For the last eight years every January our scholarship program has organized and given out hundreds of backpacks to children and youth in Nicaragua who are continuing their education. This January was no different. Thanks to years of doing this, I am able to order all the supplies I need from a local shop at the big Oriental market in Managua, and a week later they deliver boxes and sacks of backpacks and school supplies. All of it literally takes over our living room/dining room area for the next couple of weeks! But we don’t mind because we know how much the families who are receiving these supplies appreciate them.
A small team from St Paul’s came this January to help me pack over 700 backpacks! Every year we find new ways to be more efficient and organized in making this happen within the time frame that the team is here. This year was no exception. Barb, Linda, Lisa and Mary all helped organize and pack as well as a group of young girls from our neighborhood. They were thrilled to help unpack and sort boxes of notebooks. It was a real treat to have some of the girls who have been recipients of backpacks over the years actually help pack backpacks for their friends.
And finally, after packing them all, we go and deliver them. This is the best part – seeing the faces of children who are so excited for school to start and are thrilled to receive a backpack full of notebooks and school supplies to start the year with.
