Miles4Mindo

www.mindofutures.org

It began with the vision of a single nun, Sister Lucia, and her dream of providing a safety net for the most vulnerable members of society: the children.  In response to the needs of orphaned and abandoned children, La Chia, as she was commonly referred to by the children, established an orphanage in the tiny pueblo of Mindo, Ecuador.  In 1972, La Chia and two other sisters of the Divine Providence began to welcome children who had nowhere else to go.

The need to provide the children with an education became a priority and a school was born: La Unidad Educativa Fiscomisional Tecnico Ecuador, UEFTE.  

As time passed it became apparent that there was more to be done.  Many students graduating from UEFTE faced challenges similar to students in the U.S. foster care system.  What happened when they turned 18 and graduated?   Graduation from UEFTE did not provide them with many opportunities to improve their financial circumstances.   They still had limited means of support and no opportunity to further their education.

In an effort to provide UEFTE graduates with an opportunity to continue their studies, volunteers from the  Miracle of Mindo took the next step and established The Mindo Futures Bridge Program, which  focuses on providing the graduates from UEFTE with the opportunity to obtain a college education.

The Medical Mission started in 2008, when a small group of doctors, nurses and volunteers traveled to Mindo, a small village in Ecuador, two hours away from the capital city of Quito. After treating well over two thousand indigent patients in a five-day period, including the students and abandoned children of UEFTE, a boarding school in Mindo, Ecuador, the medical team felt compelled and committed to return every year thereafter. Our mission began and continues as an opportunity to provide quality medical care, medicines and vitamins free of charge for humanitarian purposes.