Hopeworks ‘N Camden to spend five days working with underprivileged children in Mexico
(CAMDEN, N.J.) – A group of six youth from Hopeworks ‘N Camden are spending the holidays preparing for a five-day service trip to Cuernavaca, Mexico. From January 12 to January 17, 2012, the group will work with VAMOS, a nonprofit organization in Mexico that helps underprivileged families by building schools and community centers and feeding hundreds of children every day. Accompanying the youth are several Hopeworks staff members including executive director Father Jeff Putthoff, a Jesuit priest who co-founded Hopeworks ‘N Camden more than 10 years ago.
“There is an overall sense of excitement at Hopeworks while we prepare for the trip to Mexico next month,” said Putthoff. “Passports are arriving in the mail, schedules and itineraries are being finalized and some people have even already begun packing. It’s truly a special time of the year when our youth are given the opportunity to see firsthand the impact they can make in the lives of others.”
The youth participating in the trip are Ruben Santiago (17), D.J. Brown (20), Rushelle Mudell (18), Maryann Vega (16), Caitlyn Curname (16), and Aishah Cobb (18). The group will spend their time tutoring kindergarteners in math and computer literacy, serving meals and visiting with the elderly. Serving as youth leaders for the group are Santiago and Brown, who previously participated in a service trip to Mexico in August.
“I am excited to return to Mexico and find out how the children of Cuernavaca are doing since we last saw them in August,” said Brown. “It is inspiring to witness these children, who live in such poor conditions, excited to learn from us and it becomes a more meaningful experience for us to share our knowledge and skills with them.”
In preparation for the trip, the youth and staff at Hopeworks have been busy raising money to pay for the trip which totals nearly $10,000. Fundraising activities have included community dinners at the C.R.I.B. – the brownstone residential facility in Camden where several Hopeworks youth live, holiday giftwrapping at local shopping malls, and even a wine and chocolate tasting hosted in the home of a Hopeworks volunteer. Donations of wine and food from local businesses, such as Zeppoli restaurant in Collingswood, have helped make these grassroots fundraisers successful.
