By Taylor J. Hale

Staff Writer

PORTAGE COUNTY – Towers of boxes and items stretch to the ceiling in a small warehouse on North Second Drive in Stevens Point. Though the items may be from Wisconsin, they won’t be here for much longer. The Wisconsin Nicaragua Partners (WNP) owns the warehouse, and the goods are being transported to the group’s Nicaraguan headquarters located in  Managua on Sept. 30.

A team of volunteers will help load and move approximately 160 pallet-sized boxes of items to Nicaragua, to be dispersed at the organization’s 65 Learning Centers throughout the country.

“We have over 60 Learning Centers in Nicaragua,” explained WNP Executive Director Amy Wiza. “We are filling four 40-foot shipping containers with about 40 boxes each to send.”

WNP is a state-wide non-profit organization focused on improving the lives of Nicaraguans by supporting sustainable community development programming. The group educates people in a myriad of topics, including cultural diversity, agriculture, and more.

The supplies shipping on Sept. 30 will directly help educate and aid international communities. Businesses and groups from across the state donated the goods, ranging from fire fighting gear from the Plover Fire Department to cubicle partitions from a hospital in Eau Claire. The group will take any items that can serve a purpose.

“Each of the four containers is worth roughly $25,000,” Wiza said. “But it varies so much, like an old filing cabinet may not be worth much here, but there it could be a sewing cabinet or used to hold clothes. The stuff people throw away here can still be used there.”

Wiza noted the Fantastic Sams in Hudson donated an entire store of cosmetology supplies and salon chairs to the group. The store was under renovation, and the staff wanted to put their old supplies to good use.

“Many of the Nicaraguan Learning Centers teach beauty and cosmetology,” Wiza said. “Everybody needs their hair cut. It’s a very marketable skill. It’s a skill women can learn and make an income from.”

The organization sent out 12 shipping containers throughout the 2019 year already. The group is on track to transport 16 containers this year. Their average is 10 per year.

“It has been a crazy year,” said WNP Vice President Betty Pionek, who first got involved with the group in 2011 when she volunteered to go to Nicaragua to help at Learning Centers.

She feels the group is gaining popularity. “I think more people are hearing about what we do,” Pionek said. “And what impresses me is the number of volunteers we get. Not just here, but people in Nicaragua opening their homes and giving their time to help, too.”

 For more information on the WNP or to volunteer, visit: https://wisnic.org.

Bikes and other goods wait to be shipped at the WNP warehouse. Taylor Hale photo.