan looked very happy for all the gifts he received from his sponsor."

A Letter from Brayan in Mexico

I received this letter from Brayan. I asked him if his younger brother Brandon was in school with him because I paid for their tuition back in September. It must have been a mistype because Brayan says his brother does not go to school yet. The money must have just been used for Brayan's tuition. You may remember he even got a mountain of school supplies to go with it.

I, also, asked him what city he lived in. That is because I have been to Guadalajara on many occasions, especially when I was living in the neighboring state of Colima. Guadalajara was only 3 1/2 hours away by bus. It turns out he lives in Zapopan. I have been there and seen the Cathedral several times. Their cathedral is hard to explain with words. Just imagine a place that is so done up that you feel like you are in a palace. It is AWESOME! For anyone heading o Mexico, you have got to check it out.

I hope I can go someday soon. Things are a lot harder to do when you have children! Before I was married & before I had children, I would go back and forth to Mexico with hardly a thought about it. I especially want to go now to see Brayan's mother's new business & home.

This is what's up...

First, here are the pictures from CI of Steve's visit with Brayan in Mexico. You all may remember that this is the family you helped when their income dropped to $0 & they were threatened with eviction. I am anxious to see that update. I was trying to convince someone at CI to have Mr. Cook deliver the help to Brayan's mother in person. I envisioned something similar to "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition", when the bus finally moves and the family sees their new home... Do you know what I am talking about? I thought Mr Cook could take the money we raised to the family. Brayan's mother would fall down crying tears of joy because she can't believe her dreams have come true: her own business & her own home! I would have loved to be there, or have it video-taped. I will be happy with the still pictures that should be coming in the mail shortly. :o)

Now, about what is going on with these Summer Reading Packages. I am STILL putting them all together. I am down to about 10 e-mails of stuff that I need to pack up. I thought I was going to get it done sooner, but I had something come up (I may get into that a little later). I promise I am working on them and still plan to have them all done, photographed and ready to go out by the middle of February. I can't wait to start getting the photos back from the kids! This will be awesome!

Delayed Thank You From Steve's Mexico Trip

Someone at the CI office got shredder happy in late last year. I know this because it happened to more sponsors besides myself. For whatever reason, the photos & original letter from Brayan were shredded after being scanned. I got a very nice memo from the assistant vp (Vickie) today. She apologized for the shredding incident. I am going to see if I can get attachments of the pictures CI took, since only pictures printed on to copy paper were included with the memo and letter.

Anyway, on to the purpose of this post- Here is what was in the package I sent him through Steve:
* 1 bilingual English/Spanish children's laptop

* 1 necklace for his mother

* 1 box of markers

* 2 boxes of crayons

* 2 watercolor paint sets

* 2 bilingual English/Spanish board books

* 2 Magnetic play sets

* 1 Hot Wheels Coloring Book

* 1 small LEGO kit

* 1 sticker book of over 400 Disney Pixar Cars stickers

* 2 lollipops

* 1 outdoor net ball set

And, here is Brayan's letter:

"Dear Heather,

Thank you for the gift that you sent me, dear sponsor. Thank you for the visit from your friend. I liked the gifts a lot. Most of all I liked the computer. I would like for you to come here so that I can know you in person, to spend time with you. I would like for you to meet my family. Well, my family would like to meet you all, too. You have helped us so much.

Thank you for everything.

I say goodbye,

Brayan"

Brayan & His Family~ AKA Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

A weight has been lifted for Brayan and his family. Thanks to some great people in this group, his mother will now have a business!

As stated before, his family is completely without funds. His child report stated $0 for the income. They were, also, being told they needed to get out of the home. The home is owned by Marlen's first husband, and he was ready to put Marlen and the two boys out on the street!

$540 was raised to give Marlen a business selling socks, underwear, t-shirts, pants, imitation jewelry, etc + a cart to move the items around in. This is a business that can not start soon enough! To make this happen, some strings & special circumstance approvals have been made- Brayan and his family will have the items they need to start the business today!!

Since they are, also, losing the roof over their heads, they will need to look for a new place to live. An anonymous donation was made to help them get a start on rent for a new home. $200 will give them shelter for a little while. That means that Marlen and her boys can look for a home & move today!!!

I know it is just unbelievable- What was such a scary situation has now been turned into a dream come true for Marlen. I wish I could be there to see the look on Marlen's face when the news is delivered. I imagine something like the faces of the people on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Have you ever watched that? You know when they start chanting, "Move that bus!" The bus finally moves and the family collapses in tears of joy and screams! What a sense of relief she will feel when she knows that she will have a home & a business! Wow!

I can not thank you all enough- You all made this happen, & you have saved a family from homelessness, hunger, and despair! You all are the best!!!

Emergency Fundraiser #4 Update!

