“Such poverty as we have today in all our great cities
degrades the poor, and infects with its degradation the whole neighborhood in which they live. And whatever can
degrade a neighborhood can degrade a country and a continent and finally the whole civilized world, which
is only a large neighborhood.” -George
Bernard Shaw-
THE VISIT
When the 1910-1917 Mexican Revolution took place, the peasantry made up 80 percent
of the Mexican population. The land reform by the Salinas government in the late 1980’s and the signing
of the NAFTA free trade agreement in 1994, added to the ruination of the pleasantry and mass unemployment
(or only very partial employment) among agricultural laborers. Today, only 25 percent of the workforces work in
agriculture. The extreme crisis in the agrarian economy has produced a flight of peasants to the cities. One quarter
of the country's 91 million people live in 2 percent of the country, the area covered by the three largest cities,
Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.
Mexico City DF is growing
exponentially. Thousands move there every day. None of these migrants expect a life of luxury in the DF, but joining
the 800,000 or so street peddlers, driving a taxi, becoming a domestic, participating in urban crime or even being
a beggar offers a route out of possible starvation. They might get two meals a day and their kids might go to school.
If they are extremely lucky, they might get a factory job and earn the fantastic sum of US$70 a week. In any case,
it won’t be worse than the rural choice of unemployment or backbreaking endless work. Most people arriving in the
city build their own primitive houses on the hills, either in existing barrios, or in new areas, which quickly
attract more migrants and become new barrios in their own right. The Alvaro Obregon neighborhood (on the
right) is one such barrio. This was the destination of THE VISIT.
Why? Of the almost 115,000 people who live in this barrio, Christel House MX indirectly benefits over
3100, directly benefits one third of those and 240 of the 296 students at Christel House return here after
the school day is over.
I think that most of you were like myself and assumed that Christel House was only addressing the needs
of the children. Yes, that is the primary mission, however by fulfilling that mission the students' whole families,
even the whole neighborhood where they live, benefit. How so? Statistics indicate that 50% of the merger
income for families living in the barrios is used to purchase food. Children from these families attending CHMX
receive two hot nutritious meals each day, thus freeing up those pesos for other purposes such as medical or transportation,
which then impacts the whole family. The extended school day allows parents to attend their work unworried as to
where their CHMX child is. Additionally, Christel House offers School for Parents. By
participating in these programs, parents of CHMX students receive instructions on nine different subjects
– Self-esteem, Parents Skills, Communications, Domestic Violence, Substance Abuse, Sexual Education, Environmental
Education, Family Budget (financial education), and Law.
It has been well documented that family and cultural patterns such as those found in the barrio like the Alvaro
Obregon neighborhood tend to be repetitive. In households where domestic or sexual abuse is a commonplace
and no one speaks out against it, the pattern flows from one generation to the next, from one household to the
next. Through its broader effort, CHMX is not only helping children break the cycle of poverty and
become self-sufficient, contributing members of society, it is also assisting parents and other family members
break those same said cycles.
We (the 11) had the opportunity to visit with Tayrin Saldivar Hernandez, the Health and Community Coordinator
at Christel House Mexico, and learn first-hand how these programs are working. In fact, on our Visit,
Tay led us down a set of stairs and into a world totally unfamiliar to any of us.
- Susan Phillips (of RCI) used these words to describe the impact: “You don’t have to speak the language
to understand the anguish and despair on the face of a mother who wants more for her children than her meager income
will ever be able to provide. Tears are the same in any language and tug at your heart just as hard in Spanish
or in English. It was difficult to see the living conditions that these small children have to endure, but
I’m glad we had the opportunity to do so because it put it into perspective. We now realize what a wonderful
escape Christel House offers each of these children, and not just daily, but an opportunity to escape a dangerous
cycle of poverty and despair that each of these children may have otherwise had in store for their entire adult
lives.”
The first home the group visited
was that of Theresa Sanchez. That’s her in the foreground. In the background - from left to right
- you will see Dale, Dori, Susan, Maranda, Wade, Patti and Cheryl. After hearing Theresa’s
words, Cheryl O’Bryon (of Christmas Mountain) had this to say: “I had been to poor areas in
the world before, but never actually met families and heard their stories. These stories, the stories of
how Christel House is helping them change their lives for the better…”
- Clark Rowley's (of Scottsdale Camelback) observation was: “Upon arriving at the Alvaro Obregon Township,
it became apparent that this was not any ordinary neighborhood. The conditions were far below anything I
had ever experienced. Families were living on top of each other and these families of up to 10 and 12 were
living in two small rooms. This first home we visited was a mother (Theresa) with 3 children. Their
main room consisted of a dining table. The second room contained 2 beds and a stove for cooking.”
Sunny Bresett (of Christmas Mountain) went into more detail: “We entered Theresa’s small two room home
and heard her story first hand. She was a bit shy, but smiled and answered our translated questions happily. The
image that sticks with me from this visit was to hear how, when there is a school holiday, her three children,
ages 5, 7 & 9 (I think) get locked into the house with instructions not to open the door to anyone! Those
are the same instructions I leave with my children, on my occasional hour-long excursion to the store without them.
However, my boys don’t live in an area rife with drug dealing gangs. They are safe in our rural city home.
They have a wealth, quite literally, of activities and packaged foods to keep them occupied and I am only gone
for an hour! Theresa’s babies are left to protect themselves for 10 hours or more, not through neglect, but
the very opposite; so that their single mom can provide them with everything she possibly can. She doesn’t
get PTO (Personal Time Off) time. She can’t take a sick day. She leaves them alone so that they can have food to
eat, a roof over their heads and electricity to run the small TV that, really, is their only link, besides CHMX,
to the other sides of life.”
We left Mrs. Sanchez’s modest home and went deeper and deeper into this world of desperation.
