In October, 2011 Pastor Miguel Angel Durán became the President and Representative of his denomination in El Salvador. The Asamblea de Iglesias Cristianas (Assembly of Christian Churches) was founded in New York in 1939 as a evangelical missionary movement led by Hispanics to work with Hispanics. They are present in 26 countries around the world, and have 62 churches in El Salvador alone.

Melissa was 18 years old when she had the opportunity to live in El Salvador for six months as a short-term missionary. Working with an orphanage called Amilat, she collaborated in the coordination of mission teams and care for children, as well as completing other administrative tasks. This time profoundly changed her heart and impacted her life, revealing the face of poverty in El Salvador that she had not known.

From October 9 to October 20 El Salvador was hit with steady and torrential rains that totaled more than four feet in many areas. At least 33 people were killed in landslides and more than 35,000 forced to leave their homes.

According to national news organizations, the death toll from rains and mudslides across Central America rose Sunday to at least 80 dead. El Salvador, as one of the top ten most vulnerable countries in the world, has experienced the highest number of fatalities. Thirty-two people have died since the intense rain from a tropical depression began saturating El Salvador’s landscape about seven days ago. The death toll is expected to rise.

In El Salvador, the protestant church has grown rapidly over the last several years, and with new churches, the number of pastors has also grown. Although the majority of these pastors depend on the offerings of their congregations without being active agents in the country’s labor market, there is a small number of pastors who make the difficult decision to seek additional employment. For these pastors, supplementary income can facilitate their ability to become agents of transformation as they may be better able to provide a home for their family and even help support their own church.
Carlos is a native to Panchimalco, and he is proud to have indigenous roots in the area. His relaxed nature and huge smile are contagious.

Douglas Carrillo is a resident of El Ranchador. He and his family always held onto the hope of building an adobe or metal house in the land they have been paying off for the last five years. Despite working in a brick factory, he never imagined the possibility of having a home made of cement block. However, the members of Arca de Dios Church in El Ranchador and Willow Creek Crystal Lake united to help Douglas believe in a dream that, until a few days ago, was impossible.

Construction work in Santa María has been a growth opportunity for the Church, for ENLACE, and for the community leaders, reflecting a dynamic, unifying process. Gerson Ramirez, Church Coach

For years, the Santa María neighborhood located in the region of San Martin lamented the terrible condition of its main street. During the rainy season, torrents of water endangered their lives of both young children and older residents. Addtionally, the lack of proper drainage created standing water that resulted in mosquito infestation and putrid odors. Even so, years passed and the road continued to deteroriate. Solving the problem seemd too expensive and difficult for a poor community like Santa María.

In 2010, however, Principe de Paz members decided to take a leap of faith and change their community. After receiving training and coaching from ENLACE, the church led an effort that leveraged the participation of community residents, the support of the mayor's office and two international mission teams.

In the second stage the road was completed with gravel and paving. The church hosted students from Vanguard University in Costa Mesa and members of New Life Church in Exeter (both in California). These missions teams gave Pastor Santiago and his leaders more than just greatly needed materials and labor; it empowered them and gave them more confidence that led to closer relationships with their neighbors.

“Our work is more than building a road; It is really building a community. For us that means having a long-term relationship with ENLACE in El Salvador, where we can work as a family and even as a church to make the biggest impact possible for a single community or a single region”. Cristina Robeck, Advisory board ENLACE USA, Vanguard University Team leader.

By the end of the first stage, the church had overseen the construction of 500 meters of storm gutters. The process, however, according to Pastor Santiago, wasn't alwasys easy. "I remeber the day that we had our first meeting with community representatives, and I told them that it was necessary to work together...to construct the road...We had problems [and] got discouraged. Some wanted to quit during the first stage. I told them , 'I won't quit the project... (but) I can't do this alone. If you work along with me we can do great things."  

In the second stage, the road was completed with gravel and paving. The church hosted students from Vanguard University in Costa Mesa and members of New Life Church in Exeter (both in California). These mission teams gave Pastor Santiago and his leaders more than just greatly needed materials and labor; it empowered them and gave them more confidence that led to closer relationships with their neighbors.
According to Pastor Santiago, “...this project represents a great triumph...[the church] now [has] become closer to the people in the community. And people are not shy anymore to come to church...I like how they now see us.”

Click here to see the Picture Gallery

This summer we were visited by 10 work and 4 vision teams totalling more than 160 people who served their global neighbors in the churches and communities of San Jacinto, El Progreso, El Ranchador, San José El Naranjo, San Antonio En Medio, El Espino, Santa María and San Martín! Thank you all for your sacraficial service to El Salvador!

