Mery, 45 years old, is a single mother of one child. Born and raised in Venezuela, she has been living in Ecuador for 7 years. Her son, Gabriel, is 4 years old and has severe intellectual disability. Mery’s spouse, who she lived with for many years, passed away at the young age of 39 from a pulmonary edema. She now lives alone in Ecuador, without any family or friends to provide her assistance.
The biggest stress that the family faces is their financial situation. With having to care for her child alone, it is difficult to find work. At the moment she works to sell empañadas on the street in front of her house. With this she earns just enough money to afford a small apartment, although the roof frequently leaks, and it is humid inside. She also has difficulty affording medicines and diapers for Gabriel, as she no longer receives financial assistance from the hospital to be able to buy those things.
Another complicated aspect of Mery’s situation is that because she is not a citizen of Ecuadorian, she cannot apply to receive any government assistance. This, combined with the fact that she does not have any family in Ecuador to support her means that she has limited opportunities to get help for her and Gabriel. In order to try and better her situation, she found Pan de Vida on social media and reached out to get connected with the foundation.
Pan de Vida is honored to get to work with Mery to better her quality of life. The foundation intends to help her with groceries and medical appointments, which will allow her to spend money on other needs her family has. The family will also now have access to the hot food program and classes on how to grow a small business.
Even though her life has not been easy, Mery is constantly seeking ways to better care for her and Gabriel. We are reminded by scripture that the Lord will always be with us in moments of grief and hardship. Please help us continue to show Mery God’s love through your support of Pan de Vida.
