CIS, Los Olivos CIS, together with Homes from the Heart, the Salvadoran Ministry of Housing,
the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, and many CIS partners and individuals
completed 17 dignified homes in 2022. This makes a total of 100 home built in Paso Puente to
date. CIS has an integral approach that includes Scholarships, Leadership Development, Art
and Mental Health programs so that families can not just have a roof over their head, but the
tools for overcoming poverty and contribute to building their community and country free of
violence. CIS added 21 scholarship recipients in Paso Puente in 2022 thanks to St. Elizabeth
and Holy Spirit Parishes in Kansas City, making a total of 69 scholarship recipients there this
year – an integral to overcoming violence and migration.
Here are some testimonies from the families who are part of the project:
Testimony of Sara Elizabeth:
Sara Elizabeth is a single mother of
two young daughters and an older son who lives with his wife and Sara’s
granddaughter in their new home. The home has a corridor, 2 bedrooms, and a
living room. Sara has a business making pupusas (a Salvadoran tortilla filled
with beans and cheese or other ingredients) from 5 – 9 a.m. in the morning for
breakfast and 5 – 9 p.m. for dinner. Her ex-husband left her for another woman
and lives on the same lot which is in both Sara and her ex-husband’s name. He
signed the papers so Sara could be the beneficiary of the home, which took a
long time to convince him and why she had to wait over two years since the
project started. He does not help her with any economic support to raise their
children. He gives his daughters a quarter occasionally, but doesn’t help with
food, clothing, or studies. Sara has a 5th grade education. Because of the
poverty she grew up in, she could not continue her studies.
Sara: "The difference now is we don’t live a deteriorated shack where rain would come through
the roof. We would have to move the furniture and everything when it started raining
to avoid the leaks. Now we have a dignified roof over our heads. My daughters can
sit down and play on a clean floor, not on a dirt floor. They couldn’t play
before. We are very happy. We would never have dreamed of owning our own home.
We have lived in a shack for years. My business selling pupusas for breakfast
and dinner barely puts food on the table. I can buy my daughters new clothes
once a year. My daughters are getting a quality education thanks to CIS
scholarship program. If I had to pay for their studies that would be an
additional sacrifice. I see a brighter future for my daughters thanks to all
blessings we have been given. I also helped with the construction and walk my
daughters to school. I believe it is important for the families to contribute
to this development; not just wait for a handout. I am on the Board of Directors of the community to organize for
other necessities like to get running water into our homes. I want to give
thanks to the CIS, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, Homes from
the Heart, the Salvadoran Ministry of Housing, and the organizations and individuals
that support their work and share your blessings and not just put money in your
own pockets. We feel it is a blessing that God put you in our path, that you reached
out to visit us and see our reality. Imagine, we have been living in this community
since the earthquakes of 2001, and no one ever visited us or help us overcome.
We are happy you can see the fruit of your efforts. May God bless you, so you
continue his good works."
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Testimony of Blanca Luz.
Blanca Luz is the mother of five children. She lives with her youngest son, Miguel. Three of her
children are older and live with their families. Her second youngest son is in prison after being
seduced into joining the gang. Miguel has severe physical disabilities due to having been beat
up by the gang for not joining. This makes it difficult for him to get a stable employment.
Blanca Luz has only a first-grade education and is originally from the countryside where there
was not much education available for her to study. Her first ex-husband abandoned her and her
first three children giving her no economic or moral support. Her Second ex-husband is
mentally ill and cannot help her with expenses. She has been the mother and father raising her
five children She sold tomatoes, corn, herbs, lemons, empanadas, and fruits to raise her
children. She was also the maid of a family in a wealthy home when her mother was alive to
take care of her children. [maids in El Salvador typically live with the wealthy family and only
get two days off a month]. Miguel does odd jobs such as painting, cleaning, and collecting soda
cans to sell for recycling.
Blanca Luz:
"I feel happy. I feel proud. I never had a little home. Now I can sleep well. We are happy
to be in a secure house that is not going to fall down with the wind, or the roof and poles
will not rot. Before, during the cold months of December, we would be shivering. Now
we are nice and warm. We don’t have to sleep on the dirt floor with little insects all over
us, and animals running in and out of the house. I have always maintained my house
clean even when we lived in a shack with a dirt floor. People always envied me and
thought I was rich because I had a neat and clean home. Just because you are poor,
doesn’t mean you can’t live in a dignified manner. I want to contribute to my community
and my home. Miguel and I bought paint and the things we need with our hard work.
Some people have big plasma televisions. We can’t afford that. But with our hard work
and saving little by little we could by a stove and small refrigerator. God has blessed us
and helps me with my son’s health; and we do our part."
