Airmen visit Nicaraguan orphanages, deliver donations

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Jacque Lickteig
  • New Horizons - Nicaragua Public Affairs
SANTA TERESA, Nicaragua (AFNEWS) --  Thirty-six Camp RED HORSE members collected more than $500, more than 80 books and more than 100 toys and donated it all to two orphanages here April 7.

Delivering the donations and spending time with the orphans was one of the volunteer projects of New Horizons - Nicaragua 2007, a humanitarian exercise that provided free medical care to more than 20,000 Nicaraguans.

In addition, the Airmen of the 820th Expeditionary Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operations Repair Squadron Engineer Squadron, called RED HORSE, are building a new school and a new medical clinic for the local community.

"We've helped the orphanages in other ways by fixing the water pumps," said Capt. Carlos Diaz, the lead officer for the project. "We thought it would be a good idea to actually spend time with the children who do not have families during the Easter holiday weekend. We had a good time and the smiles on those children's faces told us that they did too."

One group of RED HORSE members went to the ABC Feed the Children orphanage and the other went to the Siervas del Divino Rostro orphanage.

Both groups set up egg hunts and served ice cream and cookies at each location. They spent the rest of the day playing sports, coloring books and learning Nicaraguan games with the children.

"On behalf of the Siervas del Divino Rostro, I would like to thank you all for what you have done for these children," said Sister Carolina Barba, one of the nuns at the orphanage. "We don't have anything to give you in return except our prayers. Thanks for the toys and especially for the school supplies you have brought for them."

As a token of appreciation, four of the children performed traditional Nicaraguan dances for the group at the Siervas del Divino Rostro orphanage.

But to some of the volunteers, the children's responses were the best thanks they could get.

"It was awesome," said Master Sgt. Steven Bresson, a Camp RED HORSE member. "You could see the children were really excited us being there with them, and that was the most rewarding part of it all." 

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