The Peru Gazette

Samantha Mulcahy holds a newborn child

By John T. Ryan

The Peru Gazette previously reported on the Mulcahy’s and Daly’s preparation for their Mission of Hope trip to Nicaragua.  Brian Mulcahy, his daughter Samantha, Matt Daly his daughter Rachel and son Patrick were in Nicaragua February 15^th through February 24^th.  Fifty-two people participated in the February mission trip including seven from our community.

This was Matt Daly’s second mission trip and this year’s trip was much different for him. Last year, Mission of Hope Executive Director, Sister Debbie Blow exposed him to the whole range of mission activities. This year, she put his Spanish speaking skills to work. Matt explained, “I ended up acting as an interpreter. We would go to the hardware store and the supply store to purchase building materials. Sometimes it was difficult to communicate. One time it took half an hour to make them understand we needed a cover plate for an electrical switch. We had to get permission to go into the supply room to find it for ourselves.” Matt said that merchandise inventories are almost always low. While Americans typically see a dozen several choices on a store shelf, in Nicaragua a customer rarely has more than one choice.  Matt said, “We came to the conclusion that we need to have more donated or more pre-purchased materials shipped down.”   In spite of these problems four structures were completed. Matt was also a member of the mission group that painted a children’s hospital emergency room. He said the room probably hadn’t been painted in at least thirty years.

Brian Mulcahy worked on a variety of jobs. He replaced basketball hoops at the school the Mission of Hope sponsored children attend; installed ramps at a disability center; helped install a system to capture rainwater from rooftops for use in watering gardens during the dry season.  He also helped load Mission of Hope medicines on to trucks for transport to people in need. One of his most rewarding experiences was delivering rice and beans to Nicaraguan homes. He said,  “Patrick Daly donated about 100 of his childhood Beanie Babies and the children appreciated them so very much.” 

As a first time missioner Brian said, “I will always remember the faith and joy of the people. It proved to me that the possession of things is not the answer. Their love and gratitude was overwhelming. My family got bigger. I’ve been welcomed into their hearts and they’ve become a part of my family.”

 Brian shared several wonderful photographs with captions that we hope you enjoy.