COVID-19 Brings Changes to the Local Charities

 COVID-19 Brings Changes to the Local Charities

BY R. LEE SCHULTZ

There is no doubt that COVID-19 brought a great deal of change to everyone’s life. We were restricted in our gathering, restricted in where we could go, restricted in what we could and could not do. Even restricted in our family holiday gatherings. One thing that has not changed, however, is that the needy still are in need! What has changed a great deal is the means by which our local charities have solicited funds. COVID-19 restrictions had prohibited us from attending those wonderful holiday fundraisers we all so much enjoyed for many years. These functions were for many years the mainstay for providing, what for many charities, was their entire annual budget. 

I for one, have missed those charity events. They not only provided for the needy but were a great means of socializing, meeting new and old friends, as well as offering us an opportunity to give till it felt good! Our community still has those needs, in fact, the needs are even greater now than they have ever been. We cannot allow COVID to prevent us from still “giving till it feels good.” In fact, why not give a little more, maybe give till it hurts a little?

There is some Good News! We are seeing some of the COVID restrictions going away… but many charities are well behind in the funds they need to provide the services our community so badly needs. The following is a short list of a few of the local charities that are still providing much-needed assistance to the less fortunate in Cabo and the surrounding areas who desperately need our help both financially and by way of volunteering in person:

Feeding Los Cabos Kids

This project has been around for more than 17 years and is an Interdenominational Ministry that exists to share God’s love and provide food to hungry children and now their families as well. They partner with local Mexican pastors to help them oversee and prepare healthy meals for the families in their local Colonia. Their goal is to feed the families both physically and spiritually. Presently, Cabo Church has 14 kitchens that are feeding the families 3-6 days a week. Through your donations, they are able to provide about 12,000 meals every month. Funding comes from folks like you & those that call Cabo Church home.

Donations can be made at their website: http://www.feedingloscaboskids.org/donate/

OR: If you would care to volunteer or make an in-person donation, call +52 (624) 157 3669

Their email address is: flck@cabochurch.org

Check Donations Payable to:

 Feeding Los Cabos Kids

 Mail to:

 Cabo English Church MBC

 2215 Paseo de las Americas Ste. 25-M119

 San Diego, CA 92154

USA IRS 501c (3) EIN: 20-3743267 Donations are tax deductible and go directly to the ministry of Feeding Los Cabos Kids.

AMIGOS de los NINOS, A.C.

Amigos de Los Niños provides quality health care in Los Cabos to children up to the age of 18 who have no other means of receiving that care or whose health care provider is deficient in arranging for external medical consultations, organized clinics and assistance in setting up medical treatment for special cases of the severely ill or disabled. They provide, with the assistance of local medical personnel, special needs care in their Audiology Clinics, Cardiology Clinics, Corrective Eye Surgery Clinics, and dental clinics

Their Local Address: Calle Arrecife, Manzana 37 lote 13 (Entre Playas y Rocas), Colonia Aurora, Cabo San Lucas, C.P. 23473

Telephone: (624) 1443195 and (624) 1433495

 Email: bajathatcher@hotmail.com

 Website: www.adlncabo.org

 Facebook: Amigos de los Niños de Cabo San Lucas, A.C. https://www.facebook.com/ADLNCabo/

Direct Donation Banking Information:

Banking Institution: Banco Santander, 4581 Principal Lazaro Cardenas y Zaragoza Interior Plaza Aramburo 4 y 5, Cabo San Lucas, BCS

Account name: Amigos de los Niños de Cabo San Lucas, A.C.

 Account Number: 65502669135

 Clabe: 0140 4165 5026 6913 56

 Please email the deposit slip to factadlncsl@gmail.com

Casa Hogar Cabo San Lucas

 They opened the doors of Casa Hogar on February 28th, 2008, thanks to their initial construction angels Bob and Donna Draney. They are a Mexican-registered non-profit established as a Mexican Civil Association (a charity corporation). They are also registered 501c3 non-profit in the US “Friends of Casa Hogar” Casa Hogar is a Social Assistance Center (children’s home). Casa Hogar is a comfortable, safe and happy home for kids and teens set in an attractive, camp-like environment providing physical and emotional care. Financial Contributions can be made in several different ways at their website: www.casahogarcabo.com/ If you wish to visit them in person, you can go to their website and schedule an in-person tour.

