Improve the Rights of Disabled Adults in Nicaragua

Dear friend

In november last year  Ruach  joined in with GG’s campaign to make Thanksgiving day on 22 November into a ‘special donation day’. On Thanksgiving Day people who have reasons to be grateful for what happens in their lives are encouraged to share their happiness with others, who are less fortunate.

With the help of a lot of people we were able to reach the goal to buy computers for the Activities Centre. Every desk top computer cost about $ 600,- and we received $ 1200,- US!!! That makes it posible to buy two computers! We are very pleased and now we can expand the scope of the centre, and help the participants to learn more and progress in their development.

To all our friends, contacts and people who has support us making a donation on the Global Giving page, thanks a lot for your help! Only together we can make a difference and, once again, we showed it!

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Information from our community home, where 6 persons with a disablity and two caretakers lives                  

''Community life is beautiful and intense, a source of life for everyone. People with a disability experience a real transformation and discover confidence in themselves; they discover their capacity to make choices, and also find a certain liberty and above all their dignity as human beings.” —Jean Vanier

How is Miguel doing?

Miguel joined Ruach in May. His mother is 80 years old, and his sisters were not able or willing to help his mother looking after him. So his mother asked whether Miguel could join our community. Miguel is 49 and after a period of gradually getting to know each other, he has become a core member.

Miguel talks a little, can dress himself, can eat without help, and is quite good at showering himself. But in other areas he is very passive due to a lack of stimulation in his past. So we tried sending him to our Activities Centre. He’s taken there by a taxi driver-friend. On the way back I collect him on foot, a 15 minute walk which gives him some good physical exercise too. At the Club he did better than expected, although individual attention from the assistants is important. He really has taken to making ‘piñatas’. He now attends the club three afternoons a week and likes it very much.

He does not see much of his mother, who only occasionally visits him. We  arranged that he spend one weekend a month with his mother. During the month  the communication is poor. Sometimes a weekend visit needs to be cancelled. His sisters who also live in Juigalpa have never visited or phoned him. It is difficult for us to gauge how this affects him, but he is fairly steady in his moods.

We do notice that he feels at home in the community home. He seeks contact and enjoys an embrace. We are now encouraging him to start helping us laying and clearing the table, and we see progress. It’s great to see that attention and stimulation bear fruit!

Links:

• website from Ruach in Spanish and English