El Salvador: Who We Are Building With

The Ochoas are a multi-generation family that lives on the banks of the Comalapa River in San Luis Talpa on land they have been able to squat on, rent-free, thanks to a connection through their church. This river frequently floods in the rainy season; last spring a severe storm killed several dozen people and washed out a major bridge in a nearby community. In addition to dealing with this precarious living situation, the family now faces a condition all too common in poor communities around the world: its breadwinner is suffering from a medical problem and cannot work, forcing his 13-year-old nephew to quit school and take a low-paying, unskilled job to keep the family afloat financially.

The Ochoa Family

Maria Ochoa is 62 years old. She lives with her son Mauricio, 28, and her grandson (and Mauricio’s nephew) José Antonio, age 13. José’s mom died several years ago, and his grandmother and uncle are raising him.

Mauricio had been working as a construction assistant and in the corn and sugar cane plantations when the Ochoas qualified to build a home with The Fuller Center. The family of three lives in a shack they’ve built of plastic bags, bamboo and tin, and they were saving to start building a permanent home. However, in May 2008, tragedy struck as Mauricio—the primary source of income—suffered a testicular hernia and had to quit working completely. The condition is extremely painful as well as difficult and expensive to fix. He cannot raise the funds to get treated by a private physician and has been put on a waiting list at the public hospital. At the time of the house dedications on November 21st, he still had not had surgery but was hoping to have it soon.

To feed the family, José left school and began working in a block factory. Although Maria is getting up in years, she makes money selling tamales and attends church each day. The road that leads from their home to their town is steep and slippery, and she has suffered several accidents traveling on it, especially during the rainy season. Two small incomes and the medical expenses for Mauricio mean the Ochoas barely have enough food to survive and usually eat fish they catch in the river, despite the fact that Maria has had severe allergic reactions to this fish.

The Fuller Center continues to work with the Ochoa family even though they have suffered a setback with Mauricio’s medical condition. Helping to stabilize their financial situation, giving Mauricio a clean, decent place to recuperate from surgery so he can get back to work, and giving Maria a safe place to live are in everyone’s best interests. The ultimate goal is to get José back into school so he can finish his education and get a good job when he graduates. The longer a child’s education is interrupted, the less likely he is to go back to school, thus continuing the cycle of poverty. The family is anxious not only to get back to normal, but also for a new start.

Although he was in pain, Mauricio attended the house dedications on Friday the 21st, and he and Maria openly wept tears of joy. “I am so grateful to The Fuller Center and the volunteers,” said Maria. “Never, never in my lifetime did I think I would have such a beautiful blessing as this new home.”