Road Hockey Comes to the Hogar San Pablo
By Diana (Rosie) & Lawney Zdanovich
Our story began in 1997 on our first visit to Mazatlán. We picked up the Pacific Pearl Magazine and saw an article on the orphanages in Mazatlán. In the article they said they would take donations. So we took the magazine home to Golden, British Columbia, Canada and decided to return the next year.
 
We talked to friends and family about donating to an orphanage. We chose the Hogar San Pablo Home for street boys. Before we knew it, we had two large suitcases full of clothes, school supplies, toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, shampoo, games and money donations. We got to the airport in Calgary, Alberta not knowing if we would have to pay for all the extra luggage. We told them we were taking it all to the Hogar San Pablo Orphanage in Mexico. They then looked in the suitcases and realized it was full of things for children and said no problem. They called it humanitarian aid and there was no charge. Since then we have traveled down every year on all different airlines and have never been charged.
Along with all the donations we decided to do a sports theme. In 2004, we brought a whole team of baseball equipment. The children loved it. This year, 2005, we brought road hockey equipment including two nets, all the sticks and plastic stick ends, goalie pads and gloves and tennis balls to be used as pucks. We knew they had a VCR so our nephew, Lincoln, donated a tape of the 2002 Canada-US Olympic hockey game so the kids could watch how hockey is played on ice. It was awesome watching the kids play Canada´s favourite sport.
 
Along with all the regular donations, thanks to family and friends we also raised $1,500Cdn that we exchanged into pesos to take to Sister Amalia, Father Tovar and the kids. They were as thrilled as we were.
We never thought that our first trip to Mazatlán in 1997 would bring us back here and donating to the kids year after year. We love Mazatlán and donating to the kids. It is truly one of the highlights of our yearly vacation. We look forward to coming to Maz. for many years to come.
 
Thanks to the Pacific Pearl for the article that helped us help the kids at Hogar San Pablo.

 

 

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