Blue Miracle is an exciting, family-friendly movie loosely based on a Casa Hogar story from 2014. While there is no financial benefit to Casa Hogar for this movie, we are hopeful that Blue Miracle will raise awareness and sensitivity for private Social Assistance Centers in Mexico, most of which, like theirs, operate as charities without government funding. Blue Miracle premiered on May 27, 2021, on Netflix.

Los Cabos Humane Society

Los Cabos Humane Society is committed to a safe, compassionate and prosperous Los Cabos. They offer accessible spay and neuter surgeries, adoption and foster care programs. Their goal is to promote the humane treatment of domestic animals through community education and active lobbying of our elected government officials. In 2019 they performed over 4,458 spay and neuter surgeries and facilitated over 400 adoptions. 2020 was a very difficult year as many families were unable to care for their pets and had to ask the humane society for assistance. 2021 will likely prove to be an even greater challenge. Help them to continue providing these essential services to our community by making charitable donations. Contact Information is done entirely Facebook messenger or by e-mail at direccion@loscaboshumanesociety.org

Bomberos Voluntarios – Volunteer Fire Department

How about a donation that keeps on giving (back)? ‘Tis the season to call upon a water truck. If you need a water truck rather than calling one of the local water services, call the Bomberos. For a “donation” they will deliver a truckload of water right to your house. Because they get the water for free, your entire donation goes to support them with their needs. If you want to help our volunteer fire department with equipment, or any other donation, call 143-9000, 143-3577. Camino Viejo a San José in front of McDonald’s, CSL; 24-hour emergency calls; Phone: 143-9000, 143-3577. They also have a “Retail Store” where you can purchase many SWAG articles to take back home as gifts. 

Los Cabos Children’s Foundation, A.C.

The Los Cabos Children’s Foundation provides medical, educational, and humanitarian assistance to the children, their families, and the supportive organizations of the Los Cabos area. Los Cabos Children’s Foundation (LCCF)’s mission is to promote, fund, monitor and strengthen programs that have a focus on health for children in Baja California Sur. After 15 years of service, they are convinced that the best way to achieve a greater impact in the community is through collaboration. By way of collaboration, they seek to boost the work of organizations by way of transparency and open and constant communication, their main tool to achieve the fulfillment of their common goals.

Every March, LCCF gives all non-profit organizations in the community the opportunity to participate in the process of selecting projects to be supported during the next fiscal period. Cancer, Congenital Heart Defects, and critical health needs of children in the state, from physical and intellectual disability to mental health and prevention are the main areas of the non-profits they select.

Their office is located at Koral Center next to the H+ Hospital in Cerro Colorado, San Jose del Cabo, Baja California Sur, Mexico 23405 

LCCF is a non-profit organization dedicated to the health of the children of Los Cabos and all Southern Baja.; Mex. Ph. (624) 144-3195. U.S. Ph. (605) 275-6305. info@loscaboschildren.org; www.loscaboschildren.org

Boys and Girls Clubs (Formally Gente Joven Por Un Cambio)

The story of Gente Joven Por Un Cambio begins with Onagh and Bill Ash more than 20 years ago. The beginning of 2020 saw a major change as Baja Sur welcomed the first Boys and Girls Club of BCS. BGCBCS continues the important programs and work started by GJC. The after-school programs they offer will grow to reach children from the ages of 6-18. Boys and Girls Clubs of BCS will be only the 12th Mexico location for this international foundation.

The programs offered by the Boys and Girls Club of Baja California Sur are taught by more than 40 active coaches and volunteers. In addition to the programs, that teach nutrition, human development, after-school education, art and sports, these coaches and volunteers also help children improve their social skills, encourage collaboration as a team, offer school advice, teach and guide children and youth through social change projects and much more. 

During the closure of schools, they altered their efforts by way of their “Virtual Clubhouse” programming. Starting just a day after the Ministry of Education announced the closing of schools one and a half years ago, the Club promptly redesigned programs, transitioning from face-to-face to online activities. English classes, reading and writing, human development, home gardening, and homework help and tutoring are now offered online. 

With your help, they are now providing programs and services in a welcoming, safe and strategically designed new location, the new San Jose del Cabo Youth Center. Virtual programs are still available, but for those many boys and girls who can now actually come to the Center, it is quickly becoming their second home.

