Note from Chincha Baja, Peru
Joe Gubbels
Volume 27 Issue 1, 2 & 3 | Posted: March 7, 2013
Today, I read what Dorothy Day said in 1971: “If your brother is hungry, you feed him. You don’t meet him at the door and say, 'Go be thou filled,’ or ‘Wait for a few weeks, and you’ll get a welfare check.’ You sit him down and feed him.” Then I remember the Chinese Proverb saying: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” The Chinese Proverb is fine, but what do we do in the meantime?
Today, I read what Dorothy Day said in 1971: “If your brother is hungry, you feed him. You don’t meet him at the door and say, 'Go be thou filled,’ or ‘Wait for a few weeks, and you’ll get a welfare check.’ You sit him down and feed him.” Then I remember the Chinese Proverb saying: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” The Chinese Proverb is fine, but what do we do in the meantime?
Often, I invite Ismael Cardenas, our project administrator to have lunch with me at a family restaurant. Along with cooking for their large family, they serve meals to paying customers. The price of a meal is S/.6.00 soles ($2.40).The one item on the menu is a plate of rice, beans, a piece of fish or chicken (sometimes beef), bowl of soup and a glass of cebada (drink made from barley). The average daily wage is S/.20.00 soles ($8.00) per day. Often the family dog comes beside me with wanton eyes for the chicken bone.
A few weeks ago we had a meeting with the women’s group to raise funds to start a project to educate other women on issues of health and safety. The fundraiser was to prepare food and sell it on the street. After many hours of preparation by the group, two members set up a street corner stall to sell the picarones (sweet potato flour cooked in vegetable oil) which are very delicious. Their net gain for this effort was S/.76.00 soles ($30.40). Rotary Chincha organizes monthly fundraisers. The average net results are around S/.360.00 soles ($144.00). The Senior Citizens organized an outdoor event selling food with a net result of around S/.600.00 soles ($240.00).
I could cite many more examples. Needless to say, there are many benefits for the people who take the initiative and cooperate in a common project. This is encouraged. However, it indicates how difficult it is for them in their situation of poverty to raise sufficient money to start and complete projects.
Should any of you who read this note feel inclined to help with projects to get them started, you could assist by sending a donation to: Peru Projects – Rainbow of Hope for Children, P. O. Box 2883, Wainwright, AB, T9W 1S7 – http://www.canadahelps.org/CharityProfilePage.aspx?charityID=s62883
You can read more about our projects in Chincha Baja, Peru through our NEXUS newsletter.
http://www.rainbowofhopeforchildren.ca/newsletter.html
Joe Gubbels