Patti Simms puts her time and talent into a worthy cause!
Patti Simms started traveling at a young age, moving from her birthplace in Baltimore to Decatur as a child. As an adult, she’s visited Portugal, fished in Bermuda and explored Italy and Spain. She spends half the year in Key Largo and the rest in metro Atlanta.
But it was a trip to the tiny town of Iquitos, Peru, that turned her from a visitor into an integral part of the community.
With fewer than 500,000 residents, Iquitos is known as the largest city in the Peruvian Amazon region and the world that can’t be reached by road; only planes and boats provide access. And 40% of the population lives in poverty. A real estate agent by trade, Simms was invited to visit Iquitos by a missionary there who knew her work running Operation Dignity, a church-supported program for people in public housing. The church dissolved, but Simms continued the nonprofit, an effort that in 1990 earned her a Point of Light Award from President George H.W. Bush. Only two days into her visit to Peru, she decided to continue that work in Iquitos. For about seven years, she recruited volunteers to work on a program to feed the town’s children.
But life got in the way. Twelve years went by during which Simms put her travels on hold, met her husband, Charles, in Key Largo and regaled him with stories about Iquitos. He wanted to visit, too, so they headed there together in 2012.
“Even though it had been 12 years since I was there, 15 people from the town greeted me at the airport,” Simms says. “That’s when I reestablished the nonprofit and got it going again in 2014.”
The first project was setting up an orphanage, and that was quickly followed by working closely with residents of three small villages near Iquitos. Now, local and visiting volunteers provide one meal a day and host tutoring in reading, math and leadership skills three times a week for an average of 75 children. Every August, a summer camp hosts kids for two weeks of workshops, lessons and fun.
“One of our goals was to improve the health of children, and since we began testing for anemia and malnutrition, our numbers have gotten so much better,” Simms says.
“We’re now looking into a project to provide clean water. When we see a need, we do what we can, like buying a bed for a boy who was sleeping on the floor or supplying school uniforms, shoes and supplies so they can go to school.”
The work is supported by volunteers Simms finds largely through other volunteers sharing their stories. The nonprofit’s nearly $100,000 annual budget is funded solely through individual gifts and fundraisers, with 100% going into the program. One upcoming event is slated for the evening of Nov. 12, when the trunk show at Tootsies on Peachtree Road will donate 10% of sales back to the nonprofit. Simms says her experiences in Peru keep her going back a few times a year. “It’s the people,” she says. “They’re very loving, friendly and incredibly grateful for anything you do. And there is such a big need.”
OPERATION DIGNITY
operationdignity.net
@operationdignityiquitos
