Cancer is frightening enough when it strikes adults. To see it afflict children is truly heartbreaking.
But what happens when the children’s families have no insurance and no resources?
In 1995, Bertha Padilla de Pérez encountered this reality firsthand during a visit to Guadalajara’s Fray Antonio Alcalde Hospital. She had been invited by her cousin, pediatrician Horacio Padilla, who showed her the children in need.
“How can I help?” she asked him.
Together with 14 friends, Bertha quickly formed a nonprofit association, collecting food, clothing, and medicines for families. They called it Mi Gran Esperanza — My Big Hope. Over time, the group was able to purchase a house where families of sick children, arriving from across Jalisco and neighboring states, could stay free of charge.
6,500 kids later
“This is how we started out — with zero pesos,” recalls Mayte Medrano, the current director of Mi Gran Esperanza. “In the last 30 years, we’ve been able to help over 6,500 patients. Many of those children are now adults, fully recovered, with families of their own.”
Today, the organization is supporting about 500 families.
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