It’s a new year and we have been inspired to give back, once again, to the community we helped in rural El Salvador last year. Then, we handed out New Mom kits to the 50-plus clients of the local women’s clinic. This time, we’re making a more permanent impact on a family by providing a safe and secure shelter where they can raise their children.
Would you want your child to grow up in a lean-to clinging to the side of a mountain? No running water, sharing electricity with your neighbor (if you have it at all), collecting rainwater to use for everything from bathing to dishwashing? Sadly, this is a common story for so many families there. And when low-paying jobs – or no jobs at all – aren’t enough to make ends meet, some join gangs as a means to provide for their families.
By furnishing a family with a clean and safe living environment to call “home,” we can take one big worry off their shoulders. From there, we can help them learn the importance of hygiene, health care, quality nutrition and basic practices that are key to the care and raising of their children. A healthy, thriving child has a better future in sight so we’re doing what we can to help.
To make this house happen, we’re donating $0.05 from every Spanish language book sold between January 1 and March 31 toward this cause. Typical one-room shelters include a poured foundation and use cinderblocks and corrugated metal for the walls and roof. The average cost runs about $2,000. That’s 40,000 books and an achievable goal with support from our clients!
Heather Noack of our digital department is our connection to this El Salvadoran village. She expresses it best, “When you first meet them, the people of El Salvador and the families of the project give the appearance of being content and happy. These people who have so little, compared to us, are willing to give you possessions that they hold precious. They don’t ask you for money, but they ask for you to not forget about them. We are so blessed to live where we do and have access to the things that we have. This is a very small way that we are giving back, but it makes such a significant impact on their lives.”
