Casas de Luz Newsletter May 2020
Yoselín
México
Nelson & Family
Ecuador
Melanina
Venezuela
Happy May! We hope everyone is healthy and finding ways to keep themselves occupied! This month we celebrate all of the amazing mothers in our Casas de Luz community. Below you will meet Maria, a mother who lost her brother to gang activity and decided to turn her family's life around with sports and education. Additionally, we have a few ideas for you to serve your community locally and globally! We are heart broken by the effects of the virus in our community and around the world. While the virus knows no borders, neither does kindness. We are so pleased to have delivered groceries to every family at our Faro de Luz community center last month and are excited to see other organizations and communities coming together to do the same. This month we are taking a stance in our global community on the effects of Covid-19 by fighting hunger in Ecuador and Venezuela! Read below to find out more how you can join us in the fight against hunger caused by Covid-19. We wish you and your family continued health and happiness during these times.
Happy Mother's Day!
Maria's story of being a mother.
Hi everyone! My name is María and I'd like to share with you what it's like to be a mother. At the beginning, it was hard to become a mom because I had my first baby, Angie, when I was just 17 years old. I had my second, Kimberly, when I was 21 and my third, Jason, when I was 27. For me, being a mom has been a marvelous experience and at the same time very complicated. Sometimes I lose my patience and I ask God to give me strength to move forward and have patience with my loving children. For me being a mother is an amazing gift because you live unique and beautiful experiences with each of them. I love that each of my children are different. My Angie is 9 years old and she is a very smart girl who loves to read. Kimberly is 6 years old and although she can be a feisty little girl, I always have so much fun with her. Sometimes I go to kindergarten with her and participate in PE classes which are so much fun! Lastly, Jason is my 1 year old baby who is always attached to me, I love him so much.
Global Service Opportunity
COVID-19 & Food Insecurity
As an effect of COVID-19, the world is on the brink of a heart-breaking hunger pandemic. While hospitals are surpassing their capacity, COVID-19 continues to run rampage throughout Ecuador and Venezuela, leaving people to fight the illness in their home or the streets. Businesses are closing, leaving families without an income, causing them to worry about the virus and how they are going to put food on their family's table. 

This month, we are supporting our global community by sending groceries to heavily affected communities in Ecuador and Venezuela. We are asking for any support for these communities, because while we can't change the situation, we can lift some stress from their shoulders.

Join us to fight hunger as a result of Covid-19! We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support.
Happy Birthday!
Yamilet is 1!
Meet beautiful Yamilet! On April 26, 2019 Yamilet was born prematurely with an arterial malformation in her heart. She spent the first 3 months of her life in the hospital, in and out of the ICU. Yamilet was scheduled to have a surgery to fix her artery, but a miracle occurred and she no longer needed the surgery! Although she was able to go home, the doctors predicted that she would only live for a few months. Over the past year, Yamilet has been in and out of the hospital, fighting for her life. Just last week she turned one year old on April 26! Happy birthday to this beautiful warrior, Yamilet!
Local Service Opportunities
Get Baking!
Need something to do with your time? Try baking for families in San Diego who are experiencing great hardships! Families are having to choose between spending money on gas to go to their essential jobs or spend the money on food.The Jewish Family Services has begun a Safe Parking Program, offering families living out of their cars a safe place to access resources, including nutrition. Let's send smiles to struggling families through cookies and brownies! If you would like to contribute, we welcome any individually wrapped baked goods. Please contact us for information where you can drop them off!
Deliver Groceries
Help at risk seniors in our San Diego community by delivering groceries with Stay at Home San Diego. So far 38,634 groceries have been delivered and continue to deliver 250-400 groceries a day. They are in need of more drivers to deliver these groceries to our San Diego seniors. Locations to pick up groceries are in North County, PB, and La Mesa. Find out more information and sign up to be a volunteer below.
Casas de Luz . www.casasdeluz.org . A UUFSD social justice program.