Our work in Venezuela

 

Empowering families in Venezuela

Since 1983, CFCA has worked with children, families and the aging in Venezuela through its Barquisimeto project. The Hope for a Family sponsorship program is helping more than 6,000 children, youth and aging members — and their families — to improve their quality of life by providing resources, opportunities and community support to build a path out of poverty.

Hope for a Family sponsorship offers a community of compassion in which local CFCA staff members work alongside families to offer the benefits and services sponsored friends need. In Venezuela, benefits often focus on assistance with health and dental care, nutrition, clothing and livelihood programs. The project's highest priority is education. The project has developed many computer workshops to enhance the education of sponsored friends and their communities.

Inflation creates high cost of living

Venezuela differs from most of its South American neighbors. As one of the world's leading producers and exporters of petroleum, it has become one of the most rapidly developing countries on the continent. High inflation rates, however, make it nearly impossible for the families CFCA serves to afford basic goods and services such as health care and transportation.

Poverty remains a major problem in rural areas and cities. Opportunities are scarce in rural communities, so families turn to cities for work. They often cannot afford the high costs and end up living on the outskirts in poor conditions.

Empowering communities

Many CFCA communities in Venezuela have committees whose members are mothers of sponsored children, and they work closely with the local CFCA staff.

The committees focus on different areas of the sponsorship program: education, nutrition, health, correspondence (with sponsors), finance, fundraising, recreation, sports and culture.

Through participation in the Hope for a Family program, the committees propose creative ideas to bring their respective communities together with recreational and cultural activities, sponsorship benefits and programs.

Dedicated scholars

The Barquisimeto project supports 140 talented and dynamic scholarship students who struggle financially to continue their education. The program encourages the scholarship recipients to be role models to younger children and to others in their communities.

The cost of education in Barquisimeto can be quite substantial. The CFCA Scholarship Program helps cover expenses such as tuition, books, clothing, transportation and food. The CFCA scholarship helps ease the financial strain and gives the student a greater opportunity for success.

Franco discovered he had a gift for drawing and painting at the age of 9. "I started to discover that I could draw the image in my mind with the innocence of a child," he said.

Franco has been learning art throughout his education, and is now attending an arts school in Barquisimeto.

Through Hope for a Family sponsorship and the CFCA Scholarship Program, Franco is able to follow his dream of becoming a painter. He admits that it has not been easy, but through the encouragement of his family, friends and his CFCA sponsor he is positive he will become an artist and offer his work to the world.