Publisher’s Note: This holiday season, I’m reminded how lucky most of us are – and how little it takes to change a life.

The Roberto Clemente Health Clinic in Nicaragua (a project our Agora family helped start two decades ago) is still the only free 24/7 medical lifeline for thousands of families. In 2025 alone, it handled over 20,000 patient visits, delivered babies, saved accident victims, and kept kids healthy enough to stay in school.

On behalf of the entire MTA team, thank you for any gift you can spare this Christmas. You’ll be making “San Roberto” proud.

Julia Guth, the Clinic’s founder and board chair, shares their critical mission below…

– Stephen Prior, Publisher

As 2025 ends, here’s how the year unfolded at our Roberto Clemente Health Clinic – and how your donation played a huge part in the lives of many families in Nicaragua. We are deeply grateful for your generous support.

Throughout 2025, our mission remained steadfast:

To provide both emergency and preventive healthcare to the local community, while working cooperatively with Nicaraguan health authorities. Despite budget pressures, we continued our proud tradition of offering 24/7 emergency care.

With the construction of new roads and increasing regional activity, the Clinic supported over 20,000 patient visits this year. Our outreach team also sustained monthly visits to rural communities, delivering essential care to 100–200 patients each trip.

Preventive health efforts remain a cornerstone of our work. Through our Padrino program, 85 children received school supplies, checkups, deworming treatments, and specialized medical support. We delivered 2,500 clean water jugs to 22 schools and municipalities, provided 50 university scholarships, and distributed food supplements to families in need.

Your support has made stories like these possible:

**Jose** arrived just 30 minutes after a motorcycle accident with head trauma and severe injuries. Our team stabilized him and arranged an urgent transfer to Rivas.

**Eliam**, age 12, lives with a PCI condition requiring tracheostomy and gastrostomy. The Clinic ensured a pediatric gastroenterologist evaluated him and now receives ongoing checkups, medicine, and nutritional formulas.

**Yerlin**, age 8, has significant psychomotor impairments. Thanks to our Padrino program and donors like you, we arranged specialist care, provided a new bed, and continue to supply nutritional supplements and diapers each month.

This year has also tested our resilience. Following the tragic passing of our longtime Operations Director, Gustavo Ibarro, we reorganized local leadership. We also completed an unexpected but mandated $60,000 facility refurbishment to maintain our government certification.

Looking ahead to 2026, we will sustain all critical programs, expand staff training, and acquire new medical equipment, including upgraded ultrasound equipment. We’re also beginning early planning for an expanded clinic facility – an exciting step toward meeting future community needs.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your continued commitment in 2025. We’re seeing increasing costs, so our budget challenges continue. Any additional contribution you can make in 2025 will help us greatly with our 2026 budgeting, including planning staffing, medicines, and equipment needs for next year.

Please see below for donation options and consider our team and the community in your end of year giving. A little bit still goes a long way in Nicaragua.

If you plan to visit Nicaragua in 2026, we gladly welcome you for a tour and a conversation about our current and future programs. Medical and non-medical volunteers are also welcome, always.

A very Happy and Healthy Holidays to you,

Julia C. Guth
Chair, The Roberto Clemente Health Clinic
jguth@nicaclinic.org

YOUR ACTION PLAN

Mail Checks to: Roberto Clemente – Santa Ana Health Clinic, 105 West Monument Street Baltimore, Maryland 21201 (EIN 71-0926873)

Online Paypal or Donor Assisted Fund Donation can be made here.

Contact Christina Olson at colson@nicaclinic.org for any donations of stocks or other commodities.

As we are a 501c3 registered in Maryland, all donations are tax-deductible for those donors that qualify on their tax returns.

FUN FACT FRIDAY

The Roberto Clemente Health Clinic in Nicaragua is named after the Pirates legend who died in a 1972 plane crash while delivering aid to earthquake victims there — a country he’d never even visited.

He insisted on going in person to ensure the supplies reached the people.

Over 50 years later, the free 24/7 clinic that bears his name still saves thousands of lives every year, and locals affectionately call him “San Roberto.”