“I’ve always wanted people to succeed, and my desire is to provide the support to make that happen. You have to first educate people so they recognize the resources they have...and ENLACE does this very well.”
Everth López got to know ENLACE as a graduate agricultural techinical intern from the National School of Agriculture (ENA) in El Salvador. During that time, he worked to help families in rural areas with agricultural strategies that created better nutrition and maximized local resources. Once Everth graduated, it was clear to ENLACE that he would be a wonderful addition to the team of Technical Advisors that work with communities on a daily basis.
“At first, people in the communties didn't seem very interested...but as they learned how to plant and harvest vegetables, they became more and more excited and involved.”
Everth has continued his studies and is pursuing a degree in Agribusiness at the José Simeón Cañas University. In the future he would also like to pursue a Masters of Tropical Agriculture in order to be more prepared to help the communities in which he works.
Everth gives weekly workshops in the region of Región de Santa Ana and San José El Naranjo for the participants in the Home Garden Projects. Then he visits everyone's gardens (presently there are 17 in this area) helping them to solve problems and continue to increase yield which helps both the family's nutrition and also provides extra money through the sale of produce.
“When I teach people about how to make organic fertilizer, the price and its uses, the participants get excited and decide what they are going to plant...That makes me very happy. It's satisfying to know that there is an impact on their lives, and they become motivated about what they can do.”
With a growing number of churches in need of creating sustainable and transforming projects like home gardens, the presence of Everth López, his testimony and his motivation all become important elements to ENLACE's success.
