Inspiration

In March of 2006 my mother (Patty Hamel) and a friend from work were planning a trip to El Salvador. Her friend, a native of El Salvador knew that people in his country were in great need of many things that we in the States often take for granted.

Their mission was to bring much needed medical supplies to some of the clinics in the town where he grew up. In addition, they also took toys to give to the children. About two weeks prior to their departure I suddenly got a strong desire to go with them. So I bought a plane ticket and jumped on board. Once we had arrived I started to notice many of the families who I came across on my journey had very little in the way of material things, but seemed to have strong family values, faith, and what looked to me like happiness. The simple gesture of handing a small child a toy and seeing the joy in their eyes was truly an inspiration to me.

Not long after returning back home to Eugene, Oregon I felt a sense of urgency to do something more. I instantly decided that I needed to go back. I took the next few months gathering up clothing and toys to take back to El Salvador. By June I was off again, only this time with my sister (Hannah) and our friend (Dan). All together we were able to bring 300 lbs of clothing and toys to people in need. However, during this trip our focus was a bit different; we spent our time helping out at an orphanage (a connection we made here in the States just prior to leaving) and also staying with a local family which was a true blessing. Their generosity and welcoming spirit still ceases to amaze me. It is amazing that people who have so little would invite us into their homes, want to feed us their food, and help on our mission in any way they could. What amazed me the most was how truly thankful and giving these people were. They could have definitely benefited from our giving of clothing but instead brought us into areas where the people were in more need than themselves. This was a true sign of selflessness and such an inspiration to me that it became the start of Humans for Humanity.