Southwestern Ontario Campaign for Children

El Salvador Journal of Dave MacDonald

August 25 - Tuesday

First impressions of El Salvador - beautiful country, but made up of many contrasts. Good four- lane highways, but lots of roadside vendors, lots of foot traffic and kids running across the road disregarding traffic. There seems to be a requirement for seat belts but lots of people ride around in the beds of pickup trucks.

Beautiful hotel and grounds but there’s an armed guard at gate. Two police officers are assigned to the team at all times. Reassuring but also disconcerting. Locals are friendly. We went into town for supper, restaurant was closed, but when the owner heard we were in town he opened up and we had a great time.

August 26 - Wednesday

Morning
We had a long and exhausting day, but very rewarding as well. We had an early start, went to the community office where they had a sewing class underway, using old treadle style sewing machines. We changed from our van to 3 trucks, and drove 1.5 kms to the first home we were to visit. We had to go down a steep embankment for the first half of the walk to this home, and up the other side for the second half. Very rough terrain, and got the heart pumping. I found out that the father of the kids we were going to visit made this trip twice a day with his kids, taking them to school in the morning and going to get them in the afternoon. It would be very difficult if not nearly impossible to make this trip if it had rained, and it seemed to have rained a lot while we were there.

We got to the home to visit this father and his 3 kids, ages 9, 7, and 6. He is around 65 years old and the fact that he manages to look after three little kids is amazing. His somewhat younger wife left him with these children. He is a tenant and makes $3 a day by tending the property around his little home. He worries that the landlord will break in and steal from him. He needs to walk an hour one way to get fresh water. So much of his day is spent walking with the kids or walking for water. We enjoyed some time with the kids, gave them some gifts, and I decided to sponsor one of them, Maria.

As we were preparing to leave it started to thunder and a few sprinkles were felt so we hurried to get back to the trucks, as we could have had a very hard time if the hillside got wet. We got back just in time and were lucky, as we could have been stranded there until it dried out. It was a tough climb- lots of sweat, heavy breathing and elevated heartbeats but God held the rain off until we got to the top. As we went to lunch, it really poured and those unlucky enough to have to ride in the pickup beds got pretty wet, but everyone thought it was quite the adventure.

I was having a hard time accepting that people are forced to live like that family does, with no hope for any improvement in their situation. I just hope that my sponsorship, along with many others, will make a big difference in the lives of those three beautiful children.

Afternoon
The family we visited in the afternoon was in another remote area along nearly impassable roads. In fact, one of the trucks did get hung up on some large rocks in the road. This family had both parents and five kids. The dad had found work that day, but he usually only manages to get work about two days a week, at about $4 a day. The mom was very welcoming, but again they lived in a home that Canadians would not even use for a storage shed. It had been damaged by an earthquake years ago and there was no money to repair it. One daughter was 16 years old, but is underdeveloped as she is at the mental level of a 12 year old due to malnutrition. This family is able to rent a small plot of land, about one acre, to grow their own food. They often are faced with crop failure due to too much rain and then they are forced to borrow from a local loan shark at 10% interest per month. They own their home but my fear is that if they get too deeply in debt with this guy, they could lose everything.

We had a good visit. Once again I found it hard to fathom that a family of seven had to live in a one room house that is not weatherproof and on a daily income that is about what the average Canadian makes in 15 minutes or so.

On our way back, we went past a school that World Vision is involved in and the kids put on a show for us, as they knew from the vehicles that we were with World Vision. They had drums, horns and baton twirlers. They could have played for hours, and you could tell they were excited to be playing for us.

It was a long, tiring, rewarding, and unforgettable day. I will never forget the love and dedication that the 65 year old father had for his three kids. If only all Canadian parents were like that. I doubt if many Canadians would be able to make the sacrifices that this man makes, but he really does not have a choice. It's about survival for this family.

August 27 - Thursday

Our first visit was to a school, or as we might refer to it, a pre-school, or junior kindergarten. There were about 20 very young, very cute kids doing their crafts and learning their alphabet. We helped them with some crafts, as watched and listened to them and their teachers. Then we went to a brand new playground that only three months ago was a pile of dirt. The kids had a great time using it for the first time.

