Day 6: Taking Action

Home is where the heart is. Or is it? Walk with Antonia (she's the beautiful woman in the picture above) and her mentally ill daughter as we attempt to help her rebuild a place she once called home.

You probably remember Antonia and her daughter from pictures in my blog a few days ago. Well, thanks to the donations made to Project Genesis Antonia now has a new latrine and concrete floor. However, we discovered her living conditions were far worse then we had anticipated. So Grupo Magnificat (local volunteer group) and I decided to spruce up her place a bit, with Antonia's permission of course. First we decided to buy Antonia food, soap, laundry detergent, and other items. 

Next, we purchased a tough plastic tarp we would use to cover the inside of her house. We decided to go this route as most of Project Genesis funds were exhausted or insufficient. This thick plastic wrap is used in many homes as a last defense to prevent rain and cold air from coming into the house. 

As best we could, we covered or cacooned most of the holes in her home that allowed cold air and water to get in. Team work was key on this project. While we worked on putting up the plastic tarp a second team cleaned what seemed to be a shed. Or so we thought until we found her mentally ill daughter in the room sitting on a damp mattress. Rats scattered everywhere when things were moved around. The smell of urine and human feces mingled with the smell of trash and moisture. We turned it into a fun experience.  

In the mean time....back inside Antonia's home the tarp on the walls was finished. We noticed that her aluminum roof also had holes on it so we decided to use the tarp left overs to cover the worst parts and secured them with nails. 

We left a thankful Antonia and headed to a different family's home. Mr Julian and his wife Mrs Victoria had recently received a latrine thanks to donations made to Project Genesis. Here are pictures of the latrines Mr Julian's family was using before your donations helped them build a new one. 

Mr Julian suffered a right hip fracture since he was in his 20's. It occurred while he was working in the coffee fields. The doctors advised him it would be best if he had his leg cut off. His wife said no. Afterall, who would provide for their family and tend to the maize? Overtime, he was able to walk again, but not without excruciating pain to his right hip and lower back. More than 30 years later, doctors still say their is no solution to his right hip problem other than removing his leg. Mr Julian and his family wanted to thank everyone in the US who had donated a new latrine to his family. Like many others, Mr Julian hoped he could one day pay all of you back. I reminded him that it was a gift. An act of kindness from people just like him. He shook my hand and said "gracias" (Mr Julian preferred not to be photographed).