A Greater Purpose Amid the Rubble

Against the backdrop of a tragic earthquake, a Peruvian mother receives a new level of hope and faith.

Marisol Ochoa Omeda felt her Peruvian home begin to shake and bolted into action. Her elderly mother scooped up one of the grandchildren but fell in the doorway. Walls began crashing around the trapped family. With a thunderous boom, the house’s main support beam fell at an angle onto the refrigerator, creating a safe place for the family to huddle until the earthquake stopped.

In this community of 90 families, the quake killed more than 600 people. Most were school children attending class when the roof collapsed.

The community stood still in the days that followed. The markets were closed, and needs were overwhelming. Several families collected their resources and started cooking in a “common pot” soup kitchen to feed those who had no access to food.

Working with community leaders, Food for the Hungry helped provide organization, management and training to the 32 mothers who stepped up to the plate and volunteered at the kitchen.

Marisol was one of the leaders of the ongoing soup kitchen project. She helped plan and serve the meals and oversee the daily operation. This new role helped her realize she can reach out to her neighbors and encourage other families to work together. And by helping meet the pressing needs of her neighbors, she realized her own dream of rebuilding her damaged house.

Marisol is also involved in the psychosocial support initiative that Food for the Hungry put into place to help children and families who may have been traumatized by the earthquake and may need counseling, prayer and compassionate care.

What we do

Food for the Hungry’s Emergency Response Unit (ERU) responds to help meet the needs of the poor and vulnerable by providing:

1. Food and non-food item (NFI) distribution: meets basic needs in the early days of a disaster providing necessities like food, water, blankets, cooking sets, and sanitation kits.

2. Medical support: provides emergency services in the early days of a disaster as well as supporting local clinics or hospitals as they respond to the needs of their community.

3. Water/sanitation: helps communities remain healthy after a disaster by restoring access to clean drinking water and sanitation systems that may have been destroyed or interrupted.

4. Child protection: prioritizes the needs of children, who are among the most vulnerable in a disaster, by making sure they are getting enough food as well as creating “child friendly spaces”. Examples include centers where children can learn and play in a safe and structured environment after a disaster

5. Shelter: helps families whose homes have been destroyed find shelter from the elements. Examples include providing tents as temporary shelter or supporting repair or construction of new homes.

6. Psycho-social support: provides emotional and spiritual support to those who have been traumatized by suffering and loss. Examples include working through the local church and providing training on how to help children cope with loss.

7. Agricultural rehabilitation: helps farmers rebuild their capacity to provide for their family and community through seed and tool distributions and training.

8. Livelihoods: helps restore the dignity of work to families and communities who have lost their businesses. Examples include helping shopkeepers, seamstresses, mechanics or carpenters with vouchers to reestablish their livelihoods.

9. Infrastructure rehabilitation: helps communities re-establish basic infrastructure like roads, ditches and electricity that may have been destroyed in a disaster.