Then we went to a small radio station run by a young lady that wants to get into broadcasting. This station is not on the air, but broadcasts about three hours a day to the local area with speakers outside the building. I had a good chat with her, and she was interested to learn about my broadcasting experience. She has managed to get her 12 year old brother involved in this operation as well. She had visited her sponsor in Canada, so she knows a bit about our country. It seems like she has a bright future because of the help she received from World Vision.

Then we were able to deliver a gift to a sponsored child from her sponsor in Waterloo. It was good to see first hand the connection between a sponsor and a child.

We also went to a small local bakery run by some local ladies. This was also a project that World Vision had helped get started. The important thing about this was it empowered these women to have a career and to support their families.

We then visited a government-run school that World Vision had helped start, but was no longer directly involved with. We met lots of eager and intelligent kids. They were studying things that I had forgotten years ago, and it would be safe for me to say "My name is Dave MacDonald, and I am NOT smarter than a fifth grader!" Of course, at recess, the boys went out and played soccer and played it very well indeed.

Our last visit was to a fruit processing plant where they make jams and other fruit products. The great thing about this is they use all locally grown fruits, so they create jobs for farmers as well as jobs in the plant. We sampled the jam and found it quite tasty. I bought some to bring home. It looks like they want to expand their markets as the labels are printed in both Spanish and English.

Final thoughts:
It was difficult to see the poverty and feel the hopelessness that these families live with every day. It was also good to see first hand the work World Vision is doing, and the hope they provide children and their families for a better future. It is not an easy task and there is still much to be done but people are being helped. I will never forget the love and dedication shown by that 65 year old father to his young children. He is an example to us all. I am glad I went on this trip, even though it was sometimes difficult. When I got back, and was driving home, I could not help feeling guilty that I had so much while they had so little. The next Sunday a World Vision artist, Jay Calder, came to our church. In his presentation he said that God did not give us all that we have here in Canada to make us feel guilty, but he expects us to use our wealth to help others. I needed to hear that. I pray that Maria and her family will be helped by my sponsorship, and that many Canadians will join me so that together we will make a difference in some children's lives.



