It’s been said that friendship is the only flower that blooms in all seasons. For Vanguard’s Rachel Frederickson, PA-C, that flower bloomed shortly before the winter of 2022 when she met her sponsored child, a three-year-old named Samara.

Chosen: The Power to Choose in a Child’s Hands®

It’s a journey that started two months prior at the Vanguard Chosen party—a celebration to kickstart our next humanitarian development project with World Vision in southern Honduras. At the party, Rachel joined other Vanguard staff in sponsoring Honduran children through World Vision’s Chosen program. Stemming from World Vision’s child-focused model, Chosen is a revolutionary sponsorship program that gives children the opportunity to choose their own sponsors (in traditional models, children must wait until they are chosen by a sponsor).

Rachel reflects, “It was such a special process to be Chosen by our little three-year-old girl Samara. We received a sweet letter from her explaining that she had chosen our family because of the smiles in our photo.” Rachel loves the Chosen model because, beyond bringing her and Samara together, it seeks to empower children. The power to choose and hope for a brighter future is in the hands of the child. And, beautifully, we receive the privilege of being chosen and called to a meaningful relationship.

In the spring of 2023, Rachel had the opportunity to visit Samara’s community. It was a remarkable experience that allowed Vanguard staff to witness the humanitarian work first-hand. Rachel recounts that the joy of “seeing Samara laugh, dance, and have fun hitting the pinata at the sponsored child party was unforgettable.”

Yet, the journey included heartache as well.

Poverty and Water Scarcity in Promesa Del Sur

While visiting families, Vanguard staff experienced the stark conditions their sponsored children endured. These are, according to Rachel, “areas where we cannot even begin to grasp the hopelessness and trauma that they [the children] have experienced in their young life, growing up in poverty.” One of the greatest needs: families lack access to clean water.

During the dry season in Samara’s community, the local river dries up, making water scarce. Women must wake up at 1:00 AM to stand in line for water from the well. Even if they are fortunate enough to get water, it is filthy and filled with bacteria, animal feces, and pesticide run-off.

It is because of this contaminated water that many Honduran youth never live to adulthood.

While in Honduras, Rachel joined one of the women in her trek for water. She describes, “I filled a five-gallon bucket with water, and the women coiled a rag on my head and helped me lift the bucket on my head. Then I walked uphill to the center of town with the forty pounds of water on my head.” The journey was exhausting, and the water Rachel hauled was not even clean.

Making a Positive Impact in Promesa Del Sur

But this can change. Through child sponsorship and a partnership with World Vision Honduras, Vanguard aims to help provide clean water for over 16,000 people, including Samara, in Promesa del Sur. The pipelines will reach seven healthcare clinics, thirty-eight schools, and over three thousand water taps.

Not only are we forming lasting friendships with Honduran children, but Vanguard is also providing life-giving resources that will enable Promesa del Sur to lift itself out of poverty. When we eradicate water-borne diseases and dangerous treks to find water, communities can flourish. Samara and her friend can flourish.

Vanguard’s support for clean water will be accompanied by investment in World Vision THRIVE. Rachel explains, “[THRIVE] teaches classes that bring about spiritual and social transformation that help them [families] grow and fight against the injustices of poverty.” Topics touched on a range from women’s rights to child protection. Moreover, families learn how to start savings groups, which creates new economic opportunities.

We are thrilled about our partnership with Promesa del Sur. It is a partnership founded on friendship, filled with hope, and grounded in our mission to make a positive impact. Above all, Rachel tells us it’s an investment in children and the future of our world.

She concludes, “It’s an investment in their bright future, where hope and hard work bring economic progress, education, health, and equality to all. Vanguard’s mission is to make a positive impact on our patients, our community, and the world. I like to think of Promesa del Sur as the heart of our Vanguard community, only 3,000 short miles away.”

RACHEL FREDERICKSON, PA-C has been a board-certified dermatology physician assistant since 2002 and joined Vanguard in 2012. She and her husband are passionate about international missions. Rachel is an invaluable member of the Vanguard team and practices out of the Castle Rock office. 

ABOUT VANGUARD SKIN SPECIALISTS: Vanguard Skin Specialists is a dermatology, plastic surgery, and aesthetic practice with locations throughout Southern Colorado. Vanguard has long been committed to helping the most vulnerable in the world, with our mission being to make a positive impact on our patients, our community, and our world.

ABOUT WORLD VISION: World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization conducting relief, development, and advocacy activities in its work with children, families, and their communities in nearly 100 countries to help them reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. World Vision serves all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.

The work being done in Promesa Del Sur is part of World Vision’s Finish the Job effort, a commitment to reach 650,000 Hondurans with clean water access across the country. World Vision is the largest non-governmental provider of clean water in the world. THRIVE, their flagship household resilience program has been shown to increase household income tenfold.