Island Friends Roatan Inc

Your donation to Island Friends go straight to the children and community of Roatan that it serves. A visit to the day care center last December was great to meet some staff and see the facility and first hand. Sorry I missed meeting the children as they were off for the holiday. An organization like this really gives the opportunity for the children as well as the staff to gain wonderful skills and knowledge but maybe most important is gaining self-esteem.

I've had the opportunity to work with the Roatan Daycare over the last 2 1/2 years. I've watched how the children have been able to learn and grow in this time. I've been privileged to provide these children with the opportunity to learn English. Its been an amazing experience to watch these children learn the Spanish and English are the primary languages spoken on Roatan, which is an island where almost all employment is linked to the tourism industry. The Roatan Daycare is truly providing these children with a bright future.

Mrs Judy and Mrs Linda both truly want the best for these children. The have poured their hearts and souls into the daycare centre. They have hand picked the instructors who work together to create a healthy and educational environment for the children. The donations received provide the children with learning ressorces that they wouldn't otherwise be able to come in contact with.

I feel honored to have had the opportunity to partake in these children's learning process and helping them build a strong love for learning. These children will grow to be strong members of their community.

This wonderful asset to Roatan's needy children gets better and better. Not just baby-sitting
toddlers and preschoolers, this haven gives children a huge boost into their future years of
learning. What a difference this will make for these families and the future of Honduras.
The Allreds are truly the island's angels.

Island Friends Roatan's Day Care center serves low income children with the perfect blend of educational quality and emotional support. Bill and Judy Allred have hired locals, provided extraordinary professional development, and supported their efforts with equipment, books, games and other necessary instructional materials. In addition to this project, Island Friends serves as a clearinghouse for volunteer organizations on the island, and supports many of them with materials and funds.

I have seen what a wonderful opportunity the Day Care is for the children and the parents of Roatan. It has positivly benefitted the Island community. When I was unable to give my financial support, I decided to give my baking expertise by maiking cupcakes for the children and staff once a month. I was very impressed every month with the teachings and loving care that the children were getting.

The island of Roatan in the Western Caribbean is located in a country that has a poor public education system and many people who are unable to get jobs due to their lack of learned skills. The Roatan Day Care and Learning Center prepares young children for a life of learning, giving them the foundation and the desire to seek education as they progress in life. Having a safe and enlightened environment for their children enables the often-single mothers to earn money to support their families. I last visited the cheerful facility last month and I continue to be impressed with the wonderful work being done with these youngsters.

I have lived on the Island of Roatan where the children are served by the Roatan Daycare and Learning Center, which is provided by this non-profit. So many kids and families are helped by this. So many moms are able to work that otherwise would not be able to because they would not have child care. The kids love it and are given good lunches and books to read that they would not get at home. It's such a win-win.

I have been a monthly supporter for this nonprofit for almost a couple of years now. I believe in it because it provides small children with a pre-school/day care environment while their parents work. Meals are provided along with education and love and fun.

It is well known that this type of preschool development provides a child with a huge boost up in preparing them for school later on.

For many years the Roatan Daycare and Learning Center has been providing the Roatan community with a reliable, safe, caring, and secure haven. Not only do they provide a piece of mind for parents, it is an environment where daily learning is happening. As a teacher of more than 15 years, I am amazed every time I visit the Center. The children are always engaged in something. It might be a lesson that is being taught, an art project, or even just eating their lunch politely. The social and leaning skills that these children are acquiring are critical to their learning years to come. I can't help but think how lucky the children are that have the opportunity to attend the RDLC.

The Roatan Daycare Center has served local families for many years now. It has been a consistant and persistent vehicle for working parents who are needing a loving and educational environment for their children. The staff and directors all work very hard and the atmosphere is always bright and positive. I have the utmost respect for all involved in this valuable Roatan resource!!

