Santa María de Jesús
Santa María de Jesús is the little town where Proximos Pasos, Mission Impact's all-girls school, is located. This region is home to an agricultural community; it consists of men who are primarily farmers and field workers, and women who are homemakers as well as vendors of the harvest and their own handmade goods.
When I make my way through the town at 6:45am there are small boys, young men, and older men who are probably grandpas who head out with their machetes, rain boots, and empty nets for a day of work. There are some boys and girls who go into the center of town to collect water from the public water reservoir (I guess you can call it?) because their home has no running water. There are women carrying baskets of food/produce/product on their heads to the market to sell for the day. Sometimes they carry their product to the microbús (big vans) to ride into the more populated city in order to sell to a larger population.This is the way that the community functions and this is where most of their expectations have been since they were first speaking.
You're a boy? You will work on the farms and probably be able to attend school.
You're a girl? You will cook, clean, raise kids, and sell produce and artisan goods. It is how the community has always operated.
To be clear, there has been lots of progress made in Santa María de Jesús! There are roads now, and there are homes made of cement rather than aluminum and/or sugar cane. There are more people seeking an education. But there is still progress to be made. I truly admire their work ethic and my desire is for them to know of the eternal hope found in Christ.
Love you so much!
Vanessa
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
Matthew 19:26
To give by check:
Make payable to "Mission Impact"
Separate note with "Vanessa Salcedo Support"
Address to:
Mission Impact
P.O. Box 45797
Madison, WI 53744
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