Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Abandoned and incarcerated youth in Central America face despair and hopelessness. They have been traumatized by the poverty, crime, violence, and addictions they have witnessed in their early lives. They now are at vulnerable stage in life – either be hardened by the those experience or be determined to overcome them. These youth need a caring adult in their life to provide them with hope and opportunity.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Success Academy
Orphan Helpers works in ten state-run centers in El Salvador and Honduras. Inside these centers, teachers lead Success Academies where they teach leadership, life skills, spiritual growth, and vocational skills, Upon release from the centers, Academy graduates are assisted in their transition by Success Coaches.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO) 2022
Accord Network 2022
External reviews

Photos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of people reached with the Gospel of Jesus Christ
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
At-risk youth, Incarcerated people
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Number of baptisms inside the juvenile detention centers.
Number of program graduates
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
At-risk youth, Incarcerated people
Related Program
Success Academy
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Number of youth who graduated from the Success Academy program inside the juvenile detention and protection centers.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Orphan Helpers seeks to serve the physical, spiritual, emotional, and educational needs of abandoned and incarcerated youth by effectively partnering with individuals, churches, businesses, governments, and other organizations. We aim to: 1) reduce the youth recidivism rate by working with youth to prevent them from re-offending; 2) secure employment and education opportunities for youth through partnerships with the business community; 3) recruit churches to provide Christian community to youth once they are released from the detention and protections centers.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The Orphan Helpers plan of intervention is centered on the following 4S Strategy:
SEEK. Orphan Helpers sends workers into government-run orphanages and juvenile detention centers each day to connect with youth who have been forgotten or who have lost their way. We shower them with love when others have not. We share with them a hope and a future. This step involves: Connecting daily with youth living in government institutions; Sharing with them the hope of a better future; Identifying at-risk youth who desire to change their lives; Improving youths' physical surroundings in government-run centers.
SERVE. For those children and youth who respond to the offer, Orphan Helpers serves them on a deeper level. We walk alongside them in the centers to give them educational training, emotional healing, and spiritual hope. This step involves: Establishing Success Academies within the government-run centers to delivering structured, specialized youth leadership training; Moving youth into a right relationship with God, themselves, others, and their community; Providing basic education tutoring, job skills training, and service opportunities; Recruiting volunteers from churches to serve as teachers and mentors; Guiding youth in developing a life plan to assist them in identifying and pursuing their purpose.
SURROUND. While seeking and serving the children are huge steps, the work of Orphan Helpers does not end there. Orphan Helpers understands youth face significant obstacles and challenges once they leave the centers. Once youth have completed the Orphan Helpers program within the centers, Orphan Helpers continues working with those youth receptive to change. Orphan Helpers assists the youth in fulfilling their action plan through mentorship, guidance, and even temporary financial assistance. This step involves: Working with committed youth as they leave the centers; Assigning a Success Coach to assist youth with transition back into society; Mapping community resources and opportunities that will help youth pursue their plans; Connecting youth with local churches and volunteer mentors who will meet regularly with youth; Assisting at-risk youth with temporary financial aid to help them with their new start.
SUCCEED. Our prayer is that all youth who have dedicated themselves to pursuing God's plan for their lives will succeed. We want to see them at school, on a job, off drugs, in a church, out of trouble, with a family. That is why we monitor results to mark the progress of youth and to make sure we are as effective as possible. This step involves: Monitoring results by tracking each youth's progress; Demonstrating the program's effectiveness through statistics on recidivism, job retention, and church involvement; Keeping youth connected through Orphan Helpers Alumni Network.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
With 22 years of experience in Central America, Orphan Helpers has sustained interventions in the lives of youth across Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala. We have helped hundreds of young people find hope and purpose where previously there was only hopelessness and despair. Along the way, we have earned the respect of the government social services department with whom we have partnered, with the judges who place the children in government care that we serve, and the respect of the youth themselves.
In fact, the Honduras Supreme Court issued a report in September 2014 applauding Orphan Helpers' impact on the lives of youth, in spite of the deplorable living conditions in the nation's four juvenile justice centers:
“It will be required that minors receive some form of education, whether formal or informal. Orphan Helpers is declared a subject matter expert in the fields of reinsertion and rehabilitation, both educational and spiritual, and can stay in the juvenile detention centers as they deem convenient, regardless of the administration that is ruling the center."
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
In 2022, Orphan Helpers celebrated the 1,000th youth to complete the Success Academy program. As youth graduate and are released back to the community, we work to find employment and education opportunities for them. More than 400 youth across El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala are receiving follow-up services.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
Orphan Helpers serve incarcerated and recently released youth in Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
ORPHAN HELPERS INC
Board of directorsas of 10/15/2022
Mr. Dave Dunlevy
Founder of D. A. Dunlevy
Term: 2018 - 2023
Mr. Mike Torrech
Retired CEO of American Maritime Holdings
Term: 2018 - 2023
Mike Torrech
David Phillips
David Dunlevy
D. A. Dunlevy
Justin Kruse
Kruse.Cloud, LLC
Joe Renaud
PTS Insurance
Peter Manthei
The Manthei Group
Phil Catron
NaturaLawn of America
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 10/15/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.