Homes for 19 homeless families in Guatemala thanks to Papal gift

(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Robert Sarah, President of the Pontifical Council “Cor Unum”, will visit Guatemala from 18 to 21 March. The aim of his visit is to inaugurate a complex of 19 houses and a chapel for 19 families who were left homeless and destitute after the devastating typhoon that struck the nation in 2011.

The visit of course is also an occasion for Cardinal Sarah to bring a sign of concrete spiritual closeness to the population who is currently involved in the re-building process.

The possibility of building the homes in question was made possible thanks to a gift of the Holy Father.

On 19 March Cardinal Sarah is scheduled to meet representatives of “Caritas Guatemala” and of the Diocesan Caritas office. Afterwards he will visit the “Villa de los Ninos”, an educational facility for young poor people under 18 years of age who can receive schooling thanks to a special bursary.

On 20 March, the Cardinal will participate in the inauguration ceremony for the 19 houses built in the Cuilapa area, which is part of the diocese of Santa Rosa de Lima. The project, which includes a small chapel, has been made possible thanks to a gift of the Holy Father. It has been implemented thanks to the help of the local Church and with a coordination effort on the part of the Apostolic Nunciature in Guatemala that has followed all the phases of implementation of the project and building of the houses.

Because of its geographical position in Central America, Guatemala is frequently struck by natural calamities that undermine its socio-economic stability. Those who pay the highest price are the poor. Between August and October of 2011, the tropical typhoon “Agatha” caused widespread flooding and mudslides that brought death to the population and destruction to the territory. The municipalities of Cuilapa, Chiquimulilla, Taxisco and Guazacapen bore the heaviest brunt of the typhoon with thousands of families forced to abandon their homes.