This has been an exciting summer for the Nuestra Familia Orphanage in Tijuana, Mexico! Our amazing Summer Camp volunteers began their summer by helping at a local school. They took the initiative there to teach fun summer classes like gardening, music, art, cooking, dance and English! Here are a few of the highlights.
They Taught Us How to Love
“This summer was hands down the best summer of my life. I went to Tijuana having no clue what the summer would look like. I only had enough Spanish to order tacos and find the bathroom. I think if I had to sum it up, Summer Camp taught me to live and love big. I lived 24/7 with the best kids. They were born into tough home lives, but they are strong, resilient, and incredible. They are the cutest, happiest, funniest, most hardworking kids. It felt like the privilege of a lifetime to know them.
After a month or so, it was like they were my own family. I’ve never loved anyone more in my life. I taught them gardening class, but they taught me how to love. They taught me how to work hard and play harder. They taught me how to appreciate every little thing in life. Even in their humble circumstances, they see abundance. With charades, and a whole lot of Google translate, they taught me how to speak Spanish. I’d give the world to live in Mexico with those kids forever. I have never felt love or joy like I did at Nu Fam.”
Ali Bustos
We Gained Confidence Together
“In art class, the children were all engaged and proud of their work! At the start, many kids have very little confidence in their abilities. They will draw something, erase it, and give up. One girl, Yulia, struggled with her drawing and became frustrated. However, our volunteers encouraged her to continue and championed her success. She ended up LOVING what she made and felt proud of the final result. Additionally, Anthony, who only participates in activities he deems “cool,” learned to appreciate the beauty in art. At the beginning of class he would only paint silly faces. After a while, he started to enjoy class and worked hard on his painting for 50 minutes. He was also very proud of the art he made.”
Hannah Marchant
We Pushed Through Obstacles
We Followed our Passions
A big thanks goes out to our volunteers and the huge impact they’ve had this summer! Thank you for sacrificing a summer to make a difference. Please join us in the future to learn more love, more confidence, more resilience, and more inspiration. Email [email protected] for more information.