Supporting this Home was not only our first project, but also the reason why AVANZAR was founded.
Back in 1999 during one of Margarita‘s trips to Cuenca - Ecuador she heard of the "Hogar de la Madre y el Nino" (Single Mother‘s Home), a home that welcomes up to 20 young pregnant women and/or
abandoned mothers and their children who have no place to go.
After visiting the home, it became clear that the nuns who run it, needed support urgently in order to offer the mothers and their children a safe, hygienic and comfortable place to live, as well
as the social assitence needed in their cases.
Now days as soon as a woman and her child (children) arrive to the home, we take care that they receive medical as well as psychological assistance. Furthermore her case is studied and the
necessary legal steps are taken in order to assure her and her children‘s well being and safeness.
In addition we look for a school for the children and a job for the mothers and since many of the mothers are teenagers (between 13 and 15) or have not finished school we also support them to
continue with their education or to learn a commercial activity.
During the time that the mothers spend at the home they receive periodical information on how to take care of their children, hygiene, proper nutrition, illness prevention, legal rights, first
aid, contraception, etc etc.
Once the women and children left the home, we keep the contact and support them to re-integrate and find their place in society. Furthermore, they are always welcome to take part in our
information activities, medical check ups, workshops, celebrations and more.
Since the begining of the project and until these days we have:
Offered workshops in:
Offered psychological support through:
A small but well established pasta fabric functions in the button floor of the home‘s building. They are known by their preservatives and additives free and healthy products, which are
commercialized in the markets of Cuenca.
The person in charge of this fabric is one of the mothers who used to live at the home. Now days and thanks to this job, she is able to have her own flat and live independently with her
children.
The fabrications and sales of the products are done by the nuns and the women living at the home.
This atelier started as a workshop where the girls could learn to sew.
Today they fabricate costumes for sale or rent and take contracts from schools and companies to make their uniforms, fabric bags, etc.
In addition to it, in this atelier used clothes donated by the citizens of Cuenca, are repaired, clean and iron to be sold to the public.
Read the report of our volunteers Alix and Ricarda.