Meeting With Congressman
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As we approach ground breaking on the new children's home interest from the local and state government is increasing and our sister organization, Líderes Para Dar, has been engaged.
Leaders2Give created Líderes Para Dar (Leaders2Give in Spanish) as its Mexican nonprofit subsidiary to help facilitate the development of the home and its ongoing operations.
Líderes Para Dar’s mission is identical to Leaders2Give’s with a Board of Directors composed of three officers from Leaders2Give’s Board of Directors along with a number of Mexican nationals. They will be charged with hiring staff and overseeing the day-to-day operations of the home.
Recently, Líderes Para Dar Board member Juan Carlos Esqueda met with State Congressman Yayo VanWormer to review plans for the new home including construction dates, hiring plans, usage, and community engagement. It was a very productive meeting and we look forward to welcoming Congressman VanWormer and his colleagues to the facility for our March groundbreaking ceremony (dates to be announced.)
Left to right: Lic Pedro Alba, Congressman Yayo Van Wormer, and Juan Carlos Esqueda Hampl
The next meeting scheduled with local authorities will include the Governor of BCS and the Directors of DIF across BCS. DIF is the Mexican governmental department responsible for child welfare and will be placing those eligible at the John Gullo Home for Children.
Remember, this home will welcome children from all over Baja California Sur who require a temporary home while their families are experiencing a medical crisis. Most of those who are eligible are the children of single mothers who are struggling with a terminal illness such as cancer or are seeking medical care for another child. Poverty in Baja Calfornia Sur has increased by over 200% over the past few years and the rates of breast cancer and childhood leukemia in BCS are among the highest in all of Mexico. As a result, abandonment of children happens much too frequently when medical treatment is being sought.
Construction will happen in phases. We have raised the necessary funds for phase 1 and will be sending appeals and hosting additional fundraisers in the months ahead to ensure that we reach our fundraising goal. If you would like to get involved, reach out to our Volunteer Coordinator, Shelley Aibner or you can make a donation here.
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PARTNER UPDATES
New Creation Kids Children’s Home
Currently, 22 children live at New Creation Kids. Leaders2Give provides financial sustainment to cover operational expenditures and is grateful for the support and involvement from many other individuals and organizations who help with special events and capital improvements.
Each year we assess their needs for the coming year and have recently funded the facility throughout 2023. It costs approximately $25,000 per year to provide propane, food, electricity, education and other necessities, but of course their needs are great and any additional support that can be provided is welcome.
New Creation Kids is a home for children whose parents are temporarily unable to care for them for reasons such as a health crisis, extreme poverty, violence in the home, incarceration, and addiction. Children who are placed here learn skills, attend the local school, and are loved and cared for. Our support is only made possible through your generosity.
The East Cape Health Center
This past year, because of the generosity of donors, the East Cape Health Center was able to expand the medical services its doctors, nurses, lab technicians, and dentists provide to the East Cape area and most importantly, was able to
continue to provide no or low-cost services to those less fortunate members of our community.
Specifically, the clinic was able to purchase vital lab equipment, new gurneys, a new x-ray machine, buildout a new, satellite clinic in the town of La Ribera and purchase a new ambulance. Even more exciting, plans are underway to create a women’s consultation room within the Los Barriles clinic, designed to provide compassionate female health care in a supportive and comfortable environment.
The East Cape Guild
The good news is the East Cape Guild will be funding more scholarships this year than any time in its over 25 year history; 143 High school students and 75 college scholarships for the 2022-23 school year. The other good news is that to raise the necessary funds for these scholarships, the Guild has two fun events coming up. No bad news.
The Guild will bring back Monte Carlo night, one of the most popular events in the area. Monte Carlo night will take place on February 26, 2023 at the Spa Rancho Buena Vista, one of the Guild’s longest and most loyal supporters.
The Guild is also excited to announce it will host its very first Music Festival with a concert to take place on March 25, 2023 and a more exclusive dinner/concert event prior to the concert. The event will include a group of song writers from Nashville, Rob Lamothe (a songwriter/performer and lead singer of RiverDogs) and some other talent.
John Plotkin’s annual East Cape calendar this year will benefit the Guild. The calendar will be available for purchase at the Los Barriles Saturday markets beginning December, at Guild meetings, and at the Pickleball Tournament.
Guild meetings are open to the public. Learn more on how you can help our community by providing education.
Feeding The Hungry
The 4WD ATV Fun Ride was a very successful fundraiser that seemed to be enjoyed by all participants! There were 170 riders who drove 20 miles of backcountry trails, with 13 stops that had country music singers, line dancers, a bar serving
ice-cold beers, and even a campfire with smores and tequila shots!! That fundraiser raised enough donations to supplement the food of 6 families for a year.
Feeding the Hungry has completed our end-of-the-year survey of our current families and now we can add a couple more of the neediest families in the Los Barriles/Buena Vista area. In addition, we have increased the value of our vouchers to reflect the recent cost of living increases of groceries.
Feeding the Hungry has started work on a new and more interesting Facebook page. We will be adding photos to make the page more appealing to the viewers, while attempting to keep it current. Check it out.
SNAP - Spay, Neuter, and Prevention
SNAP is pleased to announce they ended the 2022 year having accomplished 1141 spay & neuter services for our local neighbors' dogs and cats.
They are even more proud of their recent fundraising dinner aptly called, SPAYghetti & No Balls, which raised enough funds to sterilize 500 more animals.
SNAP has planned several community events throughout the year, including a spay and neuter clinic in February. This will be the first one held since the pandemic began years back.
SNAP leadership is very excited about the progress the community outreach liaison is making in the community with awareness. However, they are still desperately seeking a few amazing souls who are bi-lingual and would love to take the message into the schools once a month. Please help them find these individuals and really make a difference in our communities!
To Donate to Leaders2Give and any of our Partners, visit our Donate page.