A safe home is more than four walls and a roof — it’s a place where parents can provide their family with stability and where children can learn, grow and achieve their God-given potential. For families living in rural Guatemala, the blessing of safe housing is transformative.
When Santiago and his wife, Carmen, moved into their new concrete-block home, they knew exactly what they wanted inside first: a home altar. Now, the couple and their five daughters gather each day to pray and thank God for an answered prayer.
“I see God’s hand in providing us this house,” said Santiago. “My daughters really wanted a block house. I didn’t think I could do it by myself, so I felt bad. Now I understand that there’s one who can do it all, and he did for us.”
For years, the family lived in a fragile shelter that offered little protection from rain, sickness and the challenges of life in a remote community. Santiago takes comfort in knowing his wife and daughters sleep soundly under a strong roof.
“We feel very safe now,” Santiago said. “We know we will not get wet when it rains. We used to get sick constantly, but we feel healthy now.”
Stories like Santiago’s are unfolding across Guatemala as the fruits of our home-construction efforts continue to blossom. By fueling missions of mercy in the dioceses of Santa Rosa de Lima, Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu and Sololá-Chimaltenango, our supporters are helping families build stronger futures rooted in faith and hope. Over the past year, 299 families have received safe homes, and since 2013, our ministry has helped build more than 1,200 homes in Guatemala.
Vidalia, too, expressed her relief and gratitude for this outreach.
For years, this faithful mother, along with her husband, Hector, and their two teenage children, prayed for a home where they could live without the fear of flooding rain or the threat of snakes and scorpions. Last year, when the first storm hit after moving into their new home, Vidalia felt relieved that for the first time her family would stay dry!
“I felt so happy when I realized it was raining and we were not getting wet,” she said, her eyes brimming with emotion. “These are tears of joy. There is no way we could have built a house like this.”
Santiago and Vidalia are among the many hardworking parents praying for a brighter future for their children, and through partnerships within impoverished dioceses, Cross Catholic Outreach is making that future possible by providing safe, durable homes.
“Now I know God hears us. I asked him for a house a lot, and now I have my house — my answer,” Vidalia reflected.
Cross Catholic Outreach’s commitment to housing in Guatemala began in 2013, when generous U.S. Catholics helped fund homes for 17 families displaced by a devastating earthquake. During a visit to the project site, we witnessed both the tremendous needs of local families and the deep dedication of the diocesan leaders serving them. That experience sparked a lasting partnership. Since 2014, supporters have helped build 823 homes in the Diocese of Santa Rosa de Lima. Heartened by this success, we’ve expanded our efforts to the dioceses of Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu and Sololá-Chimaltenango.
Blessings have extended beyond housing, too. More than 200 children in the dioceses of Santa Rosa de Lima and Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu were excited to accept scholarships along with backpacks, notebooks and pencils so these young learners could arrive at school prepared to succeed. Nearly 2.2 million Vitafood meals were shipped to support monthly food distributions, while two community health events provided more than 200 free medical consultations to families in the Diocese of Suchitepéquez-Retalhuleu.
This Advent, Cross Catholic Outreach invites parishes across the United States to help build 240 homes in Guatemala in the coming year, providing safe shelter to 1,212 people. Concrete-block homes will be built in 22 communities in these dioceses and archdioceses:
Your parish community’s participation will allow families to move from unsafe living conditions into homes built to withstand the challenges of daily life. Each home is built with earthquake-resistant, on-site poured concrete walls and a solid concrete floor, a galvanized metal roof, locking doors and shuttered windows. The interior includes new features, like private bedrooms and a common living area, while a covered porch features a washbasin and an enclosed bathroom with a shower, toilet and sink. Wastewater is treated through a self-cleaning biodigester system, providing safe, sanitary waste management. For parents, a safe home offers peace of mind. For their children, it creates a healthier environment in which to learn, grow and dream. For communities, it serves as the foundation for lasting transformation.
This Advent, your parish can be part of that transformation — and be someone’s miracle. What makes this program especially appealing for parishes is the free toolkit we’ve put together to help illustrate the urgent need for safe homes and engage Catholic families. These free resources include a promotional video, parish kickoff letter, weekly bulletin feature, poster, donation brochure, social media kit and children’s activity guide. We can even send a priest or speaker to your parish to provide an inspiring in-person presentation. If you’d like to order free resources for your parish, visit CrossCatholic.org/Advent-parishes and fill out our online interest form.
The homes you help provide are more than a show of kindness. They are part of an outreach that will have a positive impact for generations to come!
Donations from this campaign will be used to cover any expenditures for this project incurred through June 30, 2027, the close of our ministry’s fiscal year. In the event that more funds are raised than needed to fully fund the project, the excess funds, if any, will be used to meet the most urgent needs of the ministry.
