What does it mean to "adopt" a grandparent?

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As intriguing as it might sound, we actually do not put senior citizens up for adoption! Our mission is solely to raise money for the elderly poor at Los Martincitos in Villa El Salvador, Peru. However, your donations can provide a meaningful subsistence for a needy senior at Los Martincitos -- meaning that you can take on the responsibility for making a life better. And isn't that quite nearly the same as traditional adoption?

How your donations can help

It doesn't take a large donation to make a big difference in a senior's life. Consider the following:

$1.00:	Allows a senior to get three roundtrip mototaxi rides between their home and Los Martincitos.
$10:	Allows a senior to get a roundtrip taxi ride between their home and a hospital -- OR pay for a needed test procedure.
$65:	Pays for materials and labor for a new roof on a senior's home.
$100:	Allows Los Martincitos to rent a bus and take a group of seniors on an outing (such as the beach or to a healing spa).
$300:	Allows Los Martincitos to rent enough buses (three are needed) to transport all its seniors on an outing.
$360:	Pays for the Los Martincitos program for one senior for an entire year.
$1,700:	Provides the proper nutrition and other program expenses for all 145 seniors at Los Martincitos for an entire month.

Adopt a Grandparent is a 509(a)1 nonprofit corporation. Any donation over $250 is tax deductible.

Gifts of items

At this time, we are currently not accepting gifts of items to donate to the seniors of Villa El Salvador. Items are extremely difficult and expensive to bring into Peru because of customs and import duties; the net effect of a gift is greatly minimized when its fees cost more than the item itself.

We also believe that it's important to support the Peruvian economy as much as possible, so we try to purchase items in Peru whenever possible. If you'd like to donate a specific gift for Los Martincitos, please contact Pamela Jay-Paralikis to make a donation; she may be able to procure the item in Peru and deliver it to the seniors herself.

Staying in contact with a senior

Establishing a relationship with a senior at Los Martincitos is a complex process due to their education level and a often-difficult language barrier. Most of the seniors do not read or write, so any relationship would need to be conveyed through time-consuming verbal communication and dictation. On top of this, approximately 15% of the Los Martincitos attendees speak only Quechua, an indigenous language that's difficult even for bilingual Quechua-Spanish speakers to translate.

Our hope is that we can eventually establish personal relationships between donors and Los Martincitos seniors. At this point, however, our goal is to provide occasional updates on as many seniors as possible. If you read about a senior who interests you, please contact Adopt a Grandparent Executive Director Pamela Jay-Paralikis; she may be able to provide you with more information about the abuelito.