Ayúdeme

A different language, one meaning: Help. Oscar Flores is helping his native land thousands of miles away 

Story and photo by Myasia C. Butler

Nestled between Costa Rica and Honduras lies Nicaragua, a country ravished by poverty, crime and despair. Despite the country’s state, many Nicaraguans appear to be optimistic that change will come. One Nicaraguan didn’t lose hope and made his way to Plattsburgh, N.Y. He was able to escape the impoverished country, but he hasn’t lost sight of his people. He’s giving back every chance he can get.

Oscar Flores was born February 14, 1955 in Nicaragua to Carlos Alberto Flores Castillo and Miriam del Socorro Cuadra Silva. While he was growing up, Flores’ parents instilled in him the value of education.

“My grandparents died very early, so my father was an orphan, and he had to take the responsibility on the farm. So he stopped studying to take on the new role, but he always encouraged me to study,” Flores says.  This proved to be vital for his education.

But his childhood wasn’t defined merely by hard work.

“Growing up in Nicaragua was wonderful... It was more enjoyable to play outside with my friends. The school system was challenging because it’s not like here (in the United States). If you don’t learn one subject, you don’t move to the next level,” Flores says.

Along with going to school and studying, Flores also had to help out on the family farm.  A large degree of the Nicaraguan economy comes from agriculture. Many families’ farms are their livelihood and source of food. At an early age, Flores learned the meaning of family values.

“One of my fondest memories of my childhood had to be during the end of the school year when academic achievement awards were given out. I liked to make my parents proud with the award I received,” Flores says. In Nicaragua, students were given medals that resemble those that adorn a military colonel’s uniform.

“I felt good to have the different medals on my school uniform. It made me proud to make my parents proud,” Flores says with a wide smile.     

During his college years in Nicaragua, he met a professor from Plattsburgh, Francis Bethlen. He developed a friendship with Bethlen, who invited him to visit Plattsburgh.  After his visit, Flores traded the warm breezes of Nicaragua for the frigid North Country weather. Flores moved from Nicaragua with his wife, Yamilette, and their three children. 

“If I could do anything in the world, I would like to be in the position of helping more people. I want to reach more people with different needs.”

“I mainly left Nicaragua because of the political instability. There is a lot of confrontation. As a family, we thought it was the right decision, even though we support the social changes, but the political system was very unstable, and we needed a change,” Flores says.

When Hurricane Mitch ravaged Central America in 1998, killing 11,000 people, Flores put efforts forth to help his people.

“I had a friend who was working in the high school (Plattsburgh Senior High School) and we talked about ways to bring aid to Nicaragua. The response from the community was so big. My reaction was to see how we could incorporate what our students were learning with real life and also help the students understand the challenges that would be in the new generation,” Flores says.  

This led Flores to design a course along with Dr. Ellen Fitzpatrick to teach students about agriculture. The 3-credit course ends with a field experience in Nicaragua. While in Nicaragua, students go on community interviews, trips to different villages and learn about the needs of many Nicaraguans.

“If I could do anything in the world, I would like to be in the position of helping more people. I want to reach more people with different needs.”

The community interviews are when the volunteers go and talk with the locals about their needs. They ask questions like “Why aren’t their gardens working?” and “What are some ways they can better conserve water?” The main purpose of the community interview is to identify the major problem and come up with ways they can solve it and become sustainable.

Flores developed a working relationship with Fitzpatrick while she taught agriculture in Mexico City and Flores was acting as a translator. Fitzpatrick describes her partnership with Flores as a great team. After working with each other in Mexico City, they began taking students abroad to study different aspects of sustainability. Overall, they have taken more than 150 students abroad.

In addition to helping out in Nicaragua and New Mexico, Flores has also gotten his family involved. When he is in Plattsburgh teaching, his wife takes time off to go to Nicaragua. His children also go when they are on vacation to lend a helping hand, contributing to the work their father has done.

“If I could do anything in the world, I would like to be in the position of helping more people. I want to reach more people with different needs,” Flores says.

Flores helps facilitate a Christian compound with a private school on the grounds. The school gives young Nicaraguan children the chance to get a better education for free. Parents must write letters to receive a sponsorship in order for their children to attend the school. Flores also helps out at a local orphanage and disability center, where children born with a disability are often abandoned.

“When we were in Nicaragua, we went to visit the disability center, and all the children ran up to Oscar asking him for things like pillow cases, crayons, markers and other supplies,” says Victoria Cericola, a Plattsburgh State University senior. “You could tell he had a very close bond with the children, and they looked up to him.”

In addition to the work that Flores has already done, he has future plans that will hopefully make a big difference in his native land.

“I would like to open up a community center, where community member can go and learn nutrition facts, have support groups and children can play,” Flores says about his upcoming project.

A thousand miles away from his native home Flores’ sight is still on the prize as he continues his journey along with the help of others.  

What kind of community service have you done?