community service
One Child at
a Time
By Sherry B. Johnson
Carolina...first patient of HKIE
chance. A formidable and tenacious woman, she will go to the
top surgeon at the hospital and negotiate the price. She once
talked a hospital in Guayaquil into performing brain surgery,
including a 21 day recovery stay for $489!
When Mary’s father passed, they relocated to Cuenca for
the climate and the people, and have continued to grow their
Helping Kids in Ecuador (HKIE) charity. Their motto is “We can’t
help all the children all of the time, but we can help one child
at a time.” To date, since that first little girl they have facilitated
medical services for over 71 children with many life threatening
medical conditions including many children with hydrocephalus
(water on the brain), cataracts, congenital heart failure, birth
defects, and many other life threatening conditions.
T
od and Mary Freeman moved from Southern California to
Salinas, Ecuador. When they had discussed retirement,
they both knew that they wanted to become involved with
a charity or orphanage, they were not going to “sit on
a beach all day soaking up the sun.” Mary’s Dad came with
them and his only request was to be on the ocean. When they
found themselves in Salinas, meeting new friends and taking in
their new life, they didn’t really think much about their “plan.”
One night Tod was sitting a local gringo restaurant for dinner,
and he spotted a glass jar with the photo of a little girl taped
to it and a few dollars inside on a shelf. He asked the owner,
William, about the jar. He explained that her mother worked
for him in the kitchen and the little girl needed surgery to correct
a birth defect but the family had no money. Tod felt moved
to do something and he told William that he was going to
hold a fundraiser to help them. Without really having a plan,
he and Mary made handwritten raffle tickets and several local
restaurants donated prizes. Many of the expat community in
Salinas came out in support of the fundraiser, and they raised
about $600.
It was a great start, but what they didn’t realize was the little
girl needed several surgeries to correct the defect, and there
would be months of recuperation in between. Will and Peggy
Sanders, local residents and expats urged them to keep doing
fundraisers and assured them that they would be successful.
Although not what Tod had planned, he formed Helping Kids
in Ecuador and with the help of many individuals they continued
to raise money and help local kids.
They met Sister Veronica Kim, a Korean nun who runs a medical
clinic in Palmar. With her help they were able to identify the
needs of the local children and help many families with the
medical surgeries necessary to give their children a fighting
page 20 | cuenca expats magazine
They have partnered with Fundacion Rostros Felices. Rostros
Felices was founded by renowned surgeon, Dr Jorge Palacios.
in Guayaquil. Dr. Pablo Salamea is the Director of the Cuenca
chapter of Rostros Felices. Both