Nicaraguan Orphanages and their Need for Outside Help

Notes from interviews in Nicaragua and Guanacaste province, Costa Rica

April, 2006

Volcan Concepcion, Ometepe Island, Nicaragua

Given the proximity and interrelationships between the peoples of Nicaragua and Costa Rica, I spent much of the last trip visiting orphanages in southwest Nicaragua, the second poorest country in the western hemisphere. Though life for the average campesino in Costa Rica is difficult, conditions are much worse in Nicaragua, so much so that the flow of refugees continues south long after the Sandanista/Contra war. In the area close to the border where we will be operating, illegal refugees try to make a life in Costa Rica much as illegals do in the States, taking the worst jobs at a fraction of what a local might earn, while enduring the scorn of the Costa Ricans who look upon Nicaraguans as violent and uneducated. Our work, by necessity, will include the poor and struggling in both countries. In Nicaragua, as in Costa Rica, children found in orphanages include those without parents as well as those who have either been given up by or taken away from situations where their safety is uncertain. Nicaragua’s child welfare agency, Mi Familia, has oversight responsibility for orphanages throughout the country. However, in talking with directors at several institutions it became clear that those trying to operate without the help of outside benefactors have trouble providing even the most basic care to their children. On the island of Ometepe in the middle of Lake Nicaragua I spent time with two private orphanages trying to find their way in one of the most isolated and depressed parts of Central America. 

                                                                                                                                                       Helen Vindis, director of Cicrin

Cicrin orphanage currently cares for 29 children aged 5-24 years, the oldest having recently graduated from ward to staff. This orphanage has long been subsidized by a mission in the States, but in the aftermath of September 11^th and other global disasters, contributions are down and they are hoping to develop new and less variable sources of support.

The history of the orphanage is interesting. John Olson, president of Trans World Mission, started Cicrin in 1970 on 3.5 manzanas of land on the shores of Lake Nicaragua. In 1979, during the Sandanista revolution, the children were dispersed to local families in order to protect them from being forced into the army. The orphanage director was jailed and the Sandanistas turned the site into a training base for young soldiers, many enlisted against their will. It was closed after the war and remained abandoned for 11 years, until post-Sandanista president Violeta Chamorro invited John Olson to re-open the orphanage. A U.S. couple was put in charge of the program and a young Costa Rican, Helen Vindis, was hired to help out as interpreter for 3 months. It was a very hard time, and the couple eventually returned to the States, but Helen stayed on at John’s request and the Lord’s prompting. The new director of the orphanage and one of the doctors who came through on a medical mission met and eventually married, and ran the site for 11 years with Helen staying on as administrator. They left for the Christian Center in Managua three years ago, leaving Helen as director. Facing a steep decline in support and various other dislocations, the orphanage came close to shutting its doors for good. The remaining staff committed to fasting and prayer for 41 days, and as provisions started to come in, they decided to keep the doors open.

Helen, by necessity, has developed an entrepreneurial eye for helping the orphanage manage financially. Their principal supporter has been sending the same $2200 per month for 16 years, which is falling significantly behind expenses. This year the children will start making jewelry to sell to visitors. They have built dorms to attract visiting mission groups and an ample kitchen to serve meals. The room and board charged to mission groups helps out some, and with plans to add cabinas overlooking the lake, this may be more productive in the future. They have just completed a handsome rancho for outside meetings overlooking the lake. Mission groups have built a basketball court, they have a boys and girls soccer team, and are building a house on the grounds for a home-style transitional dwelling for the older kids, similar to other successful orphanages on the mainland. The American Nicaraguan Foundation has recently approved funds for an irrigation project to pump water up from the lake (when I was there the children were doing laundry in the lake, and I had been warned that potable water must be conserved due to extreme scarcity). Their ambition is to develop a sizable garden at the orphanage to further defray costs. Mi Familia brings them new children from time to time from Ometepe as well as the mainland, and sometimes from Costa Rica if the mother is Nicaraguan. They hope to find sponsors for the older children who qualify for special schooling and are hopeful of building a library and computer lab as well. Several of the kids are involved in the Christian Center in a nearby village, with three of them in leadership positions. They would love to see more Christian development programs from future team visits.

                                                                                                                                                  Best friends at Quincho

Quincho orphanage, just down the dusty road from Cicrin, houses seven girls on its grounds, with another three staying at the home of the new American directors in Rivas. The oldest was a pretty 19 year old with emotional problems. The youngest was an infant who had been taken away from her mother and placed in protective care by Mi Familia. The child was born with several medical complications common to her mother’s profession. Two more in Rivas were learning the rudiments of family life prior to being placed with adoptive families in the States. All are girls and most have been the subject of abuse of one kind or another. Mi Familia is transferring management of the orphanage from Quincho to a retired U.S. couple who have been helping run the site for the last few years. However, Quincho will retain ownership of the property and the new director was traveling to Managua the next day to see if they can extend the lease and secure funds from the government to keep going. A review of their before-and-after pictures showed that they’ve been trying to improve conditions at the orphanage, but it’s clear that they have a long way to go. Some of the girls go to a private Christian school in the nearby town of Moyogalpa and some go to the NPH orphanage school nearby. However, with NPH for sale and the children there being moved off the island (due to recent volcanic activity) this school may eventually be closed to them.

Studying at Quincho

We visited the new directors at their home in Rivas the next day, and met a volunteer missionary from New Life Advance International who will be joining their team. They take the ferry out to Ometepe every day and commute into Managua on Sundays for services at the International Mission Fellowship. Like many others, they are hoping to acquire a farm to help provide income for the orphanage. They’re considering hydroponic vegetables and raising peleguey (a cross between a sheep and a goat). If they can’t get a continuation on the lease from Quincho, they may have to relocate, but favor the Ometepe location because it provides a buffer between the children and whatever abusive environment they were removed from. They would like to build a youth program in Moyogalpa and revitalize an old bakery on the orphanage grounds and perhaps introduce a sewing project, and they’re discussing a beaded jewelry making project for the children, as well. In addition to the orphanage, the directors mentioned having a children’s camp in Buenos Aires (near Rivas) for children from the Managua dump, where they are building volunteer quarters to accommodate mission groups. The orphanage is in a state of flux now with so many unknowns, and we’re hopeful that the new directors can turn it around.

It seems evident from what we’ve seen that there’s a direct correlation between the vitality of these orphanages, the outlook for the children and the degree to which outside churches and missions have taken a direct interest in helping. Mi Familia just doesn’t have the resources, but thankfully they are open to help from outside organizations. It’s our hope that we’ll be able to join the efforts of others to make a difference in the lives of children at orphanages like these, and look forward to bringing AIM teams in through the new regional base. As always, we’d welcome your observations or feedback.