While Teresa Domingo Andres may have only been able to attend up to the third grade, she fights every day to allow her kids and community youth the opportunities that she was deprived of. Teresa is currently president of the women’s committee in the village Caserio Rio Espiritu. The committee is responsible for organizing the women in the community, to better understand how to best meet their needs and priorities, before initiating community driven projects.
As a career, Teresa loves her role of raising a family. If she can keep her family healthy and put her children through school, she has done the best job she could ever dream of. Together with her husband Julio Mateo Valasces, they are raising four kids of 5, 8, 12, and 14 years of age. The three oldest are currently in school, but if the family can not find the money, they will need to stop at the end of 6th grade. The closest middle school is an hours walk away and is very expensive. The struggle for money is a never ending burden for their family. Teresa put it well.
“If someone gets sick, there is no work, there is no money. With four children, how do you support all of their educations? Sometimes there is only work three days a week for $4 dollars a day. There are no other job opportunities.”
Life is not easy in their home, but they persist. They live in poverty Teresa explains, but their lives are content. There are no illnesses or problems between the family. This is a blessing they thank god for and can only pray for their health and peace at home to continue. Luckily, Teresa and Julio were one of the 80 families in the community that received a stove from Hands For Peacemaking in 2017. Using an open fire in the past, the Aler stove is crucial for improving their quality of life. The family used to spend around $2.7, near two thirds of their daily income on wood every 1-2 days, or use their afternoons to gather wood. Now they burn the same amount of wood in 4-5 days. The time and money saved allows their family to invest in their childrens education and simply provides precious time to relax with the family. In addition, Teresa no longer has to spend her entire day inhaling smoke in her kitchen. For a family that cannot afford to get sick, eliminating respiratory diseases are crucial.
Today Teresa is proud of her family and the job she has done raising her children. Life still has many obstacles to overcome, with hard work, support from Hands For Peacemaking, and the long term vision Teresa and Julio share, they are finding ways to work around their misfortunes.