Friends of the Orphans - Southeast Region

Stay connected - Get updates
about our children and homes.

Email Input

Email:

Southeast Region

Events |

Featured Friends |

Notes & News

Founded in 2005 following the formation of the national Friends of the Orphans organization, the Southeast regional office is located in Miami, Florida. It encompasses the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

In addition to fundraising, the office obtains in-kind donations, such as new clothing, school and medical supplies, and health care items, from individuals and corporations and ships them to the Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (NPH, Spanish for "Our Little Brothers and Sisters") homes. In-Kind gifts mean less of each home’s budget is used for basic needs — freeing up funds for costly healthcare items, building maintenance, and other critical areas. If you are interested in making an in-kind donation, please contact Alfredo Benitez, NPH Home Liaison, at (786) 286-2656 or abenitez@friendsus.org.

Contact Us

Friends of the Orphans
Southeast Region
2730 SW 3rd Avenue
Suite 600
Miami, FL 33129-2339

Phone 305.663.6211
Fax: 305.663.6210
infose@friendsus.org

Staff:
Kristina Fueyo
Regional Manager
Child Sponsorship

Vanessa Lalanne
Office Administrator/
Volunteer Coordinator

Events

Please check back here for information on future events. To see events scheduled in other regions, click here.

Notes & News

Happy Hour with Friends

On Wednesday May 16th, Friends of the Orphans SE Region hosted their second Time for Friends happy hour of the year. In honor of Mother’s Day and the important role that child sponsors play in support of the pequenos, this Time for Friends commemorated all the moms and Godparents with a special raffle.

Lorena Miranda, Godparent to Yesenia Joseph at NPH Dominican Republic, won this special raffle open to mothers and Godparents only. Lorena was very happy to have gone home with a $50 gift certificate to the Gordon Biersch restaurant and brewery on Brickell Avenue. THANK YOU MOMS AND SPONSORS for all you do for the children of the world!

Over 60 guests were in attendance to show their support for Friends of the Orphans, one of the strongest happy hour showings yet! Throughout the event, supporters and their guests were invited to participate in a silent auction of many items, ranging from imported perfumes to gift certificates and museum memberships, as well as a $5 raffle for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate to the Graspa Group of restaurants in Miami.

After an energetic welcome by SE Region Board Chair Art Massolo, guests mingled the night away and truly, raised their glasses for a great cause!

Zoe Kollaras, a seven year old supporter whose family sponsors Jaydy Matos at NPH Dominican Republic, used her charm and humongous personality to sell almost $300 in raffle tickets to the happy hour attendees. Thank you Zoe!

Check out pictures from the event on our Facebook page here!
You can also click here to see photos from the Time for Friends Happy Hour in January!

Join us for our next Time for Friends happy hour on July 19th from 6pm-8pm at Caffe DaVinci in Bay Harbour. Admission is free and the first drink is complimentary. Free hors d'oeuvres courtesy of Caffe DaVinci. TELL A FRIEND. BRING A FRIEND. BE A FRIEND.

Over 300 guests attend the Friends of the Orphans Faces of Hope Luncheon in Miami, FL and raise more than $46,000!

Weekend News Anchor of Univision’s Noticias 23, Gloria Ordaz, Friends of the Orphans Southeast Region Board Chair Art Massolo, and more than 300 guests joined forces to raise more than $46,000 at the Sixth Annual Faces of Hope luncheon presented by Chevron. Held at The Biltmore Hotel on April 18th, this annual ‘friendraising’ signature event helped to raise awareness and bring hope to the thousands of orphaned and abandoned children living at the Friends of the Orphans network of homes in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Alfredo Benitez, a former pequeño who grew up at the NPH home in Mexico, inspired guests with his personal story of courage and service. His life demonstrates the transformative power that the support of donors, sponsors and volunteers have on Friends of the Orphans’ important mission to break the cycle of poverty in the lives of disadvantaged children and turn them into productive members of society.

The guests enjoyed a delectable lunch featuring grilled chicken breast, black truffle mashed potatoes, asparagus and natural jus prepared by Biltmore’s Chef, Rolando Cruz-Taura. While everyone enjoyed their delectable crème brule, raffle winners of Avianca, Fort Lauderdale Strikers and Marriott Puerto Rico packages among others were announced. “You could feel the good intentions of everyone in the room. The outpouring of support for Friends of the Orphans and the children that benefit from our organization’s network of orphanages, hospitals and community outreach programs in nine countries throughout Latin America and the Caribbean was palpable at the luncheon. People want to make a difference in the world, and our guests acted on that intent, many sponsored children, others donated and volunteered to further our mission. On behalf of the 3,700 children we support, thank you!” said Ana Martinez, Regional Development Manager, Friends of the Orphans Southeast Region.

Rocio Pellarano, Vice Counsel of the Dominican Republic and Tomas Hauff, Board Member

Rebecca Kollaras and her guests

Mistress of Ceremonies, Gloria Ordaz of Univision's Channel 23 and special guest, Alfredo Benitez

Kristy Fueyo, Bram Fiebelkorn and Sherman Humphrey, Child Sponsorship Manager

Chevron's Maylen Blardonis (top left) and her guests

Chairman, Art Massolo and his wife, Jen

Board member, Jorge Uribe, Alfonso Jaramillo, Flavia Ranzini and Janette Zayas-Bazan Uribe

Click here to see all the photos from this year's Faces of Hope event on our Facebook page!

Media Coverage of the Special Olympics Equestrian Luncheon

The Palm Beach Post-Winter Fest Welcomes Haitian Special Needs Riders

Media Coverage of the Second Annual All the World to One Child Gala

• Social Miami.com event report
• El Nuevo Herald (Spanish)
• BizBash.com Event Report
• El Nuevo Herald (Spanish)
• Highlights video
• Univision coverage

• Pre-Gala Reception video
• AOL Latino video interview with Angelica Vale
• EFE article (Spanish)
• Notimex interview with Angelica Vale (Spanish)
• Terra.com interview with Angelica Vale (Spanish)
• Social Miami.com event listing

Featured Friends

Mary Lou and Leo Hundt

Mary Lou and Leo Hundt have been involved with NPH and Friends of the Orphans for over 25 years. They are Godparents to nine children and are in contact with 17. In the last 15 years, they have visited five NPH homes a total of 24 times. Leo served on the Friends of the Orphans National Board of Directors and was Chair of the Southeast Regional Board of Directors. They recently initiated an eye glasses mission, testing the vision of 215 children at NPH Honduras and delivering 109 pairs of glasses. They hope to expand the mission to NPH Mexico in 2013.

We are eternally grateful to Mary Lou and Leo for their dedication and generosity. They have truly transformed the lives of our children and are making the world a better place.

At right:
- Mary Lou and Leo were Honarary Event Chairs for the Southeast Region's 2012 All the World to One Child Dinner Gala.
- Farid of NPH Honduras, one of the the Hundts' Godchildren, is currently doing a year of service at NPH Haiti. He is currently helping National Director Fr. Rick Frechette deliver rice to victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Below:
- Art Massolo, Southeast Regional Board Chair, presents Mary Lou and Leo with our annual Humanitarian Awardand.
- Leo and Mary Lou with our pequeño alums, special guest Merlin Antunez, NPH Honduras, and Alfredo Benitez, NPH Mexico.

Featured Friends Archive

Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos:

CONNECT WITH US: