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Piquero Family Album

My husband and I started sponsoring Hercules Piquero through a Christian organization a couple years ago. After getting to know him I decided that his family would benefit more from my financial sponsorship if I sent the money directly to his family instead of through the charity. Now his family purchases whatever they need and even send me pictures of the things they purchased!! I have grown to know and really love him and his family.
Hercules and his family live in extreme poverty in the Philippines. His family consists of his mom and dad, sister and baby brother. Hercules is 15, a 10th grade student and is very active in his church and after church with Christian groups for children. He even helps teach “Sunday school”. He was born with one detached retina that could have been fixed if he was born almost anywhere else, but he is blind in that eye. Even with that disability he is a champion javelin and discus thrower, considered one of the top two boys on his island! Last year another boy who he competes against poisoned him with industrial cleaner. He was trying to knock Hercules out of the competitions. Now he sufferers from periodic severe stomach aches. Luckily I had a years worth of Nexium saved up and he’s doing better.
He lives in a fragile house with thatched roof that leaks often during typhoons. His mom cooks on an open fire and his toilet and bathing areas are rudimentary at best. A video of the tour he gave me of his family and home is here: https://youtu.be/vbAkYS0W6l8
His Dad harvests rice when he can find work. His mother is leaving soon to work as domestic help for a rich family in Qatar for a contracted two year period. This makes me sick that she has to leave her family for two years to provide for them. She was scheduled to go to Kuwait but since so many domestic helpers had been killed lately, they changed her work location to Qatar. I’m NOT making this stuff up.
He made a design for me one day with his and my last name on it. I shocked him by making the design into a t-shirt for him. He’s wearing it in the picture.
Hercules has always dreamed of visiting the United States. I decided I want to help make that happen! He feels that he’ll never get out of poverty. I want to fly Hercules to Pittsburgh for 3 weeks to visit my family and see as much of the US that I am capable of showing him. We want to take him to all of our local attractions, south to my home state of West Virginia and hopefully to Washington D.C. We are awaiting the school schedule for his next school year, which starts June 2018, to see when he will have the longest break.
Donations are needed to pay for all of the following:
Hercules’ birth certificate ($25 USD)
parents marriage certificate since he will be traveling alone and he’s a minor. ($10)
Passport - $98 USD
Tourist Visa tentatively $160 USD
local travel costs to obtain documents ($60.00)
NBI Clearance ($4.00)
Baptism certificate ($7.70)
airline tickets (This is why I set up this campaign)
1. RT Manila to Pittsburgh ($1800-$3500)
2. RT Bohol, Phillipines to Manila, Phillipines ($250)
suitcase or other travel bag (he doesn’t own one) ($50)
Cash for travel day ($100)
I plan to send him home with a suitcase full of clothing so donations will also go toward new clothes/shoes for him too.
THIS LIST WILL UPDATE AS NEEDED
I believe this could be a life changing trip for this young man. I’m hoping he can see what is possible so that he will strive for a higher education so that he has the chance to rise out of poverty.
I’m a disabled veteran and I don’t have the money to pay for all of this by myself. He can’t help at all of course. Any donation will benefit Hercules, either by paying for his trip or as a direct donation to the family.
IF the trip completely falls through, all donations will be given to the Piquero family and pictures of what they did with the money will be posted here.
Photos of Hercules, his family and his home can be found in the linked Flickr album
https://www.flickr.com/gp/140264718@N02/226u35
 My husband and I started sponsoring Hercules Piquero through a Christian organization a couple years ago. After getting to know him I decided that his family would benefit more from my financial sponsorship if I sent the money directly to his family instead of through the charity. Now his family purchases whatever they need and even send me pictures of the things they purchased!! I have grown to know and really love him and his family.
Hercules and his family live in extreme poverty in the Philippines. His family consists of his mom and dad, sister and baby brother. Hercules is 15, a 10th grade student and is very active in his church and after church with Christian groups for children. He even helps teach “Sunday school”. He was born with one detached retina that could have been fixed if he was born almost anywhere else, but he is blind in that eye. Even with that disability he is a champion javelin and discus thrower, considered one of the top two boys on his island! Last year another boy who he competes against poisoned him with industrial cleaner. He was trying to knock Hercules out of the competitions. Now he sufferers from periodic severe stomach aches. Luckily I had a years worth of Nexium saved up and he’s doing better.
He lives in a fragile house with thatched roof that leaks often during typhoons. His mom cooks on an open fire and his toilet and bathing areas are rudimentary at best. A video of the tour he gave me of his family and home is here: https://youtu.be/vbAkYS0W6l8
His Dad harvests rice when he can find work. His mother is leaving soon to work as domestic help for a rich family in Qatar for a contracted two year period. This makes me sick that she has to leave her family for two years to provide for them. She was scheduled to go to Kuwait but since so many domestic helpers had been killed lately, they changed her work location to Qatar. I’m NOT making this stuff up.
He made a design for me one day with his and my last name on it. I shocked him by making the design into a t-shirt for him. He’s wearing it in the picture.
Hercules has always dreamed of visiting the United States. I decided I want to help make that happen! He feels that he’ll never get out of poverty. I want to fly Hercules to Pittsburgh for 3 weeks to visit my family and see as much of the US that I am capable of showing him. We want to take him to all of our local attractions, south to my home state of West Virginia and hopefully to Washington D.C. We are awaiting the school schedule for his next school year, which starts June 2018, to see when he will have the longest break.
Donations are needed to pay for all of the following:
Hercules’ birth certificate ($25 USD)
parents marriage certificate since he will be traveling alone and he’s a minor. ($10)
Passport - $98 USD
Tourist Visa tentatively $160 USD
local travel costs to obtain documents ($60.00)
NBI Clearance ($4.00)
Baptism certificate ($7.70)
airline tickets (This is why I set up this campaign)
1. RT Manila to Pittsburgh ($1800-$3500)
2. RT Bohol, Phillipines to Manila, Phillipines ($250)
suitcase or other travel bag (he doesn’t own one) ($50)
Cash for travel day ($100)
I plan to send him home with a suitcase full of clothing so donations will also go toward new clothes/shoes for him too.
THIS LIST WILL UPDATE AS NEEDED
I believe this could be a life changing trip for this young man. I’m hoping he can see what is possible so that he will strive for a higher education so that he has the chance to rise out of poverty.
I’m a disabled veteran and I don’t have the money to pay for all of this by myself. He can’t help at all of course. Any donation will benefit Hercules, either by paying for his trip or as a direct donation to the family.
IF the trip completely falls through, all donations will be given to the Piquero family and pictures of what they did with the money will be posted here.
Photos of Hercules, his family and his home can be found in the linked Flickr album
https://www.flickr.com/gp/140264718@N02/226u35
Organizer
Mary Lee Marshman
Organizer
Pittsburgh, PA