Familia Hernandez
ADVOCATE: Slade Gurr (02/18/2020)
I have known Luis for many years. I first became acquainted with Luis in 2002 when he and I were serving as missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the Barcelona Venezuela Mission. Luis has stayed in contact with me for many years. As the Tyrannical communist dictatorship in Venezuela started to consume the resources, I watched helplessly as things progressively got worse and worse. Over the past five years, Luis and his family have digressed to the point that getting food and medication is not possible. Luis worked as a gardener for many years before the spiral of the economy. For many years he worked for as little as $10 to 20 a month. Those were the good times; he is currently unable to obtain any work, regardless of his repeated efforts. Last year he traveled to Colombia and took a class on Refrigeration repair with the hope of finding some work but was unable to. Luis is a great vehicle Mechanic and capable of fixing things even when he doesn’t have access to the proper tools.
In December of 2020, I sent $100 financial assistance to Luis to help him and his family during the Christmas season. Luis was very grateful for the support and was able to put some money into fixing his car so he could try to earn money as a taxi. In Early February, Luis confided in me that he is worried about his kids because they are unable to get the nutrition that they need from the food that is available to them. When Luis is fortunate enough to have water available it is unusable in any way. They can’t use it to shower or drink. Luis sent me a video of the water coming from the water faucet, which smells of sewer and he feels it is very dangerous for his family. For many years Luis has avoided leaving Venezuela. He expressed to me his desire to help his country and his family, but he feels that he no longer has any other options.
Luis applied for a program in which he and his family can receive three months of financial assistance in Brazil. There is a member of our church that is sponsoring Venezuelan families for three months by providing them with rent, food, clothing, and all of life’s necessities so that they can find work and assume those responsibilities on their own. Having worked with other families from Venezuela to get into this program, I know it is an amazing opportunity for them to change their circumstances. I have had communications regarding his acceptance into the program. The only drawback to the program is that it will not cover any of the costs for getting to Brazil.
“Look…How can I bath with this?… We can’t clean, we can’t do anything… how does that look”
~Luis Hernandez
EELuis does not have any money, nor does he have any way of making the type of money that is required to make the trip. It is estimated that he will need around $1500 to get his family safely, and legally, to Brazil. The trip will take about a week and he and his family will take public transport. They will take everything they own in the bags they can carry. Luis was told that the program is likely going to be terminating at the end of March. This may be his last and only chance to get his family out of Venezuela. Luis told me that he is demonstrating his faith by doing everything possible to move his entire family. Luis may be able to get sale his car if he can find a buyer, but he can only hope to sell it in time for $300 at the most. Luis asked if I would personally be able to help with this leap of faith, and I informed him that I would not be able to alone but would see if others might be willing to facilitate this effort.
It is my hope that we can help raise funds sufficient to help Luis get his family from Venezuela to Brazil. In Brazil, they can enter the self-reliant program that we have seen other Venezuelan families be sucessful with.
What We Do
Families In Crisis
to provide one family at a time, relief and encouragement in their efforts to rise out of catastrophic circumstances.
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To assists families in finding and taking advantage of opportunities to change their situations and improve their lives, and the lives of their posterity through self-reliance.
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