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El Salvador Update Archive
August 2009
- Habitat El Salvador celebrated 7,000th home
- Families begin to move into Villa Esperanza
- Looking forward to building homes in 2010
- Thanks to the June and July volunteers!
- Stay involved! Donate, advocate and volunteer
- Send us your story
- El Salvador Update Archive
Habitat El Salvador Celebrated 7000th Home
On Wednesday, July 1st, Habitat El Salvador dedicated their 7,000th house! The celebration took place in the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Villa Esperanza Community in Santa Ana, in the presence of more than 200 people: leaders of Salvadoran governmental housing agencies, Salvadoran religious leaders, national and international volunteers, as well as partner families from across the country. Also joining in the celebration was the Executive Steering Committee of the Thrivent Builds with Habitat for Humanity alliance, including Habitat for Humanity International chief executive officer Jonathan Reckford and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans chief operating officer Brad Hewitt. Read more about the impact of this event in the news release and see photos in the Habitat for Humanity El Salvador's 7000th House Celebration photo gallery.
Of course the stars of this milestone dedication were the three young women representing the 7,000th family: Azucena Mejía García and her young daughters, Jaqueline and Alexandra. Azucena, who runs a beauty salon out of her new living room, exemplifies Habitat El Salvador community residents; she is entrepreneurial, intelligent, and is already deeply involved in the community's board of directors. We all wish her and her family much happiness in their new home! To read more about this special family, read the Mejía García Family profile .
From the very first Habitat El Salvador family to the 7,000th, thanks to all of the supporters who have contributed physical labor, donations, and prayers to make families like Azucena's fulfill their dreams of owning a decent house!
Families Begin to Move into Villa Esperanza
In last month's update we reported that eight homes have been built and eight more were under construction. As of this month, those 16 homes are all complete, six families (including Azucena's) have moved in, and ten more homes are nearing the end of construction, so that's decent, affordable housing for 26 families in Villa Esperanza so far!
Make Plans to Volunteer and Finish Building the Community in 2010
After this year's 30 Thrivent Builds Worldwide teams of Thrivent members, Lutherans and other volunteers build the first half of the Villa Esperanza community, more teams are needed in 2010! Twenty-five more teams of 10-13 volunteers are needed to finish building the 75-home community by June 2010. The cost to participate in 2010 has been reduced to $695 for Thrivent members, so consider a return trip! View weeks available to lead trips in 2010 (PDF, 31K). In the photo, the Villa Esperanza Community masons are excited to know that they will continue working with Thrivent volunteers next year!
Thanks to the June and July Volunteer Teams
See a Photo of Each Team in the Photo Gallery
View Full Gallery
June Teams
In late June, two Thrivent Builds Worldwide volunteer teams worked together with the masons to start homes on the second street in Villa Esperanza. During their time there, TV News 4 "Midweek," a local Salvador television station, covered Habitat for Humanity's model community in Santa Ana, so many of these team members are featured in a 5-minute TV segment! You can watch it on YouTube now (in Spanish).
- A team of eight volunteers from Lincoln, Nebraska, led by Mary (Jody) Simeck.
- A team of ten volunteers from the suburbs of Chicago, led by Craig Chapello. Brianne Davis, one of the team members, said that "We came on the trip eager to serve and experience the culture of El Salvador. Before arriving, we thought the focus of the trip would be on building homes. After our first day of work, we learned our trip was going to be about so much more than our hard work ... it was about the experiences we had and the relationships we built, too!" Read Brianne's summary of their work.
July Teams
Back to back teams came to build in July and nearly finished the second block of homes in Villa Esperanza.
- The thirteen-member Thrivent Builds with Habitat for Humanity Executive Steering Committee built for one day, creating a special team of volunteers. These volunteers were all Thrivent Financial and Habitat for Humanity International employees from Minnesota, Wisconsin and Georgia.
- A team of thirteen volunteers from Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Montana, California and Indiana, led by Tim Bauer. Read their team's blog at: http://elsalvadorhouses2009.webs.com/.
- A team of ten volunteers from Colorado, Minnesota, New York, and California, led by Tom Edelen. Team member Wendy Luker said, "This trip is the best of voluntourism – doing work to help the people of the host country, interacting closely on a daily basis, actually being able to create little relationships, which almost never happens when one is simply a tourist." Read Wendy's summary of their trip.
- A team of thirteen volunteers from Minnesota, Michigan, Texas, California, Kansas, and Colorado, led by Carol Pflediderer.
- A team of eighteen volunteers from Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio, led by Kelsey Midthun and Erin Gladstone. Read more about the team at www.lutheransonline.com/buildelsalvador, and read team member Addie Brandt's journal, with comments like "Farewells were very touching. We had become like family and it was especially hard to say goodbye to one another. Kind words were shared in Spanish and in English, as well as some tears."
Stay Involved! Donate, Advocate and Volunteer
Donate Today and Make an Even Bigger Impact
Through the Thrivent Builds Worldwide El Salvador Community, Thrivent Financial members are helping as many as 75 families know the safety and security of their own homes. But the need is still great. There are still nearly 400,000 families living in substandard housing in El Salvador. YOU can make a difference and help even more families today. Donating to Habitat for Humanity El Salvador is easy with 3 tax-deductible options:
- Online: Go to www.habitat.org/donation/ and click on "Donate Online." Before you submit your donation, please "Designate Your Gift" to the Habitat National Office of El Salvador.
- Telephone: Call 800-HABITAT and explain that you want to donate to El Salvador.
- Mail: Send your check to Habitat for Humanity International along with the required donation form. Please write Habitat El Salvador in the check memo slot and also note clearly on the donation form that you would like to designate your donation to Habitat El Salvador.
By fundraising for an additional donation to Habitat for Humanity El Salvador, you are helping provide the hope and security of homeownership to even more families.
Advocate Your Support for the El Salvador Community
- Recruit future participants by using the prepared El Salvador Community promotional resources, including a bulletin insert, newsletter article and a program fact sheet.
- Share your experience by using the prepared El Salvador Community post-trip resources, including a PowerPoint template and a post-trip news release.
- Watch the El Salvador Community Video, featuring inspirational and motivational interviews of trip leaders, team participants and partner families.
- Read printed trip participant stories, featuring heartfelt experiences from an El Salvador Community trip participant in a creatively designed travel diary brochure.
- Read about all the global volunteer teams working with Habitat El Salvador, posted on the Habitat El Salvador blog.
- If you're on Facebook, join the Habitat for Humanity - GV El Salvador group to stay in touch with friends you met and become a fan of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
Volunteer as a Team Leader or Team Participant
- Join an existing trip – There are still team leaders looking for more volunteers on their teams in September, October and November 2009!
- Be a team leader – Recruit teams of 10-13 volunteers for one of the 25 teams between January and June 2010. The price has been reduced to $695 for members!
- View weeks available to lead trips in 2010 (PDF, 31K).
Send us your story!
Have you been part of a Thrivent Builds Worldwide El Salvador Community trip? Do you have stories or photos you'd like to share with others? Send them to Kelsey Midthun for consideration in future issues of the El Salvador Update. We want you to share the experience and inspire others to help!
El Salvador Update Archive
If you would like to read previous issues of the El Salvador Update, simply access the El Salvador Update Archive from this link or from the left navigation bar.