A Message from Castaway Kids President

Welcome to our new website and blog. We hope that you will visit it often. I will add posts over the coming months to tell you a little about CK's history, its programs, and its latest activities.

I have been President of Castaway Kids for 8 years and just signed on for another 3 year term. There is always a lot of work to do, but thanks to the other board members and volunteers, my job has become pretty easy.

CK is a legally authorized non-profit organization in Mexico and the United States. One of the requirements to maintain that status is to have an official board of directors. We had several important decisions to make during our board meeting on January 14th, 2017. We adopted a new Acta Constitutiva (Bylaws); it brings us into compliance with the many new regulations in Mexico. We voted in a new Board of Directors. We also voted to make changes to our website. Teresa Woods will be our webmaster. She is an active volunteer and we intend that she give our website a whole new look and add regular updates. We thank Christa Thomas for serving as our webmaster for so many years. CK would not be the successful organization that it is today without her generous efforts to give us a web presence.

On a personal note . . . I am grateful that Mark Mulligan asked me to be President of his first baby, Castaway Kids. I have learned so much. I think my Spanish has improved?? I have a real reason to get up every morning. I have met so many talented, generous people from different countries who have helped our Sonoran neighbors with housing and education. I'm really proud at the number of Mexicanos who are involved in our group. We are a truly international community of volunteers.

We have made some great collaborations with others helping our neighbors and our neighborhood, the most recent with the Clean Up San Carlos group. This past year we've supervised the construction of some new classrooms, a kitchen and bathrooms and a huge shade structure at Club Jerry's after-school program; added bathrooms to the Vocational School next door to Club Jerry; provided funds for a dedicated teacher for the Steel Pan Band at Esperanza Azteca; built playgrounds in Fatima, San Jose de Guaymas and La Manga with equipment donated by Mesa through the Sister Cities program. We've provided transportation to Shriner's Hospital a few times for operations for a young man who was severely burned as a child in an effort to enable him to be able to walk again. We've given aid and support to sponsored students who were chosen for Exchange Programs in Spain; helped another reconnect with a parent after graduating from University; have helped others get glasses and dental care with the help of medical friends who give us discounts. We've received thank-you's and success stories from some of our graduates-- it is indeed rewarding work.

Thank you sponsors of students in our Adelante Estudiante program. None of this would be possible without our great group of volunteers, school contacts, sponsors, donors, business friends and mainly-- the support of our great little community! Viva San Carlos! Viva Mexico!!