Introducing our new project in the community of San Martin!
Compared to other communities in San Salvador, San Martin is a relatively new locality having been developed about 25 years ago and it has a remarkable story.
In the 80’s thousands of people were internally displaced by the civil war, many forced to leave their homes in mountain villages that were being ravaged by the conflict. From all different parts of the country people escaped with the little that they had and made their way towards the city. They set up makeshift dwellings made out of cardboard, tin sheets, scraps of wood or plastic. Large areas of land including some roadways were lined with these makeshift shelters filled with families desperately searching for safety.
When the war ended in 1992, the government looked to move these thousands of people to other permanent locations. One of the locations ear marked as a relocation site was San Martin and so under government supervision, hundreds of families went about physically building their own homes from scratch, whilst the government provided assistance and materials so these individuals could have a home.
This community made up largely of internally displaced people enjoyed several years of peace and San Martin at one point became a place of restoration and hope.
However, in time, the good work envisioned for this town was severely hampered by the overwhelming problems with gangs and crime in the area. The constant threat of violence and extreme poverty saw many families devastated and ripped apart by social issues like gang violence, alcoholism, and drug abuse.
One year ago, Ps Douglas and Ps Eunice courageously answered the call to do what in the natural seemed like a daunting and impossible task - to minister in San Martin. With a passion and vision to rebuild and restore this community, in the last twelve months, we are already seeing early fruits of the personal investment of Ps Douglas and Ps Eunice!
Gaining the trust of families and individuals as they have gone about re-opening the doors of the church which had been closed for a number of years.
Our new children's feeding program
We are incredibly excited to be working together with such dedicated partners and we're looking forward to the opportunity to impact people’s lives in this community by giving them the tools, resources, and skills they need to raise themselves out of poverty and despair.
This July will see the roll out of our brand-new Children’s Feeding Program in San Martin! A breakfast program for little ones living in this poverty-stricken community.
We have an incredible and exciting opportunity to reach some desperate families and we would love your partnership. Please consider coming alongside us as we work to help restore and rebuild this community.
As we head towards the end of the financial year and with ‘Tax time’ here in Australia fast approaching, we would love it if you would consider making a tax-deductible donation towards our new Children’s Feeding Program before the end of June.
All donations received will be going towards the set-up cost of our new breakfast program in San Martin.
With your help we can create a hub of Hope in San Martin and together have a greater impact in this community in El Salvador.
Is this a long-awaited watershed moment for El Salvador?
Already two months into the state of emergency, this past Thursday the government announced another 30-day extension to El Salvador’s nationwide State of Emergency. The State of Emergency introduced on March 27th was a measure taken to combat the rising levels of gang violence in the country after 82 people were killed by gangs in a single weekend (france24.com).
To date it is reported that 34,500 alleged gang members have been arrested since the State of Emergency began, making this the single hardest crackdown on gangs in the country (aljazeera.com).
The extreme measures and arrests have not come without criticism and scrutiny from International Human Rights organisations. However, for many Salvadoreans these measures were long overdue and currently the President boasts the support of 8 out of 10 Salvadoreans for the stance he has taken to stamp out the gangs.
The results of this crackdown, the 'War Against Gangs' have been telling for El Salvador as its the first time in decades it has seen seven consecutive days of zero homicides in the country!
It is our hope and prayers that this in fact does result in the people of El Salvador finally experiencing long term reprieve from the extreme violence which has plagued the country and that it provides an opportunity for millions of people who have suffered to look forward and hope again.
We pray that a new day dawns on El Salvador and that we can continue to be part of the rebuilding and restoration. Thank you to each and every one of you for your support of our work in El Salvador!
Vania Labios
Salvador’s HOPE
