I-CARE PROJECTS

All of I-CARE’s projects have the goal of delivering desperately needed goods and services to impoverished cancer victims in Nicaragua.  I-CARE is currently engaged in a second round of fundraising for its Hospitál Escuela Oscar Danilo Rosales Project and is also engaged in Operation HawkDrop.

Hospitál Escuela Danilo Rosales Project

          This, I-CARE’s pilot project, was born out of a January 2005 visit to the Hospitál Escuela Danilo Rosales by two of I-CARE’s directors.  The directors, witnessed first-hand the Hospital’s needy state.  Nicaragua’s rural poor come here from all corners of the county seeking treatment.  Limited funding means the clinic’s cancer patients are treated at standards markedly below those of the United States.   For example, the single chemotherapy treatment room has a broken-down bed, no sink for sanitizing, and no air conditioning, in a city where temperatures regularly top 100°. 

This project will modernize the hospital chemotherapy treatment room by installing plumbing for sanitary services, installing air conditioning, fixing the treatment bed, and giving a fresh coat of paint.  In short, the project seeks to give Nicaragua’s destitute cancer victims a facility where they can recover with the safety and dignity every human deserves.

Operation HawkDrop

Lack of funds prevents many Nicaragua healthcare facilities from obtaining sufficient bed linens and towels.  This means some patients must provide these on their own.  Thus, many poor patients from rural areas go without.

Operation HawkDrop will provide these necessities to the Hospitál Escuela Oscar Danilo Rosales and other similarly situated healthcare facilities. 

I-CARE is currently collecting donations of used and new linens and towels from hospitals, linen supply companies, and individual donors.  When sufficient quantities are accumulated these will be shipped to Nicaragua and distributed.

Operation Christmas

During the 2005 holiday season, I-CARE partnered with the Des Moines, Iowa law firm of Morain & Pugh to collect vitamins and men’s and women’s clothing.  These items were sent to Nicaragua and distributed to the families of impoverished cancer patients.

DU-CARE EAT-A-THON

The DU-CARE EAT-A-THON is a fundraiser in conjunction with the student organizational arm of I-CARE.  The EAT-A-THON features Drake University Law Students competing to eat as many chicken wings as possible in a 20 minute period.  The students take pledges on a per-wing-eaten basis from family, friends, co-workers, and fellow students.  The EAT-A-THON takes place annually at Third Base Sports Bar in West Des Moines, Iowa.  In 2006, 12 contestants ate over 500 wings and raised over $6,500!  In 2007, 12 new contestants again gorged on over 500 wings and raised over $10,000.  For more information, please see the EAT-A-THON page.