Children’s Shelter Maximo Cornejo Quiroz was founded on February 1993 by Mr. & Mrs Cornejo.

At that time, Mr. & Mrs. Cornejo recognized that there was a desperate need for the underprivileged kids living in poverty or abandoned in the streets. They both had a dream to create a childrens home in a living environment with a family-like atmosphere, where the children would be given an opportunity to grow and become educated, to gain self-confidence and self-respect.

Inspiration for the name "Maximo Cornejo" was derived in the beloved memory of Mr. Maximo Cornejo, a successful hotel businessman who was the founder and President of the Association of Hotels and Motels in Vallarta. He founded the Tropicana Hotel in 1958 and expanded several properties in the famous Los Muertos Beach area of Puerto Vallarta.

Encouraged by his wife, Mr. Cornejo founded the Casa Hogar, even though he was ailing himself, and finally succumbed to his medical problems. His memory lives on in his generous gift in February of 1993. The commitment was then made to immediately start an orphanage and come to the rescue of these desperate children.

Casa Hogar has continued to grow and now houses 55 well-behaved, responsible, happy children.

We are a local, non-profit organization; a shelter dedicated to improving the lives of orphaned, abandoned, disadvantaged or vulnerable children.

Actually, the Casa Hogar supports 55 children of all ages (birth through life) operated under the patronage of donors, private sponsors and volunteers.

"Casa Hogar is not just a home. We prepare the children to be good human beings and set them up to integrate into society – with respect and self-esteem!" ...Rocìo Rodriguez.

The children of Casa Hogar come from diverse backgrounds such as abandonment, violence, abuse, family disintegration or extreme poverty. Some are children of indigent single mothers, others have been abandoned by their parents, and many have been abused. They all have one thing in common: a great need for love and the absence of a father or mother who makes them feel worthy of being loved.

Some of the children have come by way of local safety authorities. Others are channeled through the D.I.F social services arm of Government. Occasionally, they come from the parents themselves looking after the welfare of their children and requesting assistance of Casa Hogar until they can resolve the critical home situations that keep them from properly caring for their children.

The children live in our facility 7 days a week, 365 days a year. To carry out their studies, they attend various external schools, and are distributed accordingly with their age group.

We make an effort to cover expenses and demands associated such as uniforms, books and school supplies as well as tuitions. But the little ones (toddlers) spend their days at the orphanage, in an classroom program developed by Barbara Wilde, Nelly Barquet and a Canadian sponsor where a handful of volunteers work with teachers and wonderful people like Luz Aurora Arredondo, Rocio, and Casa Hogar founder, Sra. Elisa Cornejo, who do their best to make the orphanage feel like home.

There are many ways that individuals and groups can participate in orphanage activities. For example...

• Fundraising activities organized by you, your family, friends, company, or church group.
• Keeping in touch with the children at the orphanage through pen pal writing, e-mail, and other regular contact.
• Building personal relationships with the children that help establish long-term fellowship bonds, giving the children a sense of family and belonging.
• Buying tickets to our Fundraising events.

For those that can come to the orphanage, volunteers are always welcome for the following activities...

• Helping the children with homework, multiplication tables, English & computers
• Reading stories to the children
• Yard work duties
• Plumbing and electrical repairs
• Painting
• General maintenance
• Creating a party or lunch for the kids

We have various activities every day. Please e-mail or call us to confirm your visit so we can assure a special attendance.

Help brighten up a child’s life.

Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, each year our children receive the food, shelter and education that they desperately need.

We invite you to experience first-hand the difference that sponsorship makes in the life of a child.

Become a Guardian Angel and support with a MONTHLY DONATION for the basic needs and education of a child. The support Angels giving allows us to cover the basic supplies of Casa Hogar and progressively will allow us to offer additional professional tools in the development of our children such as English classes, computer training, art & dance, music & sports.

When supporting a child, you could be in contact with him or her by mail, personal visits and exchanging of photos.

Your friendship will show a child that he or she is loved and your financial support will protect his/her future.

What Sponsors Receive:
• A welcome letter from Casa Hogar
• A photo of the child
• Personal history of the child
• An annual school progress report
• Personal letters from the child in Spanish or translated to English
• The opportunity to visit the child you sponsor at the MCQ home
• The satisfaction of knowing you are making a difference in a child’s life

Thank you for all that you do to make this community a better place for our children.

We welcome all levels of donations.

Maximo Cornejo Children’s Home is dependent upon donations from individuals, businesses, and churches of all denominations. Many of the hotels and tourist restaurants donate food and other basic necessities from time to time; we also receive financial assistance from the local governmental DIF, but that amount is very minimal. There is always a need for more.

If you feel led to help us, any donation would be appreciated.

We welcome all levels of donations. Select your type of contribution from the following items that are constantly needed.

Cleaning, Groceries & Kitchen Supplies:
• Washing powder
• Washcloths
• Bleach
• Floor liquid cleaner, such as "Fabuloso" or "Pinol"
• Mops & upright brooms
• Dust pans
• Mop buckets & Trash cans
• Trash bags, XL or L
• Scrub sponges & Pads
• Cleaning Wipes
• Toilet paper
• Paper towels
• Aluminum foil
• Tupperware type containers, L & XL
• Liquid hand soap
• Tomatoes
• Knorr products
• Sugar
• Canned tuna
• Chicken Bouillon Cubes from Knorr
• Tetra Brik Milk Pack
• Nido Whole Powder Milk from Nestle

Medicine:
• Buscapina for kids
• Mejoralito
• Tempra for kids
• Caladril
• Quadriderm  pomade
• Capent pomade

Clothes and kids:
• Tennis shoes & sandals; ages from 4 to 10
• Hair gel
• Baby Diapers, S, M, L, XL
• Baby bottles

School Uniforms:
Many visitors, full of good intentions, donate toys for the children, but unfortunately now there is an excess of toys and not enough food, soap or school uniforms.

At this moment, we have plenty of casual clothes; our storage room is full and it's almost impossible to find new storage space. If you would like to donate casual clothes, we can refer you to another assistance institution than truly needs it.

Instead, we would really appreciate it if you wish to donate school uniforms:
• Marine blue shorts for girls & boys, sizes from 3 to 12
• Polo white t-shirts in sizes from 3 to 12
• White socks
• Underwear
• Black Shoes
• Tennis shoes & sandals

Monetary Donation:
Casa Hogar Maximo Cornejo is dependent upon donations from individuals, businesses, and churches of all denominations. If you feel led to help us, any donation would be appreciated whether it's a one time gift or a monthly commitment.

For more information on making a donation, please contact us.

Monetary donations are much appreciated and are tax deductible in Mexico.

Other donations needed:
• Subsidies in the payment of water, gas and electrical services.
• Monthly or partial donation of gasoline and lubricants for the operation of our transportation vehicles.
• Monthly or partial donation of food, vegetables, fruits, chicken, milk, baby formula and diapers.
• Become an Angel today with our Guardian Angel, Sponsor-a-Child Program.