St Agnes K Of C Council 14202

Dear brother Knights we have a felow knight on a mission to help a nursing home in Colombia and could use our help. With collecting items the nursing home is in desperate need of. He has collected the following items and is still in need of additional items and some funds to get everything shipped to Colombia. Please Lets help a Brother Out....

I  have collected:

12 Walkers,

3 walking canes,

4 portable toilets,

towells and bed sheets

.
Now I am trying to get monetary assistance from Catholic Charities to pay for the shipping... It would cost me somehow arround $350 dollars

Please contact:

UPDATED June 4 2009

Update from Santa Catalina de Laboure Nursings Home.

I collected a total of 12 walkers (10 in good shape - and with the other two I managed to make one that works-); 3 portable toilets, 3 walking canes, 60 towels, 3 sets of bed sheets and 20 dollars. Total weight 272 lbs. Unable to take that cargo with me (it was costly $100 per each 50 lb bag, not boxes), so I contacted a cargo company in Miami who managed to give a credit if I was traveling the same week to same city, and I was, they charged me $1.21 per pound, I took the two very large boxes to Miami 3 days prior of my departure and shipped them without a guarantee that it would get to the final destination before I was due back to Naples May 27th; paid the $344 dollars and then I went to Colombia on Thursday May 21, 2009, by Friday afternoon I contacted the cargo company and they told me it was impossible to get the boxes in Santa Rosa -my home town- before May 27th, and the option was for me to go to Cali -about 3.5 hours drive- and that they would be there Saturday until noon only...I rented an SUV -so it could fit the two large boxes- and drove to Cali from 3:30 AM arriving to the warehouse in Cali at almost 8 AM. The way back was more pleasant enjoying the scenery of the Cauca Valley with the large mountains in the horizon. The same day in the afternoon, I went to Santa Catalina de Laboure’s Nursing home in Santa Rosa de Cabal with my sister Ana Maria and my mom to deliver the items, and what a pleasant feeling looking at all those grandpas and grandmas faces of gratitude  and joy getting a new towel and admiring so many walkers and good thinks God had send to them…. I was very clear stating that all of that had been gathered from the good people of Saint Agnes Church and the Knights of Columbus. Five walkers, 30 towels, One portable toilet  and the bed sheets were given to Santa Catalina de Laboure’s one, then we went to the other facility –an old house donated by a good Samaritan, but in need of a lot of work to be done; it is a two floor old house. In this house only the non to ill can stay here, because it is a long stair to walk in and out. Again the happiness and gratitude was so rewarding, that I could not stop a tear or two…. 30 towels, three  walkers , a walking cane and a portable toilet were given at this facility. Then, by the advice of my sister we went to another need it nursing home, that receives some assistance from the Saint Vincent of Paul Society, but still are in great need, and we give them the other two walkers, a portable toilet and two walking canes.   To end, I just want to extend my gratitude to all and each of one who made this possible from the Graciela Londono Foundation, registered in Santa Rosa de Cabal, Risaralda, Colombia as a non-profit charitable foundation helping to support the Santa Catalina de Laboure’s Nursing home with its 63 elders that most probably would been sleeping on the streets if it wasn’t for these two facilities… There was a great relief and outstanding help, but there is a lot more to do, and I will continue to gather donations and working as a liaison for the needed and most disadvantaged in Santa Rosa de Cabal, Pereira and Colombia in general.   God Bless You All…