The McCallie Leo Club's service work over the summer with the Fabretto Children's Foundation in Managua, Nicaragua.
photo by Ajay Romeo, McCallie '16
Fifteen members of the McCallie Leo Club and chaperones Will Honeycutt and Ryan Wadley spent 10 days on a service trip to Managua, Nicaragua. They worked with the Fabretto Children’s Foundation, an organization that provides education, nutrition, enrichment and career training to some of Nicaragua’s poorest families.
The McCallie group was based at a rural secondary school called San Isidro, which is located on the outskirts of Managua. While there, Leo Club members dug a drainage trench to prevent flooding of the crop fields, planted a flower garden for bees, painted a farm house, taught English to the students and interacted with students through field games and sports activities.
With the financial support of the Signal Mountain Lion’s Club and fundraising by the McCallie Leo Club members, the trip participants were able to purchase volleyballs, basketballs and soccer balls for the kids at San Isidro. They also purchased and installed volleyball and basketball nets at the San Isidro site. They also purchased volleyballs, basketballs and soccer balls for the San Isidro school.
Fabretto students especially loved the daily volleyball instruction that Griffin Baxley ’16, and Karl Shadle ’16 provided. Due to the popularity of the activity and enthusiasm from San Isidro students, Fabretto now plans to incorporate volleyball into their after-school enrichment program.
While the Fabretto children benefited from their time with the McCallie students, the ones who really gained from this experience were the McCallie students themselves. Through eating with the Fabretto students in their cafeteria, working with them on agricultural projects, and being invited into their homes, McCallie students acquired a broader world view and experienced first-hand the challenges, difficulties, and disadvantages faced by children growing up in the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.
According to Leo Club member Noah Cingilli ’17, “Working with the kids at Fabretto is one of the best experiences of my life. I was humbled by how grateful the students were for even the simplest things that we shared with them. I realized just how much I take for granted everyday and how lucky I am to have things like running water, fresh food, and an actual bed to sleep on.”
This service experience really inspired McCallie students to continue in service to those most in need, which is one of the most important goals of the Leo Club.
In addition to being impacted by their time as Fabretto volunteers, McCallie students were also amazed by far reaching the McCallie network is. Midway through the service trip, Donald McGregor ’79 invited the group to his home in Managua to share a traditional Nicaraguan barbeque.
On the final night of the group’s stay in Managua, Albert J. McGregor ’55 opened his home to all those involved in the McCallie/Fabretto partnership. A Nicaraguan folklore group provided the entertainment for the evening and Mr. Alberto McGregor shared his thoughts on how the fellowship, brotherhood, and Christian values that are central to a McCallie education have positively impacted his life.
The Fabretto Children’s Foundation looks forward to welcoming more McCallie students as volunteers in Nicaragua.
photo by Ajay Romeo, McCallie '16