Brayan's updated picture came this morning! To give an update to his fundraiser, we now have $165 raised- only $375 to go!! To donate, click here

The Disney Pricess dolls are still available as well- a total of 14 dolls. Every doll adds $8 to the fundraiser! To purchase one of the dolls, go here

The sticker books are, also, available on the web store. Every sticker book sold adds $5 to the fundraiser!

I know I am really being pushy this time. Even with all we have been through on these fundraisers, with sick children, and others really needing help... I have just never seen an income be at $0 before. It stresses me out. I think about what it would be like for me and my family to have no income... not one cent! What would we eat? How would we pay for soap to wash ourselves & our clothes? I mean, really, what would WE do?

Thank you, Chrystal, Dee, Su, Steve, & Cheri for your donations!!

In other news, more sponsors have been found for the Haitian kiddos:

Shinagne-dine Pierre-Joseph, Berthline Daniel, Serise Horne, & Bernadine Joseph now have sponsors!!! I am sooooo glad Shinagne-dine Pierre-Joseph has been taken. She is the one that grabbed my eye the most (and Jaden picked her, too). Since I knew I could not take for the next month or so, it has been killing me whatching her without a sponsor... But, never fear! She has a sponsor! Yay!!!


I will be posting more pictures soon... It would be really great to set up every child with a sponsor!

Brayan's Situation

left to right above: Disney Fairies, Disney Princesses, Littlest Pet Shop
left to right below: Batman, Toy Story, Bakugan

This is what I have... In hopes of helping Brayan... I have 6 types of sticker books. All of the books come with 414 stickers on 6 pages, except Batman which has 426! I have used these stickers in the past by carefully tearing out the pages & cutting down the middle of the page (to make them fit in a regular sized envelope)- Then, I stick them in my letters to the kids. I have, also, set the whole book in a direct package or in a 6" x 9" envelope.

I am offering these books to you all in exchange for a donation to help Brayan and his family. Each sticker book is $5, and all of the money goes to the fundraiser. You can either donate directly to his fundraiser here or order on the web store. The web store will give you the option of which sticker books you want, the fundraising page will not. If you use the fundraising page you will need to send me an e-mail to tell me which sticker book you want & where you want me to send them. I can ship them directly to you (if you are in the US or Canada), or to your CI, CUS, or HH4H child. (You can, also, order by calling CI & making a special needs donation directly to Brayan via Melissa Lidzy- If you do it this way, please let me know how much was donated, so that I can add it as an offline donation.)

Thanks!!!

**In other unrelated but terrific news, 4 more Haitian children have sponsors! From the group that was posted yesterday, these 3 are now sponsored: Kenderly Emmanuel, Junise Moise, and Jhimy Jean! From the older girls: Louvensa Decimus now has a sponsor!

Urgent!!! Emergency Fundraiser #4 launched!

I need every one's help, and I am willing to do just about anything to get it! Now don't take advantage of me while I am in a vulnerable position, but I will take requests for whatever I can do for you (in exchange for you helping me).

I must preface this I guess with the position I am in. I do not have big money hanging out in the bank... In fact, for the year, I will be lucky to make about $15,000. Everything I do here is voluntary because I can physically do a lot (I am just strapped money-wise). I say this, not so you will feel bad for me, but rather so that you will understand why I can't just call up CI & get this family taken care of.

Now, on to my situation. Some of you may remember Steve's trip to Mexico. He visited with my child Brayan & got several good video (and still) shots. In one of the video shots, Brayan's mother was explaining the situation the family was in- that they were going to be evicted and she had no money to pay them to stay in the house.

Well, I asked Greg @ CI to look into the situation. I got a long response back explaining the situation (which I have explained on the fundraising page). I had Brayan waiting in line with all of the rest of the fundraisers until today...

Today, I opened up my account, and I thought something was wrong with the web-site... But, there was nothing wrong with the site. However, there was something very wrong with the child report that they had just posted! The family was living on $95 a month. Now, their income is $0!!!! They have no support from family, and their situation is serious.

We have go to get Marlen (Brayan's mother) an income generating project TODAY! I just hope that they still have a roof over their heads & food to eat. I can't imagine what they must be going through.

Please help me help this family. I will not be sleeping tonight, I am sure. I will be thinking of ways to help those who help me/them. Stay tuned, as I am sure to post something for those special people.

If you would like to help, click, here

Brayan's Questionnaire

I received Brayan's completed questionnaire last week. Here is what it said:

Height: 4 feet 1 inch

Weight: 67 pounds

Eye color: coffee

Hair color: coffee

Favorites:

Book: Math

Movie: Sponge Bob

Subject: Spanish

Color: Blue

Song: "El nino Robo"

T.V. program: Flinstones

Food: Pizza (note from me: they have the BEST pizza in Mexico! And you eat it with hot sauce!)

