AAI Members Honored by First Lady of El Salvador

William Dise, AA Denver Regional Director, arranged a phenomenal, but quick, mission through the First Ladies office of El Salvador for approximately 20 AAI members. Two truckloads of aid were delivered to two separate facilities in Soyopango, El Salvador.

Airline Ambassadors has an extensive history in most of Latin America and especially in El Salvador. On day one, members saw duty at the Airline Ambassadors development at a former junkyard named “Villa Kiwanis”.

These volunteers delivered and handed out aid to 200 families, formerly living in junk cars previously on the site. The generous LDS shipment made the day.

The First Ladies organization Famila Progresso provided the team with transportation, lodging, TV coverage and these pictures!

Villa Kiwanis residents originally came from one community, which was flattened by the 2001 earthquake. With no where to go, they stuck together but wound up living in a “chaterrera” or junkyard filled with abandoned cars and trucks.

With partners Kiwanis El Salvador, Catholic Relief Service and Homes for the Heart Airline Ambassadors continues development of their community, which currently has a day care center, soccer ball field, basketball yard, school and is building a church.

More importantly we have established an export furniture factory, a tortilla kitchen facility that exports tortillas and pupusas and a sewing school complete with sewing machines and fabrics

On day two, our volunteers distributed aid to approximately 1,000 people at one of the First Ladies school facilities for disadvantaged children.

Distinguished service awards were presented to the Airline Ambassadors in a special ceremony that Ana Ligia Mixco Sol de Saca, First Lady of El Salvador arranged for the occasion.

American Airlines also deserved a heartfelt thanks. They employ many of us and they step up to the plate with deliveries when we need them! We gave an official welcome to the new American Airlines country director Eduardo Pozo.

As is usual per such missions we were introduced to several people critically in need of assistance, as well as a whole community (Villa Kiwanis) in overdue need for a visit by a medical clinic. We have arranged a medical mission to visit this community next month.

We discovered that a lady with a critical case of elephantiasis, who miraculously appeared at on of the facilities, was homeless with three children. The First Lady arranged to give her a house and we are currently arranging medical care.

Thank you to the First Lady’s assistant - Lissalot de Mixco!

A 14 year old boy was shot in the stomach and is permanently paralyzed due to a severed spine from a shotgun blast. He had been one of our best workers who helped during the construction of his community. Another lady has a serious bone infection, another man has severe polio and needs a wheelchair and prosthetic leg. We are currently arranging for this to happen.

William Dise teamed up with the First Lady of El Salvador to hand out LDS aid to Escuela de Familia Progresso de Soyopango, El Salvador

The First Lady arranged a formal reception for the Airline Ambassadors at her

school for the disadvantaged

Leslie Sosnowski delivers new clothes from Fresh Produce. Leslie coordinated  “Boulder Shares” – a conglomeration of groups from Boulder to support this mission.  Their generous – and valuable - deliveries of new clothing made people feel like they were truly part of our contemporary global community.

Leslie’s daughter Sara made many new friends

One World Running was one of the more intriguing partners. Never take them up on a running bet – or a bet about how much they can deliver!

Enough cannot be said about how popular Sara was with everyone she met.

Danelle Lynn conducts art classes with the students.

Soles United, sponsored by CROCS, were always so busy giving away their generous donations – and interacting with the crowds - that this is the only picture we have of them, a flurry of activity!

Thanks to William Dise, this Airline Ambassador mission was a phenomenal success for all partners. Thank you LDS Charities, CROCS Soles United, Fresh Produce, One World Running, Wallaroo Hats, Instant Imprints and Boulder Country Day School. Very special thanks also to the generous and professional staff of the First Lady of El Salvador, Ana Ligia Mixco Sol de Saca.

Her genuine and warm heart is always reflected upon her face.

Come to think of it, so are the other two faces.

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