Rotarios, Nicaragua

8-month-old Eilmin gazes our direction with a curious, furrowed brow. The sudden burst of activity from our arrival and the long lens on our photographer’s camera are interesting, and perhaps a bit confusing. As we begin chatting with his mother Angela (15), Eilmin looks on, taking it all in.

Angela tells us that they are here at the clinic for Eilmin’s first dose of vitamin A. She has learned the benefits of good nutrition and how vitamins can supplement a diet that is lacking in nutrients. Before she ate only rice, but has begun to diversify her meals, adding in beans and vegetables when they are available. Angela took prenatal vitamins, supplied through our Thrive to Five program, during her pregnancy and was thrilled that Eilmin was born so big and healthy.

The family recently moved to Rotarios seeking a better life and more economic opportunities. They had been living in a tiny home built with scrap materials, but now they are members of a 37-home community; an initiative of Vitamin Angels’ field partners, Amigos for Christ. Here they are also closer to the medical clinic and feeding center which, together with the essential nutrients he received today, will give Eilmin the tools he needs to grow up healthy and strong.

Vitamin Angels is currently reaching 2,900 mothers with prenatal vitamins in Nicaragua, as well as 606,750 children under 5 and 270,000 mothers with vitamin A through our partners The Rainbow Network and Amigos for Christ. Learn more about our trip to Nicaragua. >>