March 2007 - Healing of Miguel's sister

Miguel Maldonado is one of the quiet, humble pillars of our community. He is so faithful and steady in coming to the ministries to serve in any way he can. His roles are many – he is a key driver on the weekly routes taking food to the elderly poor, sick and homebound we serve in Juarez, Mexico. He is also part of the team that goes to the jails each week to take food and the Word of God to those in prison. In addition to all that, Miguel is one of the broadcasters at our international shortwave radio station KJES, which is located at The Lord's Ranch in New Mexico.

Recently Miguel shared with us a wonderful testimony. This is what he told us:

My sister has smoked cigarettes for many years. In a recent medical examination the doctor told her, “You have cancer in your lungs. It is so advanced that we are going to have to operate on you immediately and try to remove the tumors.”
So the emergency surgery was scheduled and my sister called me desperate for prayer. I assured her we would be praying for her, and the morning of her scheduled operation, we went to Mass with the community. At the prayers of the faithful I prayed out loud for her healing. I felt the Lord’s peace.

Later on my sister phoned me from the hospital. “The doctors opened me up and could find no sign of cancer! My lungs were clear and fine, thanks be to God.”

I give thanks and praise to God for all His marvels for me and for my family.

We join Miguel in thanking God for this wonderful healing.

February 2007 - Mariquita's New House

This month we have some wonderful news to share with you. Do you remember us telling you about Mariquita, the blind lady whose house was flooded with 2 feet of mud and debris in the summer rainstorms? With the change of terrain outside, she had to get on her hands and knees and crawl out to the clothesline to hang her laundry so she would not fall in any holes. We shared how we were hoping to build her a new home soon in a better location. Well, thanks be to God, the little house is finished!

Mariquita stayed with her daughter during the time of construction because her previous house was literally falling apart after the heavy rains. The roof of one of the rooms caved in and the place became too hazardous for her. This new home is solidly built on high ground and has easy access from a paved road that runs alongside it. The design is one open room containing her bed and a kitchen/dining area, with a small bathroom off to the side. This makes it easier for her to get around since she can’t see.

Despite December being a busy month, those working on her home rushed to get it done by Christmas.

Now all moved in, she tells us, “I’m so happy here! May God bless all of you who helped build me this wonderful place to live.”

January 2007 - New Playground Equipment

Imagine going to school and at recess time having nothing but a dirt yard to play in with one old plastic cube to climb on. This was the case for the students attending our school at the Lord’s Food Bank in Juarez, Mexico. But thanks to some resourceful friends in Albuquerque, the kids now have a real playground.

It came about that a Catholic grade school was getting rid of their old playground equipment. Our friends asked if they could have it for the Food Bank in Mexico and the school readily agreed. But then came the problem of transportation. How does one get a swing set, slide, and merry-go-round across the border and to a rural location in Mexico? No easy task!

Getting it loaded onto a trailer and brought to El Paso was one step. Then Nestor Baca and his son, Dennis, had to scout out a route to drive, because the electric wires hang very low over many of the roads, and the equipment could have gotten dangerously snagged in them.

With that figured out, and a few more hurdles overcome, the precious cargo finally arrived! The children were so excited that as soon as the slide was unloaded and propped up against the fence, they started using it. Nestor had to chase them away so that they wouldn’t get hurt, promising that they could slide all they wanted to once it was properly installed. So the children watched wide-eyed from the classroom, dying to get their chance to play.

The men dug the necessary holes, positioned the equipment and poured the cement. It all got finished before Christmas, and what a great gift it was. The kids have been having a ball!

We hope you and your loved ones had a very blessed Christmas, and we pray for a happy, healthy New Year!

December 2006 - Josefina and Jose Reyes

For Martina and her husband Jose Reyes, life seems to be a series of trials and suffering. Martina has asthma and chronic bronchitis and requires continual supplemental oxygen so she can breathe. Her body is wracked with pain and she stands more often than she sits, as that is easier on her body. Her husband has cataracts and is practically blind. They live in a broken down shack next to their son’s. Their son works to support his family and his elderly parents, but it is a big struggle to make ends meet. Adding to their woes, the propane gas tank that is fuel for heating and for the little stove Martina cooks off of is regularly stolen by neighborhood thugs. Defenseless Jose and his wife are unable to ward off the thieves.

When we drive up to their home on Mondays and Fridays, we inevitably find Martina and Jose Reyes out on the little porch. What they call their porch is a section outside covered overhead by some loose planks of wood where they put two rickety chairs in the dirt. “It’s warmer out here,” insists Martina, and anyone looking into the dark, cramped interior of the place they call home knows what she says is true. There is a saying in Spanish, “The sun is the blanket of the poor” and Martina and Jose Reyes take full advantage of the warming sunshine on these cold winter days.

We have tried to prioritize who needs a new or fixed up house the most, and after we finish Mariquita’s new home (she’s the blind lady we wrote you about earlier) we plan on making
Martina and Jose Reyes a better and more secure place to live.

As we enter this beautiful season of Christmas, we want to thank all of you for your generosity and support. We couldn’t do this work without you. Thank you for being a part of our family.