Step after step, further and further down the hill. Our emotions twisting and turning, as did the stairway, pathway,
or road we traveled. Who knew what was around the next corner. Tay had informed us that almost 50% of those
who call this place home are between the ages of 6 and 12. This meant that the children we observed were
not the children of Christel House, and may remain forever caught in the oppression, the despair that existed
within this neighborhood. The sad thought, and the one that kept the tears in our eyes, was that for many of them
their current existence was better than that of the 50 to 90 thousand people who are homeless in the Federal
District.
You may note (in the picture
on the right) that our heads are down as we trudged along. I dare say that we all were having the same thoughts.
How proud we were (prior to our arrival in this ‘place’) of the work we had each previously done for Christel
House and how overwhelmed we were (as we walked from the home of one family toward the home of another) with
the enormity of the problem. What more can we do? How can we double, even triple our effort? What words can
we find, that will convince those we are associated with back in the States, to join us? That’s Wade
on the left in the yellow. I think that he was encouraging us to catch up with Mark and Dale who
had already turned the next corner. We can’t stop now; there is more to see…
Perhaps the one thing we didn’t expect to encounter around that next bend was a smiling face and an extended
hand offering assistance up a 6’ ladder into her meager home. The lady in the doorway was Mrs. Trejo. Living
is this house with her were seven children ranging in age from 9 to 22. Two of her children (daughters Sara
9 and Josue 10) are in the 4th grade at Christel House Mexico. One son Uriel Ulises
had been at CHMX but had to drop out for various reasons and was at home with his mom when we arrived. Each
of us (the eleven) made our way up the rickety ladder and crawled into the main room. We entered a small concrete
room containing a dining table & chairs, a small stove, refrigerator and sink. Almost every surface was covered
with what I know as knick-knacks. There we gathered around and behind the table as Mrs. Trejo began to speak
to us in her native language. It was obvious that each of us were totally captivated by this powerful lady even
though most of us could not understand her words. Here are some insights to what we were feeling.
- Clark Rowley – Scottsdale Camelback Resort: “It was this woman that I think touched each and every one
of us. She told us her story of the mental and physical abuse she had endured by her husband. Her pain
and bravery were felt by each of us. She explained how Christel House helped her and gave the courage to
force this man out of their lives, so she and her children could move on in their life. She spoke to us in
Spanish and as one member of our group said, we need no translation to understand this woman’s her pain and her
determination. She is a remarkable woman who today holds her head high.”
Maranda Willis – Northwest Airlines: “The real sense of shock came for me when we walked through the barrio
and saw the conditions in which these children live. No human being should have to endure the challenges
these children face on a daily basis. I was impacted most by the compelling story told by the
lady in the second house. I know a little Spanish so I could follow what she was saying. It was horrific
listening to the personal trauma this woman had been through, yet she has hope and manages to move forward everyday
to try and make a better life and set an example for her children.”
All during our visit with Mrs. Trejo, Tay (CHMX Social Worker) stood directly beside her
to provide translations, however, she did much more than that. From my seat at the table I could see that Tay’s
hand was touching Mrs. Trejo’s back as if to say: “I know this is hard, that these people are strangers
to you and what you are telling them dredges up memories you had rather forget. I am here with you my friend and
so I will remain.”
FINAL THOUGHT
After the emotional morning at Christel House caused by our first encounter with the children, we loaded
into the vans for a visit to the Neighborhood. We had read of other trips and both Becky and
Cheryl of the CH International Staff had forewarned us, however none us could have anticipated
the roller coaster ride we were about to embark upon. The extreme highs and lows we went through in two and a half
hours were gut wrenching. The following thoughts are from several of the 11 and need not to be credited to
anyone for they express the thoughts of us all:
When you visit the places our kids call home, it is a soul jarring experience. You can’t help but feel overwhelmed,
sad, humble and even somewhat guilty for having more than enough at back at our own homes. Even though we’ve all
seen poverty on TV and many people have heard someone describe life for our kids, nothing can really prepare you
to witness it first hand. We descended steps that seem more symbolic now that I know what is at the bottom.
We descended from affluence into abject poverty. The living conditions were worse than I had anticipated. Even
though they live in these deplorable conditions, they were still ready with a smile. I don’t know if it was
just because they are accustomed to living in these conditions and don’t know any other lifestyle or what.
As we walked through this very dangerous neighborhood of drugs, theft and poverty, I found myself thinking back
to the wonderful children we had just met hour before at the school. I didn’t want to believe that this is
where each one of these little lives begin each and every day and this is where they end each day. The stereotype
of the traditional Mexican family includes lots of familial support. I am often envious of the extended family
image that is so bandied about, but here is Mrs. Sanchez, all alone raising her children and so very thankful
for the extended family that Christel House is able to provide for her children. It isn’t until you
actually step outside the gates of Christel House and visit the places that our kids call home that you
truly understand the miracle that is taking place. As we departed from Mrs. Trejo’s home the smile on her
face was radiant. They seem so happy with so little. It makes me feel like the people who have a lot and keep
trying to get more don’t have a true sense of what happiness really is.
There is a line from a song by Country Music superstar Tim McGraw that goes like this: “I don’t
know why they say that grown men don’t cry.” Well this day. I have witnessed the tears of everyone on this
visit, including those of five grown men, Dale – Wade – Clark - Mark and myself.
Washington Irving once wrote, "There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of
weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently
than 10,000 tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief,
of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love."
On the agenda for the afternoon was lunch with the students back at Christel House and then some classroom
interaction. I am sure that all of us are ready for some hugs after the Visit.
The SAGA (Part 4) - The Healing
The SAGA Part 2 - The World
The SAGA Part 1 - The Beginning
JS 11/05
