This is a short excerpt from a blog post that I asked Mary Nelson to write for Kids in Crisis. Mary and her family have been an inspiration to our organization and have become great friends to us. I traveled with Mary and her family in February to Nicaragua. Ben their son has volunteered many hours of service and produced our last two videos.

“Traveling to Nicaragua has been deeply rewarding for my family!  We have lived abroad, in Africa, while adopting for a year so the face of poverty is a familiar one to me.  However, seeing and touching little Lily’s Hope children in Nicaragua has taken my heart to a new place . . . one of deep pondering empathy.  I can only cry out to our heavenly Father for relief for both the moms and the children themselves.  After visiting Nicaragua in February, I decided to return in May with a team.  We had a wonderful trip.  Our team hauled port-a-cribs, strollers, and a wheelchair down to donate to the children who seem prisoners inside their home due to a lack of basic needs.  We visited families where the mom cannot take the child anywhere as the idea is too overwhelming.  Wrapping my mind around that makes my skin start to crawl.  I am spoiled with healthy children.  I am spoiled with our medical care.  I am spoiled because my husband is able to provide for us.  After visiting Nicaragua I consider it an honor to give – the need is great.”

Mary and her family, after visiting these wonderful children in February, took it upon themselves to go back to their home church and community to raise money for the Lily’s Hope kids. They organized their own trip and went back in May.

Mary, like me and others, in the Kids in Crisis family have been touched by the lives of these little ones. On behalf of Kids in Crisis we want to publicly say thank you for your sincere dedication and commitment to stand with us and other organizations to help Lily’s Hope kids in Nicaragua.