With 17% of Nicaragua's population impoverished and more than half of all adults either unemployed or underemployed, Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in the Americas. Save the Children has been working to change this situation since 1980. Its programs help to improve infant, child, and maternal health; reduce hunger and chronic malnutrition; and provide better access to safe drinking water in drought-prone regions of Nicaragua.

Long Islander and noted travel photographer Doug Going has documented the impact of these efforts on the lives of Nicaraguan children and their families. He will present Nicaragua... A La Orden!, a dynamic digital multi-media program featuring Save the Children's activities in Nicaragua, on Friday, March 30, at Stevenson Academy of Fine Arts, 20 Audrey Avenue, Oyster Bay.

Nicaragua...A La Orden! is a positive celebration of Nicaragua's culture, landscape, and, most of all, its people. "My goal is to bear witness to the condition of children in faraway lands and to raise awareness of the vast inequality, incomparable diversity, and yet remarkable sameness of children everywhere," Mr. Going said. "I hope to build bridges of understanding with people and cultures different from our own and hope my work inspires others to travel and to experience the large, complex and wonderful world we live in."

According to Save the Children Leadership Council of Long Island President Gloria Kruse, the evening has been made possible through the cooperation of three major contributors: Mr. Going, who, with his wife and fellow photographer Conny Brunner, volunteered to present Nicaragua...A La Orden! especially for the Leadership Council of Long Island; Pat Spafford, owner of Periwinkles Caterers in Oyster Bay; and Attila Hejja, Director of the Stevenson Academy of Fine Arts. One of the North Shore's premier caterers for many years, Ms. Spafford has operated a store on Audrey Avenue since January 2006.

"Thanks to the generosity of these supporters, virtually all of the funds raised through this event will be donated directly to Save the Children programs," Mrs. Kruse said. Tickets are $50 per person. Hors d'oeuvres and wine will be served beginning at 6:30 p.m. with the program scheduled for 7:45 p.m.

Mr. Going is a frequent exhibitor at libraries and in other venues. His current presentation, Remnants Of Childhood, can be seen at area libraries throughout the spring. Mr. Going said he developed a desire to travel the world at an early age and recently combined this interest with a passion for photography. He originally focused on landscapes, but his most frequent subjects are now the people who inhabit the land.

"It is the people that give a landscape its context and ultimately its true beauty," Mr. Going said. "I try to capture an experience or a moment in time and transmit it to others." When asked for the meaning of Nicaragua...A La Orden!, Mr. Going said, with a twinkle in his eye, that all would be revealed by the end of the program and urged everyone interested in the welfare of children, whether they speak Spanish or not, to come and find out.

Space is limited, and pre-registration is required. Make checks payable to Save the Children and send to Jennifer Schumacher, Treasurer, 44 Dewey Street, Huntington, NY 11743. For more information, call 516-922-2291.

This year Save the Children, USA, celebrates 75 years of service to children. The Leadership Council of Long Island helps to meet the national organization's mission of creating real and lasting change by supporting Save the Children programs through fundraising events and educational outreach.