Famous person: Costel

Sport: Soccer

Animal: Tiger

Hobby: Watching t.v.

In my free time I like to... listen to music, play, and draw.

My goal for the future is to be... a doctor

I will never forget when... you sent me toys. When I got home, I played with them for a little while, and then I put them away for safe-keeping.

A funny momnet was... when I fell and I laughed. They hit me with a ball and I laughed.

A special memory... thank you for being my sponsor. I love you very much and I send you lots of kisses and to the girls.

My school activities... study math

My activities after school... do my homework. Help me mom do the dishes.

Tuition Assistance for Brayan & Brandon

I need to preface this post by telling you how I found out that Brayan needed tuition assistance. I had requested a special needs donation break down for Brayan back in June or July because I was concerned. The father had abandoned the family, and left them with no way to provide for the bills, food, etc. The mother is a house wife, and would have to transition to the working world to provide for her boys on her own. Their income was listed as $95 back in March. I am not sure where that figure came from, but their family would be linked income wise with Paola & Tomasa's family. $95 is EXTREMELY low for a family in Mexico!

A little more than two months after my request, I heard back from CI with a break down of their needs. This is a summary of what they told me:

The mother is not working, she is a housewife. She mentioned that she'd like to start a business selling clothes like: underwear, socks, pants, t-shirts, blouses and some imitation jewelry, since she said she used to sell them before and she has some experience.

She said she would sell these articles in her home, she'd put some signs to advertise these articles and inform neighbors and people that she sells clothes. She also would sell them door by door or in little street markets.

What she needs is as follows:

A little cart to transport the clothes and an inventory of items (underwear, t-shirts, socks, pants,

blouses and imitation jewelry ) $468.00 USD

She also expressed that her main needs at this time is to pay for the tuition of her children

(August 24th, 2009 when classes start).

Tuition for both children: $ 32.00 USD

One of the crazy things about this is that I received this breakdown on September 10th, 2009, 18 days after school was supposed to start!! Plus, all of us sponsors know that the money doesn't get to the family instantaneously! It may have been a full month after school started before they received the tuition assistance.

Now, here is the story: When I got the breakdown that included the tuition needs, and saw that it was past due, I had to act fast. I scraped together $32 & called CI to make sure they would be in school ASAP.
Here is the thank you letter I received with these pictures:

Dear Mrs. McLaughlin,
Thank you for the donation you sent me to pay my tuition and with what was left we bought: pencils, erasers, colors, pencil sharpeners, glue, and a box to put the supplies in. In school I am doing well and my teacher wants me to play Christopher Columbus or a sailor. I'm learning math, reading, addition, subtraction, running and playing soccer. Thank you for the help you give me. I send you hugs and kisses and for the girls Jaden and Morgan.
Brayan

Items Bought for Brayan on Mack's Trip

Food items that were bought (above) & household items that were bought (below)

Mack did include plenty of toys for the two boys as you can see

Some of you may remember that Mack took a last minute trip to Mexico a few months ago. It was so last minute that I was not able to plan to have Brayan at the center to visit her. I went for the next best thing and asked Mack to pick up some things for his family once she got to Mexico. I gave her $50, and she went shopping. She put all of his items into foldable bags & left them for him at the center, along with a letter from me :0)

I did receive a thank you letter from him, but everything has been seperated. I put the pictures in a seperate envelope in order to get them scanned, now I have to find a way to reunite the letters with the photos.

Brayan and his family

Steve brought back some great photos and videos from his trip to Mexico. Brayan has 6 short videos on Youtube.com now! In the 4th video, Brayan's mother explains that they are having problems with the landlord. She said that they don't have the money needed to pay for the things they need, and now the owner is treating them badly. Brayan and Brandon are the two little children left in her care, but their father and only monetary provider walked out on the family!! Now, the mother is scrambling to get a job to pay the mounting bills. I got an Income Generating Project breakdown for her. She would like to have her own business, but this will cost $465 to start! Since I am unemployed myself, I can't provide much assistance. However, I have requested that CI look into a "temporary fix" to the situation: How much would 6 months rent cost?

Anyway, you can see all 6 of Brayan's videos here:

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=04F5D382FDBEF654

Brayan, Brandon & Mom Visit Steve

Brayan, Brandon and their mom visited with Steve last week at their local community center. I am anxious to see the video that Steve took, but these made me happy in the meantime. I am so glad they were able to get to the center to see him. Since it will be awhile since I have a chance to go, it has been great traveling through Steve's photos and videos!! I really want to go to Mexico in 2010. However, I have to buy plane tickets for 3 people, so it will take me longer... And, I guess it doesn't help that I am now unemployed... But, I will see him one day soon!

