top of page

 Building Juana´s House Project

Massive thanks to all of you who spread the word, donated and helped to make this project possible!

We reached the goal and Juana and her brothers have a proper roof.  

Please let me introduce you to Juana Gomez (right) and her mom Lucia (left) from Zinacantan, Chiapas.

 

Juana is the only woman among her 6 brothers and the second child, she´s 28 years old and her young life has been dedicated to create traditional textiles using back strap loom, cross stitching and pedal sewing maching.

 

She leads the textile cooperative "La Tierra de mis raices / The land of my roots" and Lucia leads

"Mujeres tejedoras / Weavers women" both are really small weavers network supporting each other without any external help, they survive the everyday with their honest, humble and amazing dedication.  

Unfortunately they lost ALL what they have in the earthquake that shook Mexico the past September 19th, 2017. 

This include their home and the very few belongings they possesed. 

We visited them last January and this is where their house used to be, as you can see is all rubble.

As many of you know this earthquake devasted not only Mexico city but also many municipalities from Oaxaca and Chiapas, were saddly the majority of indigenous population affected, have not recieve help from the goverment and due the high level of corruption chances are they will never recieve this so called help. 

We couldn´t stayed just as spectators and we donated them from our pocket an amount of building material that unfortunately was only the 10% of what they really need. 

Ralf my husband (in the picture above playing football with Juana´s nephews: Ana and Pancho) was shocked about the generosity from people that practically have nothing and how being this poor don´t stop them from being truly thankful.

 It took me a month to come back to Berlin, settle and do research of what they need and the most important a real number and a trustful construction market that will supply them the material to build their house.

Would you like to help them?

Let´s collect them money to buy the material they need !!

You can donate as much as your possibilities allow it, all sum up !!

 Pesos, euros, dollars.... All is welcome and very very helpful.

The picture above is the quote in mexican pesos that I personally got for all the material they will need,

the total amount is around:

2,282.00€ or $2,663.00 usd,

 depends on the exchange rate. 

The quote was provided from their nearest construction shop and best option, you can also read in the ticket 

the name and phone numbers of the store, to keep things as transparent as must be. 

 The item quoted as Producto are 100 cement bags like the ones we donate in January.

The intention is to buy direct to the shop all what they need, so no cash will be handle to them and I will buy all direct to the shop.

My first idea was to create a gofundme but I´m not so happy with the comissions they charge, so the easy and fastest way will be to receive donations via my personal Paypal since comissions are little and is linked to my mexican bank account from where I can wire transfer direct to the construction shop the help you send.

 

Per every donation that I receive I will send you the screen shot from the exact amount that was reflected in mexican pesos to my Paypal, as well as the picture of the purchase ticket from all the items that we could afford with your contribution.

I will also publish in this web page all the donations received with date, amount and name

(can remain anonymous if you wish and only show your initials) 

Would you give them a hand ??

 

Please don´t hesitate and contact me for any any question or doubt you may have about this project. 

This is a non profit cause that I feel the necessity to do were every single cent you donate will be delivery.

In April I will be visiting Juana and her family and will document by myself about how this project developed.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for not being indifferent, for give a little something and for feel the empaty that this world need so much!

Update 1

Today is Thursday, March 1st and I´m speechless from the donations that this project recieved in only 24 hours.

Fortunately for Juana and her family this help arrived just in time before the worker return to his community because the lack of material to work. You literally made a miracle for Juana.

As I promised here are the first reports from the donations received until the moment that I wire transfer to the construction market for the first order of material.

There is no little help and every single donation is HUGE no matter the amount, so I wish to keep it a little annonymous because this is not a competition. 

As a donor you can recognize by your first name and the amount your contribution.

$164.40 mx

Total $ 9,066.05 MX pesos

This are the two tickets from the material bought today, you can see the hour and the date  :-)

Cement bags

Update 2

Friday, March 2th and the genorosity from all of you blown me away.

Here are the donations collected between yesterday afternoon and today until 18:00hrs.

$201.09 mx

$164.74 mx

Here are the donations made between Friday night and Saturday, I decide to sum them togheter with the prior concentrate.

Total $ 8,778.43 MX pesos

Update 3

Today is Wednesday March 7th and during the weekend and Monday was impossible to reach Juana until yesterday, she told me there were not network working in all Zinacantan during those days. The last contact I had with her was on Friday, I sent her $2,000.00 to buy two trucks of sand with another supplier that have it cheaper. Today Juana sent me the receipt from the two trucks she ordered and some pictures of how the construction is developing. 

First things first, here are the receipt pictures from all what we bought with the second amount collected:

Remember there was nothing in the piece of land?