Live Long and Prosper!

This past Wednesday, ANF held a fund raising event in Managua's Alhambra VIP movie theaters where over 100 attendees made a donation and watched the premiere of the new summer release, Star Trek.

The movie began in all three of Alhambra's theaters at 7:30PM, and each person received a free bucket of popcorn courtesy of COSAS magazine. People enjoyed themselves because, not only did they spend two hours watching a great and action-packed movie, but they also made a charitable donation.

In the eyes of both ANF and those who attended, the event was a definite success. On ANF's part, the funds raised will help achieve ANF's mission of striving to provide hope and opportunity to Nicaragua's poor. On the part of the public, many requested (and even insisted) that this type of event be repeated on more frequent basis.

Thank you to Alhambra movie theaters and COSAS magazine for supporting ANF and helping to put on such a great event.

Changing a Mother's Life

“For a year, my daughter carried me around everywhere. But today, I will be able to be more independent and even go to church alone.”

These are the words of Catalina Romero, a 65 year old woman from Ciudad Sandino in Managua, Nicaragua’s capital.
Until May of 2008, Mrs. Romero was able to walk and lead a normal life. She had lived with diabetes for 18 years of her life when she awoke one morning with her right foot turning purple. She went to the doctor who gave her treatment to stop it from spreading to the entire leg. Sadly, it was unsuccessful. Catalina said she felt like she would rather die than have to live without her leg, but her daughter cried and begged her to be positive about the situation because she needed her mother present in her life. A couple of months later, Catalina’s right leg was amputated.

From the moment she had her leg surgically removed, Mrs. Romero’s perspective on life changed drastically. Finding herself completely dependent on others for the first time in her life, she felt herself a burden on her daughter’s life. She hated the feeling of having to depend on people to get around, knowing that her independence as a woman no longer existed. Her mood swings were strong, getting more depressed and discouraged by the day.

On May 26, Catalina received a donation from ANF that changed her life - a wheelchair. Her outlook visibly changed from the moment she laid eyes on her wheelchair. Her first trip on it, she said, would be to the nearby church with her daughter and grand-daughters.