Where We Work:
Managua, Nicaragua
Children's Home in Managua
The Arms of Love Children's
Home encompasses two locations in Nicaragua. One of those
locations is in the middle-class community of Las Palmas
and is currently serving as our "girls' home." The
facility pictured on this page is the girls' home. This
seven-bedroom home can accommodate up to 15-20 children,
two houseparent couples, and at least two resident
assistants. The "houseparents" serve as surrogate parents
to the children, who relate to the couple as "mama" and
"papa." A full-time administrator oversees the operation
of the project, and a full time psychologist counsels the
children,
develops
individual programs of care, and interacts with the
government Ministry of the Family. Also on staff are
teachers who assist the children in their education,
security guards, and personnel who assist with cooking,
cleaning, and laundry.
Emilio and Gladys Padilla, the
directors of Arms of Love in Nicaragua, currently reside
in the "girls' home" and also serve as houseparents. The
girls who live in this home attend a nearby private
Christian school. By caring for children in homes such as
this, which might be described as regular family housing
in a middle class neighborhood, Arms of Love seeks to
achieve a high level of integration between the children
and their community and lessen the feeling that they are
part of a "project." The children's environment also helps
raise their aspirations for the future.
In the long term, our plan is
to develop the house in Las Palmas as a "transition home"
for children who are "graduating" from the Arms of Love
program -- a place where they can reside while they are
continuing with a university education, looking for
employment, and making the transition to adulthood.
