“We have lived for 18 years with many difficulties. A dignified home will mean better life and better studies. I have had to study in deplorable conditions. My notebooks and important materials and books have been ruined and gotten wet in our shacks. We get sick from the humidity. The whole community has to share one water faucet, and it takes all day to fill a barrel of water. We sleep in fear because of the insecure nature of our shelter. We are marginalized by outsiders, who say only delinquents and thieves live in shanty towns. This project will improve our lives at all levels. We cannot afford to build our own homes, so this project is an enormous blessing.” Community Member
Berta’s home December 2018 Berta’s home July 2019
San Salvador July 24, 2019
Dear Friends,
As our supporters, you have followed—and
helped make possible—the great, hard-won success of the Romero Community. From securing legal title to their land; to
building 65 dignified homes, a library, training center, and playground; to
working toward electrifying those buildings and accessing potable water; to
having access to higher education and leadership development; to cultivating
organic vegetables and indigo for income—the Romero Community has demonstrated
what an empowered community can do with international solidarity. Not
surprisingly, neighboring communities have noticed and been inspired.
Some very recent developments since the
election of President Nayib Bukele are extremely positive and exciting—and also
pose a challenge!
We are writing you because we need your support
to build dignified homes with the community of Paso Puente, Tonacatepeque, across the street from Romero Community. The Paso
Puente Community squatted on government lands in 2002, after being displaced by
the 2001 earthquakes and having nowhere to go. Finally, in 2014, the Salvadoran
Government granted them title to their land. The 153 families live in extreme
poverty and squalid conditions—with homes made out of old tin and plastic, no
potable water, and no sewage. The zone
is an area of high risk for youth because of the insecure conditions.
The CIS and the Romero Community began to work
with Paso Puente three years ago, to develop their organization; with St.
Elizabeth Parish, to organize a CIS Scholarships and Leadership Development
Program for Paso Puente’s students; and with Agua Viva, to dig one well with a
hand pump for the community to share and have water to drink. We also began to
organize, together with the local clinic, art-therapy courses to promote
creativity, to keep youth off the streets, and to follow up with kids dealing
with the trauma of being witnesses or victims of violence.
We knew Paso Puente desperately needed
dignified housing, but realized it would not be possible to undertake a project
without the full participation and trust of the community. We accompanied the community on numerous
occasions to request potable water from the government, but each time they were
turned down. Last year, CIS counseled
families to apply for a government-housing subsidy. The Salvadoran Government
asked CIS to identify the 15 families most in need and applied the subsidy in
March of this year. Still, it was not enough to complete the houses. (The
identified families were mostly single mothers living on about $3 per day from
washing other people’s clothes, and some had up to seven children.) The CIS
received a donation from the Inti-Raymi Fund to complement and finish what the
families had built with the government subsidy. This pilot project enabled CIS
to identify more children who were not going to school, to build trust, and to
identify skilled laborers in the community.
To our surprise and delight, the new
government of Nayib Bukele has prioritized development in the most excluded
areas of El Salvador, and this includes Paso Puente Community. This
is an effort to stem the flow of migration and include families in the social
fabric who have been excluded, so they do not join the gangs. The Local
Development Minister, Maria Chichilco, the Housing, Public Works, and Social
Fabric Ministers, and the President of the Water Utility all visited the community—as well as Romero Community and
surrounding areas. The officials offered
to build homes for the families, but the families would have to pay $40-$60
per month for twenty years. Based on our experience and knowing the families, I
told the ministers it would be impossible for most. Then I went out on a limb and asked if they would be willing to provide
the same subsidy to build the base of the home; the CIS would ask for donations
to complete the homes, and the community would put in the unskilled labor and
coordinate all the paper work. The Minister of Housing, Michelle Sol,
immediately said Yes! Within a few days, a team arrived to verify
the applications and approved the construction of 54 homes! The government has also agreed to put in potable
water, roads, and drainage in both Paso Puente and Romero! ¡Gracias a Dios!
So you can readily appreciate both the
excitement—rather breath-taking, to be honest—and the challenge we are feeling
at the CIS!
Here’s how it will work:
Each
family will be disbursed a government grant of $3,500—50% as early as next week,
and 50% when they have completed the walls of their home, allowing installation
of windows and doors. The government has
also committed to installing potable water, streets, and drainage (both in
Romero and Paso Puente), and eventually sewage.
The
CIS will oversee the installation of electricity, tile floor, roof, bathroom,
and a big sink that is used for washing dishes, clothes, and bathing—until
potable water is installed. The Minister
of Housing also asked CIS to oversee the construction of the part of the home
they are financing. The CIS budget is $4,000 per home.
We
are asking everyone to dig deep into their pockets and donate for social and
economic justice, security, and the health of one family for a life-time:
·
$4,000
will complete a government-subsidized home.
Or, if you cannot donate to complete a home, consider funding part of
the home:
·
$1,360 will build a bathroom, sink, shower, and toilet;
·
$1,200 will pay for the roof;
·
$620 will pay for a tile floor;
·
$420 will pay for electric installation;
·
$300 will install a cement sink; or
·
$100 will pay for supervision and unforeseen expenses.
When do we need the money?
As soon as possible, but we foresee the project
taking a year to complete with the installation of water and sewage, so if you
cannot give right away or can give some funds now and some later, please let us
know.
How to make a donation: Tax
deductible donations can be made payable to and mailed to:
Los Olivos
CIS (in U.S. dollars) / PO Box 76 / Westmont,
IL 60559-0076, USA
Debit/credit
card donations can be made online:
PLEASE NOTE DIGNIFIED HOUSING OR PASO PUENTE
ON YOUR CHECK OR ON-LINE DONATION
For more
information: Toll free number in U.S.: 1-866-887-2665:
El Salvador: ++ 503-2226-5362
I’ll
close with a note from one of our most faithful partners:
Dear friend and family of CIS,
I am so excited and thrilled with the opportunity to partner once again with the community in El Salvador and CIS. We have been blessed with many generous donors to realize our dreams of dignified living for the people in our communities. With God's help, we were able to build homes for the Romero Community and to partner with the people to provide homes and shelter. It is truly the work of God, and God has called us all to be co-creators in building the kingdom of God.
The cry of the poor has reached the ears of God and ours as well; with joy and enthusiasm we will pledge our support to the construction of homes in the community of Paso Puente. You have our support and pledge; I invite all who read this note to join us in this effort, for it is of God. Together let us make the kingdom of God a reality on earth.
Fr. Gerald Waris and communities in Kansas City
______________________
Thank
you and Blessings,
Leslie
Schuld, for the CIS, LOS OLIVOS CIS
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