Teresa de Jesus

Hurricane Mitch destroyed all of the crops and land in the El Espino community where Teresa de Jesus lives. Since the storm hit in 1998, they have made very little progress toward restoring their land and crops, and have suffered further damage from tropical storms in 1999. The family had a vegetable garden located about 50 meters from their house before this disaster, but presently they have no crops, "not even sorghum," says Teresa. "When Mitch came," Teresa’s mother and grandmother say, "we were shut in, starving, and we suffered a lot. The water was very dirty and we had to boil it. People suffered a lot from lack of food. Some houses fell down. No human or animal life was lost. The crops were lost and the soil was washed away. Since then we’ve survived with the help of Project Concern International that has supplied us with basic grains."

The diet in El Espino consists almost entirely of rice and beans (grown in the community). Teresa’s family eats rice, beans, tortillas, and coffee or an orange drink for breakfast; fried beans, tortillas, and coffee for lunch; and beans with curd, tortillas, and a fruit drink or coffee at dinnertime. Because of the water problem, they do not grow vegetables, and in the winter ("winter" refers to the rainy season, usually May through November), they only grow onions and beans.

People in the community feel that the consumption of milk, eggs, and vegetables is necessary in their diet. They talk about the necessity of buying one cow per family through loans. As part of the SAADEP Project (Spanish acronym for Food Assurance and Business Development for Small Producers of the Municipalities of Jinotega and San Rafael del Norte), TechnoServe has helped them get poultry and pigs for domestic consumption.

This community does not have a health center. When people get sick, they have to go to the health centers in the neighboring communities of San Marcos – a half-hour walk – and San Rafael – a two-hour walk away. This is very difficult when people are too sick to walk or when mothers have to carry their sick children. Sometimes, once they do arrive, there is no medicine at the health center for their illnesses.

Water in El Espino is scarce and of poor quality (contaminated by the latrines). Teresa’s family uses well water for washing clothes and bathing. Drinking water is brought in on foot from the nearest community, Suni. In fact, this is one of Teresa’s favorite activities because she also sees friends there and watches cartoons on television.

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