You know it’s going to be a cold winter when south Floridians kill the A/C and drag their furnaces out of retirement. In the countries where Cross serves, many poor families lack adequate protection from extreme weather conditions. Last night, our Florida office experienced temperatures around 30 degrees – frigid for us, but mild for those of you enduring heavy snow and strong winds up north.
“I Hear the Rain, I Don’t Feel the Rain”
Claudner Pierre, 37, is a man who works with his hands. As a mason, he knows exactly how much hard labor goes into building the foundation, walls, and ceiling of a proper house. But even with that knowledge, he still didn’t have the resources or money to build a house for his own family.
Housing Brings Hope
After more than two years of waiting and praying, Ana Briceño’s dreams came true. Her family was one of 50 to receive a sturdy home through a housing project we support in Nicaragua. “This is such a blessing from God,” Ana said. “Before our family was suffering because we were constantly moving from place to place. We did not have a place to live.”
Helping the Poor Help Themselves
Last year, we met a Zambian woman named Christine who had gone from riches to rags because of AIDS. Once the owner of three houses, she sold all her properties in desperation and used the money to pay a medicine man to cure her. In the end, she was left with no money, no friends or family to support her, and a worsening illness.
Giving with Dignity
It can be humiliating to be treated as a charity case—the object of someone else’s pity and justification for their pride. Not being able to feed your family can be enough of a blow to your self esteem; but having food (or a house, or other basic need) provided in the wrong spirit can be almost as crushing.
The Legacy of St. Patrick’s Day
For many people, St. Patrick’s Day is a time to wear green, eat corned beef and cabbage, and have a night out with friends. But behind all the merrymaking is a story of a 4th century missionary whose life exemplified the kind of self-sacrificial love we strive to emulate here at Cross.