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Just in!:
GIFTS THAT CHANGE LIVES
It's 1994. A small group of young children approach my door in
Guaymas, Sonora, filthy and hungry and asking for money. They're
elated to receive a few cans of tuna, which was all I had to offer them.
The next day I play catch with them outside their shack, made of tar
paper and trash, where several families reside in abject poverty. I
learn the oldest boy, age 8 or so, is hoping to go to school someday,
but having to support his brothers and sisters on the tips he earns
bagging groceries makes that a mere dream.
Months later, an Americano from the nearby tourist town of San
Carlos puts 50 bucks in my hand, to give to “those kids” he had
heard about. I invite him to come with me and give the money to
them in person.
The moment he sees their shack and the dirty faces of the kids who
live in it, he's overcome with shock. Before we even get out of the
car, he tells me “Make it a hundred bucks....and make it every
month”. Little did he know the effect that that one gift would have.
A friend in San Carlos matches the offer. Suddenly we've got
enough for the oldest boy, Juan, to quit his job completely and go to
school.
I get lucky and score a job singing my songs in one of the local bars
in San Carlos, where other Americans who come to my shows are
asking me questions about how Juan is doing with school. Some of
them want to help. Twenty bucks here, fifty bucks there. Some visit
the barrios with me. Some bring clothes, others simply spend time
with the kids.
Fifteen years later....Juan graduates from college, and is standing in
front of a group of reporters at a news conference, promoting a
group called “Castaway Kids”, thanking them for the gift of
opportunity back when he was 8. He tells the reporters his life would
have never been the same.
He tells of how he's worked alongside these Castaway Kids
volunteers, who are now a tax-deductible charitable group entirely
funded by private donations, in building homes for disaster victims...
in building a public park near the shack where he grew up....in
providing emergency aid for the poorest of the poor.
While Juan is speaking, 40 other kids who want to follow in his
footsteps are enrolling in the Castaway Kids' scholarship program,
known as “Adelante Estudiante” All are from families that can't
afford further education, and all have shown tremendous desire and
commitment to continue with schooling. Should they keep their
commitment to school attendance and grades, their lives will never
be the same.
Nor will the lives of the Castaway Kids volunteers and donors, who
have received a gift just as great. The chance to do something
fulfilling and meaningful at a stage in their lives when others would
simply play golf. The chance to work alongside neighbors from
Guaymas, and live experiences that have changed their lives for the
better. The opportunity to meet folks who may not own many
possessions, but have so much of what really matters. The chance
to put things into perspective in our own lives.
The gift: A few cans of tuna, a friend saying “make it a hundred
bucks”, another friend matching it....who would have known back
then all that would come to be. And, as 40 more kids dream of the
future and embark on school scholarships, we still don't know the
answer to that question!
Mark Mulligan
Past President & Founder, Castaway Kids Mexico A.C.
(Castaway Kids Mexico A.C) is funded entirely by private, tax-
deductible donations to Castaway Kids Inc, an Arizona 501-C3
corporation. Learn more about Castaway Kids at www.
castawaykidsmx.org
It's 1994. A small group of young children approach my door in
Guaymas, Sonora, filthy and hungry and asking for money. They're
elated to receive a few cans of tuna, which was all I had to offer them.
The next day I play catch with them outside their shack, made of tar
paper and trash, where several families reside in abject poverty. I
learn the oldest boy, age 8 or so, is hoping to go to school someday,
but having to support his brothers and sisters on the tips he earns
bagging groceries makes that a mere dream.
Months later, an Americano from the nearby tourist town of San
Carlos puts 50 bucks in my hand, to give to “those kids” he had
heard about. I invite him to come with me and give the money to
them in person.
The moment he sees their shack and the dirty faces of the kids who
live in it, he's overcome with shock. Before we even get out of the
car, he tells me “Make it a hundred bucks....and make it every
month”. Little did he know the effect that that one gift would have.
A friend in San Carlos matches the offer. Suddenly we've got
enough for the oldest boy, Juan, to quit his job completely and go to
school.
I get lucky and score a job singing my songs in one of the local bars
in San Carlos, where other Americans who come to my shows are
asking me questions about how Juan is doing with school. Some of
them want to help. Twenty bucks here, fifty bucks there. Some visit
the barrios with me. Some bring clothes, others simply spend time
with the kids.
Fifteen years later....Juan graduates from college, and is standing in
front of a group of reporters at a news conference, promoting a
group called “Castaway Kids”, thanking them for the gift of
opportunity back when he was 8. He tells the reporters his life would
have never been the same.
He tells of how he's worked alongside these Castaway Kids
volunteers, who are now a tax-deductible charitable group entirely
funded by private donations, in building homes for disaster victims...
in building a public park near the shack where he grew up....in
providing emergency aid for the poorest of the poor.
While Juan is speaking, 40 other kids who want to follow in his
footsteps are enrolling in the Castaway Kids' scholarship program,
known as “Adelante Estudiante” All are from families that can't
afford further education, and all have shown tremendous desire and
commitment to continue with schooling. Should they keep their
commitment to school attendance and grades, their lives will never
be the same.
Nor will the lives of the Castaway Kids volunteers and donors, who
have received a gift just as great. The chance to do something
fulfilling and meaningful at a stage in their lives when others would
simply play golf. The chance to work alongside neighbors from
Guaymas, and live experiences that have changed their lives for the
better. The opportunity to meet folks who may not own many
possessions, but have so much of what really matters. The chance
to put things into perspective in our own lives.
The gift: A few cans of tuna, a friend saying “make it a hundred
bucks”, another friend matching it....who would have known back
then all that would come to be. And, as 40 more kids dream of the
future and embark on school scholarships, we still don't know the
answer to that question!
Mark Mulligan
Past President & Founder, Castaway Kids Mexico A.C.
(Castaway Kids Mexico A.C) is funded entirely by private, tax-
deductible donations to Castaway Kids Inc, an Arizona 501-C3
corporation. Learn more about Castaway Kids at www.
castawaykidsmx.org
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| Donations: Make Checks out to: Castaway Kids,Inc. Send to: Castawaykids Inc, c/o Kathy Berault Green Valley AZ, 85614 (520) 204-1967 For more information info@castawaykidsmx.com |
