REAL People in Paradise
Living in MexicoI have been truly blessed living in Mexico and the Caribbean. Not only for the fabulous lifestyle but for having met the best friends imaginable!
When I first started living in Mexico (seems like yesterday!), Puerto Vallarta wasn't as developed as it is today! I saw it's dusty streets, mish-mesh of jalopy taxi cabs, and street peddlers as just the way it was ... and fell in love with it all!Today, Puerto Vallarta is a Top 10 travel destination known worldwide for it's delectable cuisine, fine art galleries, booming real estate market, sailing regattas, scuba diving & whale watching, celebrity golf courses, and luxury hotels like the Four Seasons in Punta Mita. 
Just about anything you can dream of experiencing on vacation, you can find in Vallarta ... except what you don't see!
Straight up, it's hard for some people to go on vacation with every intention to relax, to restore the mind and spirit, and have it be interrupted by the scene of an old lady on the street with an infant in her arms and a plastic cup in her hand begging for your spare pesos.
Or what about the street kids selling their chicklets or flowers? Have you ever thought about where that money goes? Who they're collecting it for? Why they're not in school? My eyes were opened to abandonment, physical & sexual abuse, glue-sniffing to escape hunger pains, prostitution to support a guardians' lifestyle. And then I asked, "How can I help? How can I give back to a people and community that has opened it's doors to me and given me so much?" For me, living in Mexico is heaven on earth, just as your 5-star vacation is in a beautiful beach front hotel with all the luxuries. Way before Hollywood discovered Vallarta and put it on the map for all, life was abundant for everyone. There was plenty to go around in this sleepy fishing village. Until, like everywhere, nature and the less fortunate got pushed out of their own environment, pushed up into the mountains ... all in the name of development! I'm not against development or change - it's all good, as long as we're accountable and responsible for our surroundings, the environment, ensuring that the change we create is beneficial for all to prosper, to enjoy!
So here's what I'm getting at... With all my years of working and living in Mexico, I have actively educated thousands of wonderful clients/travelers of my involvement with several charities close to my heart, namely ... - Casa Hogar is an established orphanage near to Vallarta's International airport run by Catholic Nuns for children from birth up to 17 years - most of the 60 kids have families who are unable to care for them. Click here to read more...
Since Casa Hogar is always in need of food, soap, shampoo, tooth brushes and paste, clothing, toys, household supplies & vitamins, etc, I would invite vacationers to leave behind any shampoos, soaps or items they cared to donate to the orphanage, along with any spare pesos that would be put to good use. It was a win/win/win: - the orphanage kids got what they needed
- tourists left Vallarta relaxed from a wonderful vacation, and with happy hearts having helped the local kids
- I was thrilled to deliver the goods and volunteer time with the kids (when time allowed) - local hotels were also very helpful in donating old sheets and towels, 'lost and found' and miscellaneous items left behind by vacationers. Blessings and Thank You's go out to so many who participated!
- Children of the Dump
is another organization making a HUGE difference - I was aghast at the discovery of this city dump area just 20 minutes northeast of Puerto Vallarta, where children were rummaging knee-deep through garbage looking for anything they could eat, sell, or recycle/reuse.
- El Centro de Acopio
- I've sadly and angrily watched innocent street animals throughout Mexico and the Caribbean being kicked, maimed, abused by the locals - these animals are as helpless as the children. Click here to read more on how locals and foreigners can unite together and move mountains for an amazing cause!
Whether living in Mexico or on a cruise ship, you and I together can still make a difference!If you feel that the info I have provided on this site or by contacting me personally was helpful in anyway, all I ask is that you donate a little something to show your appreciation - whatever the amount you donate, HALF of it will go to one of these causes. Everybody wins when ... - Your donation contributes to the aid of a small child or pooch in need
- Fabulous advice from memoves you in a positive direction towards your dream job in paradise, and
- You, me, and the volunteers diligently working hands on to better these lives, are forever rewarded for our gifts of giving!
Regular updates will be provided on this site to keep you informed on how your contributions are helping.On behalf of REAL people in paradise everywhere, kids and animals, the trees, the sky, the ocean, Mother Earth and all her treasures ... THANK YOU!
"No person was ever honored for what they received. Honor has been the reward for what they gave." -- Calvin Coolidge, Former President of the United States (1872-1933) --
Living in Mexico at Casa HogarLiving in Mexico - Children of the DumpEl Centro de Acopio animal shelter
|
