Running water was just the beginning for Dina and her 2 children, Edward (9) and Magdiel (3). In 2015, Dina’s community of San Marcos celebrated the inauguration of its water system through partnership with Amigos for Christ, but it didn’t end there. Along with clean, accessible drinking water, it is necessary to provide families with an education about proper sanitation and hygiene so that they are able to achieve a truly healthy lifestyle, which includes reducing disease and other health concerns.
The Community Advocates from Amigos for Christ provided health talks to help the local community members understand their role in sanitation and hygiene. Through these talks, Dina learned how her family’s health and sanitation practices can help in avoiding the transmission of parasites. She and her children tested positive for parasites on 3 different occasions, which prompted Dina to save money for a Modern Bathroom.
A few months later, Dina’s Modern Bathroom was built, and now they are grateful to test parasite-free! Dina told us, “I am very grateful for all the (education) that my family has received on health, and now we have a Modern Bathroom, but the important thing is to implement the hygiene recommendations we learned.”
Dina was thrilled that her family was healthy, but she saw that other families in her community were still testing positive for parasites. She decided to take action. It became her mission to get everyone with a Modern Bathroom to destroy their old pit latrines.
Along with leaders in her community and the Community Advocates from Amigos, Dina met with families and raised awareness through her story. “My neighbors began to come to their senses when they heard that my children didn’t have parasites anymore. They were convinced that they needed to change and start demolishing all the latrines. I didn’t give up. I felt it was my duty to help them.”
The transformation in Dina’s family’s health and her desire to help her neighbors had a ripple effect on the whole community. She now speaks of the positive changes that are possible when a family is open to the opportunities that Jesus offers by learning and growing. Smiling, Dina proclaims, “Little by little, we keep going. Today, my community is free of parasites and disease. Today we are HEALTHY.”
