Fundación MAPFRE And NPH USA Partner To Develop Global Leaders

Now in its seventh year, NPH's Seattle Institute offers promising young adults a deep and advanced leadership formation experience in the U.S. Each year six university-aged students from NPH are selected to spend ten months in Seattle, enrolling in a full-time English program and participating in a comprehensive leadership development program. The goal of the program is to train talented youth to maximize their own potential and to serve others in their local communities. 

"The NPH Seattle Institute Leadership Program is a great example of an impactful global initiative," said Alfredo Castelo, representative of Fundación MAPFRE in the U.S. "It enables promising young adults from Latin America and the Caribbean to develop their skills and return home to make a positive impact on their families and local communities. We are honored to be a partner in this important effort."

The 2017 – 2018 class of Seattle Institute students arrived in Washington last week. Aged between 22 – 27 years, they are from the NPH homes in Bolivia, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. During their time in Seattle, they will live with host families, enroll full-time in the International Student Program at Seattle Central College, and work closely with personal and professional mentors. They will also attend weekly leadership classes and quarterly retreats, participate in site visits and job-shadowing at local companies, and engage in community service opportunities with local organizations. Upon returning home, the students will be asked to take part in ongoing leadership within NPH and in their communities.

"NPH's work is only possible because of partners like MAPFRE who are dedicated to the well-being, education and health of children around the world," said Frank Donaghue, President and CEO of NPH USA. "We are grateful to Fundación MAPFRE for their past support of NPH, and for their commitment to the Seattle Institute. Their support will help us develop young leaders who want to serve others and give back. Together through this partnership, MAPFRE and NPH will transform thousands of lives of children and youth in need."

To date, 32 young adults have graduated from the Seattle Institute. They are currently continuing their university studies in a variety of fields, including health care and education, or are living independently and working — many for NPH. "I am grateful to the program and everyone who works hard to make it possible because it made me feel more secure in myself, which in turn allows me to better serve others," says Doris Serrano Lemus, Class of 2013, who is finishing her Master's Thesis in Clinical Psychology while providing psychological care to women, children and the elderly.

For more information about the Seattle Institute, including photos and biographies of the new students, please visit www.nphusa.org/institute. 

About NPH USA
Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (NPH, Spanish for "Our Little Brothers and Sisters") was founded in 1954 in Mexico by Father William B. Wasson, a native of Phoenix. Today, NPH is raising more than 3,200 children in Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Peru. An additional 2,300 students who live outside the homes receive scholarships, meals and health care. NPH community outreach programs provided over 100,000 services in 2016. Since its founding in 1954, NPH has assisted more than 18,000 children. NPH USA (originally Friends of Our Little Brothers) was incorporated in Arizona in 1965 to support NPH.

NPH USA is headquartered in Chicago and has regional offices in Boston, Chicago, Phoenix, Seattle, Miami and Minneapolis. Together, NPH USA and NPH transform the lives of orphaned, abandoned and disadvantaged children by creating families for life through values of unconditional love, shared responsibility and helping others. This enables children to transcend poverty and grow into caring and productive members of their communities.

For more information about NPH USA, please visit www.nphusa.org. 

About Fundación MAPFRE  
Fundación MAPFRE is a non-profit organization created by MAPFRE Insurance in 1975, which performs its activity in 29 countries and whose main objective is to promote the well-being of society and citizens across the company's footprint.  It is the insurance company's majority shareholder, thus helping to ensure the firm's independence and shareholding stability. 

The Fundación's operations focus on five areas:

• Accident Prevention and Road Safety
• Insurance and Social Protection
• Culture
• Social Action
• Health Promotion

In 2016, the Fundación performed more than 350 activities around the world, which benefited nearly 17 million people.

For more information about Fundación MAPFRE, please visit https://www.fundacionmapfre.org/fundacion/en

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SOURCE Fundacion MAPFRE