The first time Suzy Burke-Myers returned to Egypt after she and her family immigrated to the United States in 1969 was in 2009.

During that trip, she went to Zagazig — her family’s hometown — and seeing the poverty that was so prevalent in the area moved her to want to help.

“I’ve been so blessed in my life and I wanted to give back,” said Burke-Myers, a financial adviser for Edward Jones whose office is in downtown Redmond.

In the past five years, she has worked with two orphanages — one for girls and one for boys — to help the organizations in various ways. Since 2009, she has been able to provide each orphanage with a bus for transporting the kids — who range from about 5-18 years old — to school and other places more safely than if they were to walk or use public transportation. She mostly works with the girls’ group and has also helped them with getting a new, nine-story building built. Burke-Myers said four floors will be used to house the girls and the remaining floors will be used for things such as a computer center and possibly a medical clinic.

Although she usually tries to visit once a year, Burke-Myers said there was a three-year period when she did not go because Egypt’s political unrest made it unsafe.

Around Thanksgiving 2014, she was able to go back and just as she has in the past, she brought suitcase after suitcase (eight in all) filled with gifts for the orphans.

“It was like Santa’s village,” Burke-Myers said with a laugh about the scene of her home as she packed for the trip.

This time around, Burke-Myers also had a little help with the gifts for the girls from Girl Scout Troop 44271 in Redmond.

Burke-Myers connected with the troop — whose members are in third grade — after meeting troop leader Carolyn Scott at a Bellevue Rotary meeting. Scott said Burke-Myers gave a presentation on what she was doing in Egypt and Scott thought it was a perfect philanthropy project for the troop. This meeting was in October and Burke-Myers needed everything in less than two weeks before she left for her trip.

Despite the short turnaround, the Girl Scouts were able to collect a good amount of toys, art supplies, school supplies and other little gifts such as hairbands for the orphanage’s residents. Some also donated clothes.

“It was a great economics lesson,” Scott said about her daughter Kate Scott learning how to stretch their dollars in order to get as many gifts for the Egyptian girls as possible.

For Kate, the project has also been a lesson in how unfair life can be. She said when she and her fellow troop members learned about the project, she thought it would be a really cool way to help others. But when they visited Burke-Myers’ office on Wednesday to hear about her trip, Kate saw how disadvantaged these children were.

“I can help in small ways, but that’s it,” said Kate, who became emotional during the troop’s visit to Burke-Myers’ office.

Burke-Myers showed the scouts photos of the girls at the Egyptian orphanage receiving the gifts they donated as well as the boys at their orphanage receiving gifts Burke-Myers got for them. The girls also saw photos of residents at a special-needs center receiving toothbrushes and toothpaste, which were donated by one of Burke-Myers’ friends who is a dentist.

“I felt like Santa Claus,” Burke-Myers told the Girl Scouts. “You gave them something that was really special.”

Abbey Conklin, another member of the troop, said it was sad to see how little these children had, and it felt good to help them.

“I feel glad they enjoyed (the gifts we got them),” the 9-year-old said, adding that learning about these children’s situations has also helped her appreciate what she has at home. “I’m grateful that I have a mom and dad to take care of me.”