History and Philosophy

What is the Memory Project?
What is the purpose of the project?
How did the project start?
How many art students are involved?
Who are the children that receive portraits?

The infants, children, and teenagers for whom we make portraits all live in the homes of Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (NPH). In total, NPH cares for more than 3,000 young individuals who have been abandoned, orphaned, abused, or neglected. The homes, each housing hundreds of children, are located in nine different countries throughout Latin America and the Caribbean: Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Peru, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, and Haiti.

The children of NPH are remarkable in their character, warmth, and resiliency. Once one meets them, it is impossible to think of them as "poor orphans," since it is so obvious that they deserve the highest amount of respect for facing such substantial challenges and still having the strength of spirit to strive for happiness. We therefore do our best to avoid pitying them, because the children themselves do not want to be pitied. Instead, we see them as heroes for their courage, and as friends!

How many portraits does each child receive?
How do the kids react to the portraits?
Do the kids also get to make something for the art students?
How do we get involved?