Falling in Love in Mexico

I’ve just come home from a terrific trip to Mexico. I came with a group from the Utah State University Communication Disorders department to work in an orphanage called The Gabriel House. It was developed for orphaned children with severe disabilities. I was there for a week and a half. We came down with a group of Engineers who helped develop and install a more efficient septic tank for the orphanage, while we delivered an abundance of Spanish books (and some English ones that I spent a good while translating before we headed to Mexico), lesson plans, and activities. While there, we worked with children who had disabilities that ranged from cerebral palsy to preschoolers who are HIV positive.

These kids were so wonderful! I can’t believe how attached I became them in just a week and a half.

Antonio was my favorite.

Alex is Antonio's brother, they (along with their older brother José) have cerebral palsy.

Chloe is 2 1/2, she's HIV positive.

Rosalinda and her four sisters have a degenerative disease. I've never known people with as good a sense of humor as these girls.

Irene is HIV positive and (obviously) as cute as a button.