The school’s wall is a great achievement because it has an important meaning for students and parents. There are gangs all around the school and this wall means security for the children and teens. This is not just important for the school, but it is also important for the church. As the pastor, I feel we are achieving the goals we have set. Pastor Santos Carpio.

Miraflores Public School has classes from kindergarden to ninth grade and is the only option for formal education in the community. The school has a staff of six teachers and currently serves 353 students between the ages of five and 17. Until recently, the school’s only security was a chain-link fence around its campus, which was insufficient to protect students, teachers, school, equipment and the school building itself.

The need to build a cement block wall around the perimeter of the school was identified nine years ago. Although the school sought help several times, they could not move the project forward. A few years ago, however, the urgency for security in the area increased due local gang activity and violence. Alarmingly, throughout the country, attacks on students have been rapidly increasing, with 52 students reportedly killed in 2010 and already 108 in 2011.

Rosa Lilian Martinez and Children of the Public SchoolWith these high numbers in mind, Rosa Alicia Martínez, the principal of the school in Miraflores, admitted, “One of the greatest needs for the school has been a perimeter wall” because “there are people who don’t belong in the school who come in at any time. That affects the normal process of the classes and the students' comfort.” The principal is thrilled that Pastor Santos’ church has helped to pave the way to create a safer environment for students and teachers in Miraflores.

Thank God the Tabernáculo Biblico Salem Church came to us! This is a dream for me. We have seen the results of their work, and people from the community are responding. It wasn’t until the church joined us that the mayor’s office helped us a little. Church members come and work, and parents also play a role in the work. Older students are volunteers on the project too, and now, even Americans have joined us to help build the wall!. Rosa Alicia Martinez, School Principal in Miraflores.

The construction of the wall has been divided into four stages, corresponding to the back, front, and two sides of the school’s campus. Timberline Church from Fort Collins, Colorado was the talk of the town as they picked up shovels and joined the local church from two weeks to work on the wall from the very beginning of the project’s first stage. Community members told us they were impressed to see 15 teenagers and their youth pastors working passionately on the wall. When the second Timberline group came, there were 17 more adults and five teenagers who worked on the wall, brought a medical team, and visited homes in the community.

“The impact was enormous, and everyone was motivated by the visit from the Americans. Their service has made the community feel like they can do great things, and the church has confirmed that what they are doing is for the Lord. Now, they feel strengthened and more committed.” Nuria Reyes, Church Coach in El Espino.

After years of wishing and waiting for a school wall, the community has finally achieved their dream through the leadership of the local church and the collaboration of the school, parent’s association, and mayor’s  office. The work would not have been possible without the area’s partnership with Timberline Church which has helped to provide ENLACE coaching and technical support, as well as filling in gaps of funding for the much-needed wall. We would like to thank Timberline Church for its generous support and congratulate the Tabernáculo Biblico Salem Church for all their hard work in Miraflores!

Click here to see the Picture Gallery from Timberline Church’s works

In a recent blog missionary volunteer Kim Frederick wrote about the recurring references to Psalm 23 during one of the dozens of trips she hosted while in El Salvador. In Spanish, the second stanza of the well-loved psalm of David reads “Nada me faltará” which is best translated “I will lack nothing that I need.” These words describe a situation that we’ve experienced at ENLACE many times over the years. We’ve been reminded by Executive Director Ron Bueno that if we don’t have the funds to do a project, then its not the right timing to accomplish it yet. Likewise, if we haven’t found the right person for the job, then it isn’t time to hire. But time and time again, funds have arrived to help implement projects and people have arrived to help right where we needed them to be. 

Michelle Zuniga is a passionate young woman who has truly impacted El Salvador through her service with ENLACE this past year. Michelle built intimate friendships with dozens of ENLACE staff as well as church and community members throughout El Salvador. In addition, she exhibited the true nature of the word ‘enlace’ by acting as a ‘link’ between local churches and dozens of groups from the U.S. As Jeff Costa of the Crossing said, it is evident that “God is with her as she serves side by side with each group that comes down.” This sentiment was reiterated by everyone who had the privelege of working with her. ENLACE’s medical doctor, Dr. Zuleyma Chahin, worked side by side with Michelle many times and says that Michelle worked “with a sense of compassion and God’s love that was reflected in all that she did.”

Alejandro and his wife PatyChilean native, Rodolfo Alejandro Pérez Olave, seems to have no shortage of enthusiasm and energy. After marrying a Salvadoran and settling into life in El Salvador many years ago, Alejandro brought his excitement and expertise to ENLACE. Alejandro has been an agronomer with ENLACE since the very beginning in 1993 and has helped thousands of people transform their lives through medium-scale agricultural endeavors and most recently with home gardens. 

Take a moment to read our Summer Newsletter 2011 highlighting ENLACE's Economic Development Program