We are not your typical volunteers. I am a parent of an adopted child from Quito. When we adopted our son in 2011 we briefly met these really nice young people who were there volunteering. We ran into a few different volunteers while traveling around the area and everytime we did our son ran up and hugged them so tight. I could tell that these young people were so very special to the children. From that time on I have wanted to be one of those volunteers and give back to other children what my son received ..... unconditional love and my time. I later found out that these volunteers were from OSSO. I have followed OSSO since. In 2018 I decided it was time and my now 11 year old son wanted to come too. In October we traveled to Cuenca and spent two weeks there. My son was asked many times why he wanted to go and he always replied "the food and to play with the children"! And that is exactly what he did. He became a big brother, little brother, friend and amigo to many of the wonderful kids that we got to spend time with. He was in awe as to how happy they all were. As we traveled around to other orphanages he couldn't wait to meet up with the buddies he had made. They were excited to see us arrive and sad to see us leave. He taught a few kids how to catch grasshoppers, build a racetrack, do handstands and make paper airplanes. The experience was very hard work at times but priceless to see my son give to these children exactly what they wanted and needed...and exactly what he received when he was a child of an orphanage. I feel it gave my son a sense of who he is and what his life was like when he was a young child. He saw the love that these kids and himself were surrounded by.
Mari and Danni Creque
