Twinsburg High School Boys Visit El Salvador - June, 2012

Twinsburg High School Boys Visit El Salvador - June, 2012

This past June, a group of boys from THS and their parents visited El Salvador to work hard and make new connections.  The first picture is a of the group of Twinsburg boys with the people of San Isidro in El Salvador.  This community is very poor and needs a lot of TLC.  When we first arrived in San Isidro to help tear down a half washed away "home", our boys were timid and not very social, but after a few hours the kids in the community grew on them and they began to embrace the kids and their poverty. 


The most important thing one can give to the poor is themselves.  After you bring supplies, food, paint, and toys, you leave lighter. Maybe the poor are happier for that moment, but if you do not spend any time with them, real quality time, then it will be YOU who leaves with less.  When you break down the barriers and love the poor you give yourself a gift and the people you came to serve a gift.  


Share the moment! 

House that needed to be torn down - Fr. John on the roof

Kids at the school they painted

Musical Chairs in Mizata

School before it was painted

El Salvador (“The Savior”) is the only nation in the world to bear the name of Christ. It is approximately the same size as the state of Massachusetts and is located in Central America. It is bordered by the countries of Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, with the Pacific Ocean as its southern border.

In spite of its relatively small size, it is the most densely populated country in the Americas, with over 5 million people living there. It is a mountainous area with a tropical climate and the majority of the land is used for agriculture. Most of the population is poor, with unemployment exceeding 50% and illiteracy approximately 50%.

In 1964, the Diocese of Cleveland has maintained a presence in the area, even through years of Civil War and the martyrdom of two of its missionaries in 1980: Sister Dorothy Kazel, OSU, and Miss Jean Donovan. Currently, missionaries from Cleveland serve in parishes in Chiltiupan, La Libertad, and Teotepeque. These parishes serve the pastoral needs of over 150,00 Salvadorans.