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El Salvador Journal of Dave MacDonald August 25 - Tuesday First impressions of El Salvador - beautiful country, but made up of many contrasts. Good four- lane highways, but lots of roadside vendors, lots of foot traffic and kids running across the road disregarding traffic. There seems to be a requirement for seat belts but lots of people ride around in the beds of pickup trucks. Beautiful hotel and grounds but there’s an armed guard at gate. Two police officers are assigned to the team at all times. Reassuring but also disconcerting. Locals are friendly. We went into town for supper, restaurant was closed, but when the owner heard we were in town he opened up and we had a great time. August 26 - Wednesday Morning We had a long and exhausting day, but very rewarding as well. We had an early start, went to the community office where they had a sewing class underway, using old treadle style sewing machines. We changed from our van to 3 trucks, and drove 1.5 kms to the first home we were to visit. We had to go down a steep embankment for the first half of the walk to this home, and up the other side for the second half. Very rough terrain, and got the heart pumping. I found out that the father of the kids we were going to visit made this trip twice a day with his kids, taking them to school in the morning and going to get them in the afternoon. It would be very difficult if not nearly impossible to make this trip if it had rained, and it seemed to have rained a lot while we were there. We got to the home to visit this father and his 3 kids, ages 9, 7, and 6. He is around 65 years old and the fact that he manages to look after three little kids is amazing. His somewhat younger wife left him with these children. He is a tenant and makes $3 a day by tending the property around his little home. He worries that the landlord will break in and steal from him. He needs to walk an hour one way to get fresh water. So much of his day is spent walking with the kids or walking for water. We enjoyed some time with the kids, gave them some gifts, and I decided to sponsor one of them, Maria. As we were preparing to leave it started to thunder and a few sprinkles were felt so we hurried to get back to the trucks, as we could have had a very hard time if the hillside got wet. We got back just in time and were lucky, as we could have been stranded there until it dried out. It was a tough climb- lots of sweat, heavy breathing and elevated heartbeats but God held the rain off until we got to the top. As we went to lunch, it really poured and those unlucky enough to have to ride in the pickup beds got pretty wet, but everyone thought it was quite the adventure. I was having a hard time accepting that people are forced to live like that family does, with no hope for any improvement in their situation. I just hope that my sponsorship, along with many others, will make a big difference in the lives of those three beautiful children. Afternoon The family we visited in the afternoon was in another remote area along nearly impassable roads. In fact, one of the trucks did get hung up on some large rocks in the road. This family had both parents and five kids. The dad had found work that day, but he usually only manages to get work about two days a week, at about $4 a day. The mom was very welcoming, but again they lived in a home that Canadians would not even use for a storage shed. It had been damaged by an earthquake years ago and there was no money to repair it. One daughter was 16 years old, but is underdeveloped as she is at the mental level of a 12 year old due to malnutrition. This family is able to rent a small plot of land, about one acre, to grow their own food. They often are faced with crop failure due to too much rain and then they are forced to borrow from a local loan shark at 10% interest per month. They own their home but my fear is that if they get too deeply in debt with this guy, they could lose everything. We had a good visit. Once again I found it hard to fathom that a family of seven had to live in a one room house that is not weatherproof and on a daily income that is about what the average Canadian makes in 15 minutes or so. On our way back, we went past a school that World Vision is involved in and the kids put on a show for us, as they knew from the vehicles that we were with World Vision. They had drums, horns and baton twirlers. They could have played for hours, and you could tell they were excited to be playing for us. It was a long, tiring, rewarding, and unforgettable day. I will never forget the love and dedication that the 65 year old father had for his three kids. If only all Canadian parents were like that. I doubt if many Canadians would be able to make the sacrifices that this man makes, but he really does not have a choice. It's about survival for this family. August 27 - Thursday Our first visit was to a school, or as we might refer to it, a pre-school, or junior kindergarten. There were about 20 very young, very cute kids doing their crafts and learning their alphabet. We helped them with some crafts, as watched and listened to them and their teachers. Then we went to a brand new playground that only three months ago was a pile of dirt. The kids had a great time using it for the first time. Then we went to a small radio station run by a young lady that wants to get into broadcasting. This station is not on the air, but broadcasts about three hours a day to the local area with speakers outside the building. I had a good chat with her, and she was interested to learn about my broadcasting experience. She has managed to get her 12 year old brother involved in this operation as well. She had visited her sponsor in Canada, so she knows a bit about our country. It seems like she has a bright future because of the help she received from World Vision. Then we were able to deliver a gift to a sponsored child from her sponsor in Waterloo. It was good to see first hand the connection between a sponsor and a child. We also went to a small local bakery run by some local ladies. This was also a project that World Vision had helped get started. The important thing about this was it empowered these women to have a career and to support their families. We then visited a government-run school that World Vision had helped start, but was no longer directly involved with. We met lots of eager and intelligent kids. They were studying things that I had forgotten years ago, and it would be safe for me to say "My name is Dave MacDonald, and I am NOT smarter than a fifth grader!" Of course, at recess, the boys went out and played soccer and played it very well indeed. Our last visit was to a fruit processing plant where they make jams and other fruit products. The great thing about this is they use all locally grown fruits, so they create jobs for farmers as well as jobs in the plant. We sampled the jam and found it quite tasty. I bought some to bring home. It looks like they want to expand their markets as the labels are printed in both Spanish and English. Final thoughts: It was difficult to see the poverty and feel the hopelessness that these families live with every day. It was also good to see first hand the work World Vision is doing, and the hope they provide children and their families for a better future. It is not an easy task and there is still much to be done but people are being helped. I will never forget the love and dedication shown by that 65 year old father to his young children. He is an example to us all. I am glad I went on this trip, even though it was sometimes difficult. When I got back, and was driving home, I could not help feeling guilty that I had so much while they had so little. The next Sunday a World Vision artist, Jay Calder, came to our church. In his presentation he said that God did not give us all that we have here in Canada to make us feel guilty, but he expects us to use our wealth to help others. I needed to hear that. I pray that Maria and her family will be helped by my sponsorship, and that many Canadians will join me so that together we will make a difference in some children's lives.
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