We are five Sisters In our Community of Bahía Blanca, aged between 78 and 88 years old; as a local Community we have three objectives: happiness, fraternity and mercy.
Our ministry is in a school in the village of “Villa Miter” as well as in the socio-pastoral service called “9 de Noviembre” where I have been working since my arrival in Bahia in 2013. With the unconditional help of my local and provincial communities and in collaboration with the Educational Community where the Vincentian International Association of Charities (AIC) was erected in 2016, we decided to create a School of “missionary disciples.”
The initial project of the “9 de Noviembre” was based on home visitation and the analysis of the reality. With the small contributions from the members, as a chain of solidarity, and with the money collected from a second-hand sale, we provided the construction materials so families could change their metal sheet shanties for brick houses.
The construction project was carried out from 2013 to 2017 and 31 houses were built. During 2017 and 2018 we allocated: donations, projects and repayment of the neighbourhood loans for the construction of the Vincentian Social Center so that it reverts to their own use. This Centre belongs to the Vincentian International Association of Charities because the land was granted to them as a loan by the Municipality.
The activities in the Vincentian Social Centre during 2018-2019 were educational (Primary and Secondary Adult Literacy, Primary and Secondary School Support, English School in Juan XXIII Institute and Computer Science) and social (training in food handling, healthy cooking, bakery and sweets, sewing workshop, solar thermal tanks).
In 2020, throughout the Covid19 pandemic, although it has not been possible to carry out educational activities and social promotion as in previous years, school support, English virtual school and food distribution to about 100 families of the neighbourhood were continued in collaboration with the Municipality.
In 2021, 7 plots of land were donated to the Daughters of Charity to build Project 2020-2025 “MARILLAC INTEGRATION CENTER” consisting of 12 family gardens, warehouse or shed for crafts workshops and a Centre for Children.
In my sincere prayer I ask the Lord to reach out to where we could not because “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few” (Lk 10,2) and frail. We are certain that His time is not ours and that He acts in our weaknesses.
