Hello, and thanks for your patience! The last month I worked through some health issues while in Ecuador until July 31 and am catching up!
First, thank you to those who have already donated to bring us already to $1,470 in the fundraiser to make something special happen in Ecuador. I always say that I’m amazed and grateful for all the generosity I see, and it never gets old! So, thank you!
Great news is that on August 7th, Rafaela had her open-heart surgery in Guayaquil after a month of preparation in the hospital! Everything looks good so far, and she is slowly recovering. I’m in touch with her mother Janeth, and will include any new information in further updates. But this is great news!
Since 2019 the family’s been told by doctors that she needed to have this surgery, and after so many obstacles and so much time, it became a reality. There are some in the family who thought - understandably - that Rafaela’s overall care would eventually become far too costly over the years (she has a number of medical issues), and instead of trying to find funding to provide for it all, it would be better to just let nature take its course. This is not so uncommon in the rural areas, where life is harder and there are more obstacles to more advanced medical care. So Janeth’s persistence and endurance over the years is just so remarkable, and real testimony to a mother’s love. It’s very moving to think about, and the support we’ve given over that time is a part of Rafaela’s medical support, but beyond the dollar amount it also support’s her mother’s confidence and determination amidst a lot of obstacles and doubts, to really make something special happen together. So thank you to everyone who has supported over this time, and I hope you feel in some way like a part of the community! Because the family didn’t need to go to a private, more costly hospital, their financial needs are being satisfied right now through the previous fundraiser, and so I’ll leave our support from this fundraiser at the $300 we already gave to the family.
The schoolyard roof was originally planned to start in mid-August, but there’s a delay because of a change in leadership in the organization that’s procuring the supplies. I’m in touch with the community president Inés, and so far we have raised $1470 - $300 = $1,170 for the roof. I’ll be speaking to her as a schedule finalizes, and hopefully we can raise a little more to give a cushion, but I think that so far, this should be enough to combine with the community funds to build the roof. But things are often shifting a little bit, so I’ll see. When the time comes, I’ll electronically transfer the money to someone in the village, who will deliver the cash.
I'll continue to post all the updates with more details and pictures on the website:
www.barriers2bridges.org/giving-blog/make-something-special-happen
Thank you again for joining us in generosity, and feel free to share this, as we’re still accepting gifts. I hope you feel in some way like a part of the community, and may God make something special happen for you in these days of summer.
-Jerome
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