Here on Roatan the need is great. Roatan Island Friends and Roatan Daycare Center are two organizations that provide excellent assistance to the people who otherwise would not have it. The founders and people involved in creating, running, supporting, fund raising, and improving these two groups are wise, compassionate and selfless volunteers who for years have continued to provide a safe and holistic day care center and an organization that promotes and brings together the many Non-profit and NGO organizations so they can be centralized, work together, raise funding, and have donations and volunteers coordinated so they are more effective.
I highly recommend both both of these choices as a perfect place to volunteer time, talent, or funding

I was introduced to the ROATAN DAYCARE & LEARNING CENTER about 2 years ago through my good friend, Linda Hin. She gave me a tour of the facility and I got to meet the teachers and children. I was so sad to see the deplorable condition of the building itself, however, I was impressed with the gallant efforts of the community to make it better...i.e. paint, pictures, plaster, etc. I decided to become a volunteer...it was one of the most rewarding feelings! After just one week I became acutely aware of their need for funding and volunteers. I am SO impressed with the program...ROATAN DAYCARE is not your typical daycare....it IS a total learning center! It allows for parents who could not afford the typical daycare to be able to enroll their children and go to work to earn a living. The children are taught reading, math, art, georgraphy, history. Including english language. I was amazed to see 3 and four year olds adding and subtracting 3 digits! The children are fed, bathed and those that attend regular afternoon school, are sent off with clean, pressed uniforms. The teachers and volunteers are incredibly dedicated and the children are eager to learn! I view the center as an early learning experience, giving the families a way out of poverty and giving the children a solid foundation to make a change for the Island. I will continue to volunteer whenever I am on the Island and will continue to do whatever I can do to raise money for the center. Roatan is so fortunate to have Judy Allred, who started the daycare, and Linda Hin who oversees the operations. This is one center that is so deserving of monies to keep it running.

The Roatan Daycare Center contributes in many ways to the community. It facilitates families with young children, that cannot afford a babysitter to go out and make a living. It provides a great and safe, home away from home, where children are stimulated to develop their social, creative, language and learning skills. The center has been blessed with an incredibly dedicated and caring staff that make the Daycare what it is under the stimulating leadership of Mrs. Judy Allred. It is wonderfully encouraging to see the continued development of both the children as well as the staff and the great start these children get for their future development and education.

Roatan Daycare Center in Coxen Hole (run by the NGO Island Friends) provides a much needed service to families and young children. But this is really more than a "daycare." It provides a stimulating nurturing environment for children who are devoid of such at home. This really gives these kids a jump start to success in school. They learn basic pre-K skills as well as the socialization skills needed for later success. I cannot emphasize how little of this sort of stimulation is available for the average pre-schooler on our island. This is one charity where I know every cent goes directly to the kids!

This is an amazing operation ~ amazing. The best part of it is how much the people who need the services for their children participate in creating the environment and providing the work and daily services. The day care center does much much more than get children off the street while parents try to earn a living while ships are in port. It helps maintain that spark so alive in children about the joy of living and learning. The beautiful First Lady Maduro initiated the beginning of the center many years ago and with the help of Islanders and expats it has not just maintained a presence but grown to be an operation that is a model from which others can be developed. The umbrella organization 'Island Friends' is also a model by which community outreach can be performed by focus on the outcome and not the control. LK.

As a member of the board, I can never say enough what a joy it is to be able to direct the staff of the Roatan Daycare Center. What a pleasure to see these Honduran young woman learn skills that will enrich their confidence and their knowledge. A non-profit is run just like a regular business except for not having a profit which is reinvested or taken. So our teachers not only learn teaching skills but have become strong in running a business. These jobs mean the world to them as the unemployment rate on Roatan is around 40%. I've never seen a daycare run with such efficiency, while all the while, the children are being treated with such love. Their efforts have affected the surrounding community in numerous and positive ways.

As a long-time executive in the non-profit sector - specifically for organizations that support the improvement of children's health and well-being - I am heartened to support an organization like the Roatan Daycare Center. The founders are passionate, dedicated, and smart - and know that the provision of such a center not only offers support and learning for dozens of children who need it the most, it also offers a safe place for these children while their parents are in pursuit of providing for their families. Such an organization did not exist in Roatan just a few years ago - and I am proud of their continued success.