November 2006 - All Saints Day party

Every year at the end of October we have a very special celebration for the children at our weekly prayer meeting – an All Saints Celebration. In their catechism classes that month, the children are taught about the saints and how they help us with their intercession. The lives of different saints are discussed and the children learn about some of the heroes of the Church. Each child is encouraged to choose one of the saints and learn more about their life. Then they are to dress up as that saint and be prepared to share a little about the saint’s life before all the adults assembled.

On the chosen day, as the prayer meeting gets underway, a wide variety of creatively dressed children start to arrive. You can spot a little St. Francis with a stuffed lamb under his arm, a Mother Teresa with her blue and white sari, a St. Therese the Little Flower clinging to a bouquet of roses, and a Padre Pio with his crucifix and rosary. This year a pair of identical twin brothers each dressed up as St. Martin de Porres (see photo above), complete with dark greasepaint on their faces. Many times it’s hard to tell who the child is dressed up as, and you just have to wait until the time of the speeches to find out who this little person is trying to be. As the excitement builds, the musicians begin singing, “Oh when the saints go marching in…” and the children march around the room in their colorful array. When it is time for them to share about the saint they chose, some kids speak confidently from memory, others read the information from a card, some sing a song and still others get stage fright and the teacher has to do the explaining.

The celebration concludes with Mass honoring all the saints. Then as the children leave, they are all given a bag of treats to enjoy at home — a satisfying reward for a job well done.

Septermber 2006 - Mariquita's House Floods

You may have seen in the news about the recent record-breaking storms in our area. It was scary at times. The rain came down in sheets and dramatic lightning bolts electrified the atmosphere. Waterfalls formed in the desert landscape, turning dry gulches into mighty streams that washed away everything in their paths. El Paso, known as Sun City, did not see the sun for several days. These downpours flooded many areas and destroyed a lot of homes and property. The situation in Juarez, Mexico was particularly grave. Certain houses, especially those made of cardboard or unfinished adobe brick, dissolved in the rains. Roads were eroded away, making it difficult to get to some of the homes we deliver food to on a regular basis.

Mariquita, one of those we visit each week, is a blind lady who is always joyful, . Her house was built in the bottom of a gully with steep steps made of old, discarded tires leading down to it. During the worst days of the storms, one of her daughters came and took her home to stay for two days. Eager to return to her little shack, Mariquita had her daughter take her back after the rains subsided. To their horror, the place was submerged in 1 to 2 feet of muddy water. Her son came to help and they filled bucket after bucket of thick, heavy mud, trying to empty her home of it. It took them long hours to complete the job.

When we arrived, her son was sprawled out on the bed sound asleep, exhausted from the hard work. A mouse scurried up the wall and out a hole in the ceiling. There was evidence of the muddy mess everywhere but instead of complaining, Mariquita had a big smile on her face and told us, “I didn’t think you would make it today. I thought the condition of the roads would have kept you away. Thank you for coming!”

Because of all the flooding, the terrain outside Mariquita’s house is now too rough and dangerous for her to walk on since she can’t see. So when she washes her clothes by hand in a bucket, as she is used to doing, she then crawls on her hands and knees dragging the bucket with her until she reaches the clothesline where she hangs her laundry. We are hoping to build her a house in a better location soon .

August 2006 - Pedro and Josefina

Pedro and Josefina’s plight came to our attention about a year ago. Living in a tiny room attached to their son’s house, they were virtually abandoned and uncared for. Although they have several children, only one daughter really cares for them and she lives 8 hours away in southern Mexico. Next door to them lives another son who is a drug addict.

Pedro suffers from a heart condition that makes him very weak. The doctors tell him he doesn’t have long to live. His wife, Josefina, has advanced diabetes and became blind 15 years ago as a result of the disease. Their children don’t care about them apart from letting them live in the cramped room. “The only ones who visit us are three of our little grandkids,” Pedro sadly told us.

Once Pedro went to a doctor’s appointment at the hospital. A nurse came into the examining room with a hypodermic needle in her hand ready to give him a shot. “Whoa, wait a minute,” Pedro yelped. “What are you doing? I haven’t been seen by the doctor yet.” “Be quiet and let me do my job,” the nurse retorted and proceeded to give Pedro the injection. “I felt like millions of ants were running through my arm, and I fell to the ground,” related Pedro. The nurse realized her mistake and fled out of the room. When the doctor came in, Pedro was on the floor, his body wracked with convulsions. They rushed him to emergency and treated him for the reaction he was having to the medicine.

During this whole ordeal Pedro’s main fear was for Josefina. “Who is going to take care of my wife? My children won’t care for her.” Finally he was released and sent on his way. Upon
returning home he found Josefina still in bed, having soiled her clothes and sheets, because her sons and daughters wouldn’t care for her. Pedro wept as he told us how heartbroken he was to find his beloved wife in that condition. “My heart is so weak and I live in fear because when I die, who is going to take care of my wife?”

Pedro has strong faith, though, and loves reading Scripture. Our weekly visits are an answer to his prayers he says, because besides bringing groceries and fellowship, we have assured him that we will keep taking care of his dear Josefina after he dies.