Christmas 2009

This was Juanita’s last Christmas. She succumbed to cancer at the age of five. The clowns, Christmas Tree, party and playing with so many children made the Christmas special for her and for us.

We dedicate this photo-book to Juanita.

We arrived and enjoyed our traditional planning session at Ma Crosby’s.

Christine, Cordero and Samuel were not available for this group photo.

Weeks before the mission trip, groceries and gifts were purchased, a hall for the children’s Christmas Party was rented, arrangements for clowns, food, drinks, the rented van and hotel rooms were made. Christmas decorations, wrapping paper and a tree were purchased and local volunteers from Acuña were contacted to help.

The children were invited and we were as ready as we could be.

We walked the streets and went door-to-door delivering mittens and hats.

Erick is a firefighter. Javier is a little boy that we helped with a hearing and speech problem.

Paul is obviously having a lot of fun as he puts a pair of mittens on another child.

The little girl was born blind, a speech impediment and with a twisted leg. The doctors were able to operate on her leg and our supporters paid for that surgery.

Cordero is packing groceries to distribute in the colonias.

A family of five live in this little house that we visited.

Diane has been with us on many mission trips and she seems to enjoy the Christmas trips the most.

Some of the houses are at the bottom of the hills. Because of our limited amount of time, we ask that our mission participants be able to climb up and down steep hills carrying groceries and to do so quickly.

Often, the children will guide us to their homes.

We took a break in the town square for a photo.

Pete is in charge at the hall where we will have our Christmas Party. Pete has made several trips from Houston, Texas and supports several charities.

Santa’s elves are busy at work.

As a tenured professor at a major university, Don seems to be inventing a new dance! Cordero has gift-wrapping down to a science. Cordero has made at least 20-trips to the colonias of Mexico.

This was Juanita’s last Christmas. We are blessed to have known her.

The hall we rented for the party, had a playground in the back yard. For some children, this was their first time on a swing or a sliding-board.

We suspected that this would be Juanita’s last time at a playground on earth. Here, she is with her baby brother.

Juanita’s story was bitter-sweet. The doctors tell us that she would have died a year ago from cancer if we had not intervened. During the time we spent with Juanita and her family we learned that friendship and love matter. Her mother told us that they do not understand or know how to thank the people in the United States that cared so much about her little girl.

It was very sad when Juanita died. After a year of chemotherapy she was sent to Mexico City for an operation. It was our last hope and we knew that the odds of her survival were slim. She died a few weeks after the surgery.

I met her grandfather at the funeral and he told me that without the people in America that they would have lost Juanita a year ago. “We are sad that this has happened, but you gave us another year with her and that is not a small thing. Please know that we will always remember the year that you gave to her.”

This is one of two babies that Paper Houses helps in a small way. Both babies received surgery a few months after this Christmas Party.

As always, there are volunteers from Acuña that help with our fiesta.