The Roatan Daycare Center's impact on the community is one I have watched for the last six years. The daycare educated children going into the public schools are far ahead of even the more affluent family's children. The parents of these children are also learning parenting, educational and social skills plus respect for the educational process. The support groups have learned the importance of early childhood education by seeing how well it works. I have observed that the skill and caring demonstrated with these underserved and families in need have radiated out into the community encouraging many others to do the same. These are all children, families and a surrounding community that might otherwise"fall through the cracks."

My husband and I visited Roatan about five years ago and we were with Unity of Fairfax building beds for some of the children. I visited the child care center and was very impressed with the care and education the children were receiving. This care is so needed so the moms can work to help support the family. We continue to financially help support the Roatan day care center when we can and encourage others to do the same. Stephanie Johnson, Reston Virginia

Being a teacher myself for many years, I truly enjoy my visits to the Day Care Center and am always so struck by the calmness and organization that goes on. The children are with their specific teachers and are fully engaged in the learning process. I always need to take a second look and remind myself these are young children that are behaving so well and showing great behavior and skills far superior than a lot of the older kids that I work with.

The accomplishments and social interactions that are learned at the Day Care Center are exactly what is needed for children to be confident and flourish in the learning years to come. Thanks to you all that are helping this process be so successful in so many ways. You're doing a fantastic job!

Elizabeth Anne

It was so wonderful to see all those happy faces in the day care center. The women that teach here are doing such a good job and the children are learning so much more than most day schools. I am sure they will advance faster in school. This is certainly a positive and hopeful facility for Roatan. The care, work and love that went into starting this daycare was enormous. I hope it continues for the sake of the families in Roatan. We were happy to help when we were there in some small way. Fondly, Sally Zamarin

The moment you enter Roatan Day Care Center, you feel the warmth of the nurturing local women who work there and the contentment of the tiny souls they care for. It’s really a treat to pay a visit! Working parents pay only $1 per day for one or more children but what they receive in return is priceless – quality education, healthy meals and thoughtful care in a clean, secure environment, all so desperately needed on this small island. Through the generosity of Bill & Judith Allred and a handful of volunteers, I've watched RDCC evolve from a small ramshackle facility to a lively, inviting center for early learning and development. "Mrs. Judy," a part-time island resident and former educator from the US, guides not only the learning path of the children, at the same time she teaches the island staff new skills and encourages them to grow with knowledge too. A brighter future for all!

I enjoy walking into the facility in the early afternoons when the children are having a nap after eating. That's an important thing that I don't think that very many children have here. Even when awake, the kids are well behaved; a testament to the great women that run the place.

As a art teacher for many years I always saw the need for education to begin early to stimulate the creative and intellectual minds of young children. The Children's Center has done wonderful work to make an environment where students are stimulated and feel free to be creative. Cynthia Parchment

As a mother and grandmother, I have observed throughout the years what an impact and difference a quality preschool experience can make in a child's life and future. While first visiting Roatan Island, Honduras in 2007, and returning often since then, I learned of a group of dedicated people who are providing this experience. From a drab and sunless empty store front space much in need of repair, the Roatan Day Care Center has become a clean, colorful, and welcoming place for young island children to come to and learn. This was not done overnight, but gradually, with mostly volunteer labor and donated materials. These children are from extreme economic and educationally disadvantaged families who must work and have no child care available. Parents pay only $1 US per day to have one, or as many in family who want to attend. Local women have been trained as teachers, helpers, and needed kitchen staff under the highly capable direction of island resident Judith Allred, an educator originally from the U.S. She, and others are working tirelessly, and without pay, to offer life changing lessons to the young children of these very poor island people. The center introduces much needed skills in manners, listening, following directions, sharing, and respect for others and their property. When visiting, it is apparent that they have been taught above skills well, and are a happy and loving group full of curiosity and affection. As a guest, I have been overwhelmed with the way I've been greeted. One has to brace oneself for the onslaught of long lasting big hugs and squeezes from a small army of bright smiling faces that seem so sincere! In addition to the important social skills, the children are exposed to story reading, games, the arts such as painting, crafts, music, singing and dancing, and so much more. This quality of preschool education now being offered on this small island is bound to have an influence on its people for generations thanks to this group of hard working people giving so much of their talents. Joan P.