Community Service by Tanya Hughes
(mick quinn)
A supporter of the Integral Heart Foundation, Anabella E., meets her sponsor child, María Emilina, for the first time in San Mateo.
Empowerment Through Education
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The Integral Heart Foundation provides a safe place to learn and grow
n the 1990s, Mick Quinn was an Irish immigrant living in New York City. Founder and CEO of several multimillion dollar companies, Quinn left New York after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Now at the top of his game, he began to realize that there was more to life than money. Already an avid spiritualist, he wanted to further explore the deeper meaning to life. Leaving his life in the U.S., he moved to a remote area of Portugal where he spent his days meditating and produced his best-selling book The Uncommon Path. It was at this time that he met his wife Debora, and at his publisher’s request, they moved to the United States to promote the book. However, Mick and Debora missed the Latin culture and in 2009 traveled to La
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Antigua Guatemala for a holiday. Little did they know this would not only change their lives, it would impact the lives of many. As many visitors do, the couple fell in love with Antigua and its history, beauty and charm. It was what most people overlook, though, that really caught the Quinns’ attention. Driving in the Guatemalan countryside one early afternoon, they could not help but notice the number of children roaming about. The couple wondered why these kids—poorly clothed, many without shoes and obviously malnourished—were not in school. After further research, they discovered some staggering statistics. Approximately 75 percent of Guatemalans live below the poverty level, with over half of Guatemalan children ...continued page 34