Our translator, David Sandino. He is the straw that stirs the drink around here. We call him translator but he goes beyond interpreter of spoken language. He helps us wind through the cultural perplexities. He is a huge fan of his country and his enthusiasm propels us to always advance. His official title is 'Nicaragua Staff...Community Relations' He likes to call himself 'Asistente General'. He likes the way it looks on his business card.

He is a baseball enthusiast and is the only one I know in Nicaragua who understands NFL 'futbol americano'. During the contra war, David's mother put him on an airplane to the United States. She didn't want her son to fight. So he flew to Los Angeles without knowing a word of english in the year 1985 at the age of 13. He stayed there with an adopted mother until 1989 when the war was ending.He learned english and an appreciation for United States culture.....especially the Los Angeles Lakers.We can't say enough about his value to us and to his people. We joke that we are grooming him to be Mayor of Masaya. He knows everyone in the city and where to find anything you might be looking for.