Thanks for the tamales

Time to catch up…..I love going back to the States to see my family and friends, but it always seems to throw me off balance. Every time I get back from a trip, I spend at least one week getting back into the flow of everything. This time, I came back to a group, so I found myself really out of whack. Yesterday felt like the first normal day back.

I left on December 21st and returned on the 28th. While I was gone, the Kluges kept me informed of the happenings here in Mololoa. It was important for me to be with family for Christmas, but I missed some excellent times here.

Christmas day (25th) fell on a Monday. Melissa and I decided that the ladies needed the day off. We asked the ladies how best to make the day special for the kids as well as give them a day off. They said that the best food would be tamales and that they could make them on Friday. That sounded like a good plan, but the meal would be almost four times the normal cost. So, I got on the phone with my grandmother and asked if her women’s group would be interested in sponsoring the special day. They agreed to it and raised money amongst themselves. Thanks to their financial assistance, we were able to make a special Christmas meal.

On the Friday before Christmas, the ladies of the kitchen stayed until 9pm preparing a feast for the kids. They made tamales—a traditional Christmas item—stuffed with many items including raisins, rice, green olives, and lots of chicken. It may not sound like a lot, but the meat was the costly thing—a total of $200 was spent on the one meal. Normally, we would spend that much on 3.5 days.


Melissa, Alora, and Brandy (a good friend that came to spend the holidays helping us here) made approx. 200 cupcakes. Sprinkles and gummy bears were added for a fun touch. We didn’t have our full crowd of kids, but those who came enjoyed it all. Even Oneyda dropped by to help on her day off. After they shut down in the afternoon, the Kluges and Brandy drove around town giving out left-over tamales and cupcakes to many children and adults out on the streets begging. A giving spirit, love, and compassion were seen throughout the special day.

Once again, thanks to the Women’s Group of Ruskin, Florida!
Love you all,
Jennifer