FEDICE

The project involves building a house for Esmeralda and Andre, her son. They currently live in a small room made out of pieces of wood and plastic. Carmita Castaneda, the pastor of the Methodist church in Pijal Alto, told us about Esmeralda, who has been attending her church for the past few years, and loves helping out at the church for the Sunday meetings, or the dining hall for the children who come once a day for lunch. When Carmita discovered the conditions Esmeralda was living in, she began her campaign to find funds to build a suitable place to live.

The First Christian Church of Plano Texas has provided the funds. Esmeralda is a young single mother who has some disability...we are not sure what it is, if she is deaf or if she never learned to speak, and she also has some trouble walking. She has a young son who lives with her in a small room near her brother's house. This room is made of sticks, boards, and has no windows, just some openings covered with plastic. Pijal Alto, where she lives, is on the side of a mountain overlooking San Pablo Lake. On the other side of the lake rises the imposing Imbabura volcano, so the cold winds from the Andes are fairly constant, blowing through the green grasses and the all too frequent openings in its walls. We have been negotiating for several months to find land for Esmeralda to build her house on. We are in the process of purchasing a small house where another of her brothers lives. As soon as we have purchased the house and property, we will have to rebuild some of the walls and put a new roof on it. The church has promised to help with this construction. There is also enough land to provide her with a place to raise chickens or guinea pigs to help her earn some income.