Jalapa, Mexico

Vida en Abundancia de Mexico

Most visionaries look for a green light to move forward in mission. For Dr. Jose Luis Guerrero, it was a red light that opened his eyes to a ministry opportunity.

The director of Vida en Abundancia de Mexico realized the immense problem with poverty and life on the streets after a small child offered to clean his windshield at a stoplight in 1999. That small gesture inspired him to start a project tackling street poverty in Jalapa, Mexico.

Guerrero connected with the Luke Society in 2002 with his vision to assist at-risk children. He later became the Luke Society regional coordinator in Central America and the Caribbean.

Today the ministry has expanded in ways Guerrero never envisioned. A health clinic operates at the street level of a three-story building. The facility also houses ministries for education, skills training, nutrition and Bible studies. Several years ago a church was formed and uses the facility for Sunday worship.

 

About the ministry:

Name: Vida en Abundancia de Mexico

Location: Jalapa, Mexico

Director: Cezar Muñoz

Partnership: 2003-present

Staff: 14

PMT: Dr. Richard and Patty De Jong; Henry and Karen Doorn; Barbara Kamp; Steve and Terry Huizenga; Skip and Kim Van Ryn.

 

Our mission:

To attend to girls, boys and adolescents through quality services for their integral development, bearing witness to God's love.

Why I love being a director:

Pleasing God through service or help to those in need, providing a respectful, dignified and friendly treatment to my colleagues in the ministry, as well as to the beneficiaries and their families.

About Mexico:

Population: 130.2 million

Size: 1.96 million sq. km, or about three times the size of Texas

Capital: Mexico City

Borders: United States to the north; Pacific Ocean to the west; Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea to the east; Guatemala and Belize to the south.

Religious groups: Catholic, 78.0%; Protestant-evangelical, 11.2%.

Primary language: Spanish

Literacy (age 15+): 95.2%

Physician density: 2.4 doctors per 1,000 people.

Population below international poverty line: 41.9%

Life expectancy: 76.9 years

Infant mortality rate: 11.6 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Major exports: Manufactured goods, oils, silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee, cotton.

Climate: Varies from tropical to desert.

Terrain: High, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desert.

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