Ninos Incapacitados, the well-known Lakeside volunteer organization, raises funds to cover medical expenses for children with serious physical disabilities. During his tenure, Lawrason increased the profile of the organization by doubling membership as well as revenues. In turn, the number of sick children correspondingly increased. He also established an informative website for the group to spread word of its achievements, concerns and needs. He is recovering well from recent surgery.

Ivan D'Costa, born in India, emigrated to Canada in 1965. He holds advanced degrees in economics and public administration from Madras University, India, and Carleton University, Canada respectively. He has wide experience with volunteer organizations, including Big Brothers and The United Way, and was involved in the establishment of Ottawa Immigrant Services Organization. He retired from the Ministry of Transport as a policy advisor in 1994. Almost in anticipation of his move to Lakeside where capable volunteers are always needed for good works, he took a course in community events and festivals at a local college.

His commitment to his new role is evident. Ivan says, “Children are the future of our society and we need to ensure that no child, especially the underprivileged among us, is deprived of proper medical attention.”

Ivan and his wife, Julie, have spent time in Ajijic since 1998, but are now permanent residents waiting for their home in El Dorado to be completed.

I knew before I ever moved to Ajijic that my retirement life would have to include some volunteer work. Both my personal ethics and my means of self-fulfillment do not allow me to sit idle for too long. So, when we subscribed to “El Ojo del Lago” from Massachusetts, and I saw the long list of nonprofit organizations, I perused it with great interest. I found several groups which intrigued me, but with a background as a pediatric nurse practitioner, the “Niños Incapacitados” (officially PPNI) was high on my list.

When we arrived on Halloween of 2005 to start a new life, it took awhile to acclimate. Coping with basics – like food, money, water, language and health care – consumed our energy. But within a couple of months, I found myself at the charming Nueva Posada hotel attending my first “Niños Incapacitados” meeting always held the first Thursday of each month at 10 AM.

I was impressed. It was a group of perhaps 25 people, all warm, friendly and welcoming. And there was nothing sloppy about it. They had an agenda, minutes, treasurer’s report, committees, an e-mail list and an opportunity to meet one of the children the group was assisting. And yet there was an air of informality that made it feel like a family! I quickly learned that they held periodic “clinics”, so when I met the clinic coordinator, Rich Peterson, I boldly asked if I might attend one. Of course, he said “yes,” and that sort of started my love affair with “Niños.” Since then, every two weeks, I drive to a health center in Chapala to help out in the clinic at the local Centro de Salud. I confess it is the real highlight of my week!

The health center is a no-frills place. We even bring our own toilet paper. Many activities seem to be in progress as we enter and are greeted by smiles. Babies are getting immunized and a doctor is seeing sick people. “Ninos” borrows a small meeting room in the back, and Marguerita, the long-time Mexican volunteer and self-appointed service coordinator, is there to help. From what I gather, she has recycled wheelchairs stored in her own home for needy kids, advances money for medications to working mothers who can’t make it to the clinic, and generally facilitates things for families who can’t quite cope on their own.

The government supported health clinic is where the essential mission of “Niños” can be observed first-hand. The families and children who benefit directly from the generosity of Niños donors come to receive reimbursement for their medical expenses. They present receipts for medical visits, medication, diagnostic tests, and transportation. They contribute a portion as their budget allows. Sometimes these expenses might represent the entire month’s income for the family. I am once again impressed by this organization; for the families are not treated as “charity cases.” The interactions are conducted in a warm and sociable, but also a professional manner. We chat about the child’s progress. Sometimes we learn of a family’s tragedies. For example, the sibling of a deceased patient with kidney failure has just been diagnosed with the same condition. We share tears. But usually there is a lot of smiling and hand-shaking, and I feel lucky indeed to be a small part of what seems to these families like a godsend.

An illustration: we had a preteen boy whose foot had been run over by a bus some years previously, amputating his toes. He couldn’t wear a proper shoe and couldn’t walk normally. He presented the first time I met him as a shy child with a somewhat depressed affect. I pictured him in school, with his peers, unable to run or participate in sports. I met him again later. He had come to show us his new prosthetic shoe. And he had been transformed! He was grinning, walking gleefully around the room, showing off! I carry such moments, the high points, with me now and probably always will….thanks to “Ninos.”