As Executive Director V Rita Crosby and Corporate Director Mary Martha McCune sat in the plane waiting to depart from the breathtaking landscapes in the city of Quito, Ecuador, they couldn’t help but think back on the orphans who, in just three short days, had managed to steal a place in their hearts and forever change their outlook on life.
It all started when CEO Frank L. VanderSloot announced at Convention 2009 that he wanted to send some Marketing Executives to Ecuador to visit the Melaleuca-sponsored orphanage, Santa Lucía Children’s Home, to meet the children in person and see for themselves how much the Melaleuca Foundation is helping the orphans. Rita, without thinking, threw her hand up and blurted out, “Pick me!” She had done this solely as a reflex and had no idea Frank could hear her. But he did. He looked directly at her and said, “Okay, Rita. You’ll be one of them.” Needless to say, she was thrilled.
“I had two aunts who ran an orphanage and the orphans would often spend their summers at my parents’ farm,” says Rita. “It was an endearing part of my life and I feel so much tenderness and love for orphanages.” Rita and Mary Martha traveled to Ecuador last March and spent the first day visiting three different orphanages. The tour guide wanted to show them the difference between the Melaleuca-sponsored orphanage and the others.
The other orphanages were clean and organized, but lacked the joyful atmosphere that Santa Lucía Children’s Home offered. The children at the other orphanages were not outgoing and hardly smiled at Rita and Mary Martha. But when Rita and Mary Martha arrived at Santa Lucía Children’s Home, the children were all lined up with huge smiles on their faces, awaiting the opportunity to welcome their guests with big hugs. Through this experience, Rita and Mary Martha discovered just how important the Melaleuca Foundation is. They saw an enormous difference between the orphanages and the importance of the family structure at Santa Lucía Children’s Home.
“One thing that really stood out for me was the joy the children displayed,” says Rita. “They are very happy and had huge bright smiles all the time. And the nuns who run the orphanage were so devoted to the children. They were very hands-on and loving. They’d carry the children and laugh and tease them. There is a reason why Melaleuca chose this
orphanage.”
Before the Melaleuca Foundation gained sole sponsorship, CEO Frank L. Vander- Sloot and his wife, Belinda, started sponsoring the orphanage in 2004 after one of their children volunteered at the orphanages for a few months. Frank and Belinda flew to Ecuador to pick up their child and fell in love with the orphans.
“What impressed us about the Santa Lucía Children’s Home was the family setting the children are put in,” Belinda told listeners at Convention 2010. “We love sponsoring the orphanage through the Melaleuca Foundation and would love to be able to support two or three more orphanages with the same setup.”
The orphanage divides the 40 children into four households. Each “family” lives in an apartment with a “housemother” who takes care of the children. Through this organization, the children learn self worth and a sense of belonging in which they call each other brothers and sisters. As Rita and Mary Martha walked through the orphanage, the children would often come out of their apartment door and exclaim, “Come to our family!” or “When are you coming to our family?”
Rita and Mary Martha brought some children’s books and toys for the children to play with. Rita loved reading the books with the children, expressing, “There’s nothing better than cuddling up with a child and sharing a book with them.” Mary Martha loved watching the children play with balloons for the first time.
“They were fascinated with balloons,” she says. “They have nothing, and are so happy and appreciative of it. And when they have balloons, they are really happy—they were a hoot! The children really need a monthly supply of balloons.”
It was an eye-opening experience for Rita and Mary Martha to hear about the hardships the orphans have experienced throughout their short lives.
“Most of the children at the orphanage are taken from abusive homes, found alone in the streets or dropped off at the orphanage because their parents couldn’t afford to keep them,” says Mary Martha.
The Melaleuca Foundation is the sole sponsor of the Santa Lucía Children’s Home and donations are made by Melaleuca Marketing Executives to pay for everything the children need—including food, clothing, medical care, facility maintenance and more. “I was honored to represent Melaleuca,” says Rita. “The Melaleuca Foundation is changing the direction of many children’s lives in a very positive way.”
Rita and Mary Martha left Ecuador, and the children they’d grown to love, after a few short days with them. But, though the trip was short-lived, the memory and impact of the trip will remain forever in their hearts.
“It was totally mind-boggling,” says Mary Martha. “I had an inkling of what to expect but I just didn’t know it would affect me the way it did. For at least two months after the trip, I could think of nothing else—the kids, their situation. Words cannot describe how eye-opening it was.”
When Rita and Mary Martha returned from Ecuador, they started a fundraiser to raise money for computers at the orphanage. The fundraiser has been very successful and the children should receive these computers within the next two months.
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