OUR HISTORY
Like anything worthwhile, Maestro Cares Foundation was born of the simple desire to help people in need.
In 2011, Zaidy Cárdenas, now the Maestro Cares Foundation Executive Director, was volunteering at an orphanage in the Dominican Republic. For many years, despite limited resources, the orphanage had provided a safe, nurturing home for young girls. There were a growing number of requests to accept boys there, but the orphanage simply did not have the space or the resources to make this possible.
Zaidy discovered that the boys were living in a home separate from the girl’s orphanage. She wanted to see the situation first-hand. She visited the home where the boys lived, and found more than 40 children who were living in a three-bedroom house with scarce resources.
Zaidy knew that the only way the lives of these boys would improve was to help and look for reinforcements. At that point, she enlisted the help of her father, Henry Cárdenas, the CEO and President of Cárdenas Marketing Network, Inc., who in turn reached out to international music icon and long-time friend, Marc Anthony.
They visited the orphanage, and both Marc and Henry felt an immediate connection with the boys. They, too, knew they had to help.
In 2012, the Maestro Cares Foundation was born with the mission to build homes and schools for disadvantaged children in Latin American and the United States.
Things moved fast—construction on the first Maestro Cares Foundation home began later that year, and in March 2014, the Orfanato Niños de Cristo opened its doors in La Romana, Dominican Republic. That first facility is now home to 50 boys, with accommodation for up to 100 boys. Building on the success of that project, Maestro Cares Foundation has engaged in educational programs in Peru, and opened new projects in Colombia, Bolivia, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Chile, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Argentina, and the United States.
And there is still much to be done for our children and youth – Maestro Cares Foundation will continue to provide safe and loving environments where they have access to education and recreational programs for many more orphaned and disadvantaged children in Latin America and the United States.
Changing lives,
building dreams.
OUR MISSION
Maestro Cares Foundation improves the quality of life of disadvantaged children and communities in Latin America and the United States. We do so by providing housing, educational programming and the essential resources to support their growth and development. Through our efforts, we’re strengthening communities and helping children become tomorrow’s leaders.
OUR VISION
To help orphaned and disadvantaged children and communities in Latin America and the United States by creating healthy and safe environments for them to live, learn and play.
OUR GOAL
Our programs create tomorrow’s leaders by instilling the confidence, enthusiasm and discipline necessary to become hardworking, socially-conscious adults who make a positive impact on the world.