A new Board of Directors was recently formed and headed by Renato Mendonca as President. Renato has extensive experience in the hotel industry in different countries, including Chile, Brazil, Australia and Mexico. He has always been very involved in social projects and has now enthusiastically accepted the challenge of leading the governing body of the Los Cabos Boys and Girls Club of B.C.S.

One of the first actions announced by the new Board was to form an alliance with Casa Hogar Cabo San Lucas. This alliance will be by way of a shared location site within the Los Cabos Community directly adjoining the current Casa Hogar facility. The Boys and Girls Club currently has two active locations in San Jose, and with this new alliance, a third location dedicated to the children of Cabo San Lucas will be built. 

Your donation can help BGCBCS and its 40 active volunteers deliver a helping hand to children from ages 8-18 to achieve their dreams, by empowering them with a voice, life skills and the freedom to explore. 

U.S., Canadian as well as Mexican TAX DEDUCTABLE Donations can be made at their website: https://cnynbcs.org/donate/.  

Red Autismo

Red Autismo is a non-profit organization located in Los Cabos, that aims to provide specialized care for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) seeking the development of skills to improve their quality of life and that of their families. Their vision is to become a first-class therapy center providing full intervention to children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) forging a culture of awareness and an example of an inclusive society.

They offer evaluations, occupational therapy, sensory integration, speech and communication therapy, and cognitive and learning skills therapy. They also offer ongoing training to their therapists to ensure that every child receives the best possible treatments.

INEVI (For its acronym in Spanish, Educational inclusion with a comprehensive vision) began in February of 2015 as an educational project whose objective is to promote a personalized academic program based on an evaluation of the child’s development that allows identifying his or her strengths and weaknesses. Workshops for parents, school counseling and training courses are also offered to improve awareness in the family, school and society.

With your valuable donation, you are giving the children of Los Cabos with ASD a better quality of life! Secure Online Donations can be made at their website: https://redautismo.org/en/donate/

Additional contact information: Nicolás Tamaral, 111 Col. Mauricio Castro, San José del Cabo, BCS, México, or info@redautismo.org. Their phone number is. (624) 120 6328

Sarahuaro

What began in 2005 as simple classes in life skills and artisanal work grew into a life-changing program for women impacted by poverty. Sarahuaro programs have brought a new sense of self-worth to hundreds of women. Families, and thus the entire community, have benefited from the mother’s heightened awareness of her own capabilities, preparation for meeting the extreme challenges of poverty and exposure to opportunities never before recognized.

The 2013 edition of La Cocina De Los Niños (The Children’s Kitchen) expanded its reach by feeding children while they were in school. Hungry kids simply don’t do well in school. Sarahuaro has provided hundreds of thousands of meals to children who would otherwise go hungry. It is their highest and utmost priority to feed impoverished children of the barrios. But Sarahuaro also recognizes that a mother has a lasting effect on her child and believes that educating a woman will change her, thus breaking the extreme cultural norms binding mother and child to poverty.

There are many ways to help and they would welcome a visit so that you can see, first-hand, the difference your donation is making. Some of their current needs and ways to donate can be found on their website: https://sarahuaro.org/  

Additional Contact information: 

Fundación Sarahuaro

 Nuestra Señora de Chiriyaqui Mza. 10W – Lote 1

 Col. Progreso, Mesa Colorada

 Cabo san Lucas, B.C.S. 23477

director@sarahuaro.org

 +52 624 124 6313

These are just a few of the many great worthwhile organizations in need of our help both by way of volunteering and/or donations, financial or in kind. If you don’t see one that fits your needs, ask a friend. We are sure you will find one that fits your desires. Whichever Charity you choose, being socially responsible is not only the right thing to do, but it also has a great impact on your own life, along with the lives of others who are less fortunate.

When a community comes together, great things can and do happen! Giving is not just about making a donation. It is about making a difference. Life is like a boomerang… Givers get! Be your donation financial or your time. As Robert Ingersoll said: “We rise by lifting others.” Let’s all work together to raise our community to new heights and make this the biggest and best “giving” season ever. “Give until it feels good!” Don’t allow the COVID-19 Grinch to steal your Christmas spirit. My advice is to give more than you think you should.