Getting Ready for Steve's Trip to Mexico

Steve will be leaving for Mexico in a week and a half. He has agreed to meet with my dear Brayan and our group child Paola. Last time, when he went to Guatemala, it didn't cross my mind to ask him to bring a letter or small momento to Yessica. This time, I was more prepared. Last night, I gathered up my items for Brayan and packed them into a flat rate priority box to ship to Steve. He will get the package this week, and take it with him to Mexico to hand deliver to Brayan. This is what I put into the box for 6 year old Brayan, his 3 year old brother Brandon and their mother:

* 1 bilingual English/Spanish children's laptop

* 1 necklace for his mother

* 1 box of markers

* 2 boxes of crayons

* 2 watercolor paint sets

* 2 bilingual English/Spanish board books

* 2 Magnetic play sets

* 1 Hot Wheels Coloring Book

* 1 small LEGO kit

* 1 sticker book of over 400 Disney Pixar Cars stickers

* 2 lollipops

* 1 outdoor net ball set

Now, speaking of Brayan, I will share with you his latest letter:

Dear Heather,

My family is doing fine, and I like to play soccer. My favorite soccer team is called "Aguillas del America". I'm back in school now and in 2nd grade. I love to read, draw, sing and watch cartoons and movies on TV. I like to watch movies with Japonese characters on them and movies about talents. It made me very glad that you like the pictures of my family. We send you lots of love.

Brayan

***Small side note: Paola's package is being sent to Steve seperately. Once I have that package together, I will post the same about her package contents.

A Trip Around the World

I told everyone a while back that I would update you on how I am teaching my girls about other countries and cultures. I have incorporated it into their home school, so every unit comes with a country of focus. There, of course, is tons of info about countries on the web, but to make it easier (and LESS time-consuming), I purchased the book "A Trip Around the World" (the publisher is Carson Dellosa). The next 2 books in the series are "Another Trip Around the World" and "A New Trip Around the World" (found here: http://teacher-supplies.carsondellosa.com/search?w=trip%20around%20the%20world )

This is what the web-site says for the book we are using now:

Teach your class about the geography, history, and culture of Canada, Mexico, Kenya, Japan, Australia, Germany, Egypt, The Netherlands, Brazil, China, Saudi Arabia, and the United States using art projects, maps, flags, language studies, and more.

Then, I went to the web-site for My Father's World Curriculum, and I picked up two blank passports, country flag stickers, and a wall map of the world. You can, also, get the Trip Around the World Books from My Father's World: http://www.mfwbooks.com/ecc_2nd.htm

Jaden and Morgan studied Mexico first because that just so happens to be the first country in the first book.

We made our own tortillas

Talked about the Spanish words for numbers 1-10, colors, days of the week and greetings

Colored the Mexican flag

And made replicas of the "adobe" houses

Yes, it is very basic stuff, but learning about the country and culture is awesome, especially when you have a sponsor child who lives there!!!

Next on my list to do before the end of the year: renew my passport and get Jaden and Morgan their first-ever passports!!

Special Needs Donation for Brayan & Brandon

After much delay (and an extension request from the field), I finally received Brayan's special needs request yesterday! This is what I received:

We visited Brayan's home and talked with the mother.

The mother is not working, she is a housewife. She mentioned that she'd like to start a business selling clothes like: underwear, socks, pants, t-shirts, blouses and some imitation jewelry, since she said she used to sell them before and she has some experience.

She said she would sell these articles in her home, she'd put some signs to advertise these articles and inform neighbors and people that she sells clothes. She also would sell them door by door or in little street markets.

What she needs is as follows:

A little cart to transport the clothes and Items (underwear, t-shirts, socks, pants,
blouses and imitation jewelry ) 468.00 USD
She also expressed that her main needs at this time is to pay for the tuition of her children
(August 24th, 2009 when classes start).
Tuition for both children: $ 32.00 USD

***So, you may have noticed that she needs money for the tuition for Brayan and his 3 year old brother Brandon to start school on August 24th! Of course, I received the request on September 10th!

At any rate, I called CI this morning & gave them the $32, so that the boys can be in school. The IGP request will have to wait it's turn in the fundraising line, but at least they will have their most urgent request taken care of.

I have some more great pics of Brayan and his family, but I need to get them scanned. I will try to get to that soon (probably use Mack's idea and go to FedEx Office). They are great pictures that I got because Mack purchased some items for Brayan's family when she was in Mexico, and she left them at the center for him to pick up. The letter & pics are great, so I will work on getting the pictures scanned... Do you know what is stopping me from scanning them right away? Mack said she thinks it is a $5 flat fee to scan photos onto a CD, so I was waiting and hoping I would get more pictures in the mail and I could put them all on the same CD (I am waiting on several photos of 6 different children from the packages I sent over 2 months ago).