Dear Friends,

    (The Iowa address is no longer Box 67; it is 126 W. 6th St., Carroll, Iowa 51401-2341)

SCHOOL AND FARM IN MAPA

    The rainy season is in full swing, with rain for part of almost every day.  This is great for growing the vegetables.  But it makes it a bit challenging to cook the meals over the outdoor, wood-burning fires. 

    The students are looking forward to going home for the Christmas break.  Sadly, two of our students from the mainland didn’t return after the semester break at the beginning of November.  Their parents couldn’t come up with the money for their transportation back to Camiguin.  The bus and boat fares go up every few months.

HANDICAPPED

    We regularly sponsor the transportation for special children, so that they can attend the SPED class.  This year we have added three new students.  Sixteen year old Maria Teresa and thirteen year old John Michael both have Down’s Syndrome.  John Michael was brought to us with a chronic eye infection and after that was cleared up, we urged his mother to send him to the SPED class.  Eight year old Alger John has microcephaly and ADHD. 

    At first, Alger John was very restless and out of control.  He also had to have his mother in the room every minute.  But gradually, he has calmed down and is doing much better.  Maria Teresa is doing very well.  Her older sister finished high school last March, 2011, and the family can’t afford to send her on to college, so she brings Maria Teresa to class each day.  There are twelve children in the family and the father is only a fisherman. Their mother has gone abroad to work as a domestic helper to help support the family.

    All of the SPED class children are very lucky to have a very patient and knowledgeable teacher.

    The five children with club feet whom we have been assisting have all graduated to orthopedic shoes and are doing well.  And we have another newborn, who is just starting the serial casting process.  Interestingly, they are all boys.

    Among the children for whom we provide transportation to get physical therapy, King Augustin, aged four years, is almost ready to graduate.  When he comes with his mother to collect his carfare, he runs all over the yard.  Quite a sight for us to enjoy, when we remember how very weak and floppy his legs were when he started therapy twenty two months ago.  We expect him to go to Kinder, in his own barrio June, 2012.

    In the past few months, we have added five new children to the physical therapy group.  Angela has  delayed development due to Down’s Syndrome.  Jaima has cerebral palsey after having meningitis.  Two others have delayed development due to unknown causes.  Crististomo has some sort of syndrome with an abnormally shaped head and very weak legs and feet.  Bryan is a child we assisted when he was still a very tiny premature baby.  He had laser surgery for retinopathy of prematurity, which saved his eyesight.  But on a recent visit to his home, Diane found his development is very far behind. 

    We are very happy that there are trained persons to provide physical therapy in two municipalities, on opposite sides of the island.  Without them, these children couldn’t get the help they need.

BABY HOME

    James will turn three the day after Christmas.  He still loves school and performs the actions to songs with his classmates.  He loves to dance and surprises us with how he seems to get the rhythm.  Maybe he hears the deep base beat or maybe he just feels the vibration.  He even imitates some of the break dancing he has seen on the television – lays on the floor and lifts a leg up backward.

    James was fussy one day and even woke during the night.  We couldn’t figure out what was bothering him.  Finally, in the morning, he made the sign for “hurt” and then opened his mouth wide and pointed to a molar.  He had a big cavity.  We wondered why he had the cavity, but realized that it is probably from his tendency to hold the last mouthful of food in his mouth for some time after meals.  Now we are having him brush after every meal.  He did not enjoy the dentist, but she fixed up two teeth. When she was finished, we signed to him that he was “fine”.  Now, whenever something comes up and we sign “fine’, he signs “fine” and points to the teeth that were filled.

    He now has some pre-school friends who come to our big yard to play with him.  In fact, two of the boys from a poor family weren’t going to school and we told the parents we would supply their paper and pencils and give them a ride to the school, since we were bringing James and passing right by their house.  The parents and the kids were delighted.  And a couple of other kids on our road also hitch a ride.  Now our jeep is the “school bus” every morning with three parents and five kids riding to the pre-school.

    Wishing you and yours Happy Holidays!

Diane and James in the sea.

John's 15th Birthday
Standing:  Helpers: Reneve and Mary Rose and Tom
            Sitting: John holding James    

James helping make cake

James delighted to go off to first day of preschool.

Grace and Peace,

Tom and Diane Palmeri

PS  In a final ruling from the court in Mambajao on July 5, 2011, our baby John Francis was declared legally adopted by us effective June 16, 2010.  His name was also legally changed to John Francis Buslon Palmeri.  He is almost 15 years of age and is now legally our eighth child.  As the Marines sometimes say, “The difficult we do immediately.  The impossible takes a little longer.”

For pictures of some of the children already assisted, click here

    We now have a two page leaflet/brochure that you can print out and give to your friends or send to them electronically: http://family2family.org/Brochure/fam2fambrochure.pdf .  We also have a blog that shows video/audio:  http://familytofamilycamiguin.blogspot.com .

    Contributions are IRS tax deductible (ID#42-1087104) and eligible for matching by employers.  They should be payable to "Family to Family, Inc.".  If in U.S. dollars, they should be sent to:

Family to Family, Inc.

c/o Carroll County State Bank

    Packages, letters and peso checks should all be sent to:

Tom & Diane Palmeri

Box 37, 9100 Mambajao

Camiguin Province

Philippines