Family #1

Manuel Antonio Guzman and Maria de los Angeles Mundo Hernandez have 3 children 16, 14, and 12. Manuel solders in a factory (maquiladora) and Maria works in a factory (maquiladora) producing medical products. Manuel came to Tijuana 20 years ago, when he was a small child with his brothers who were looking for work. Maria came about 15 years ago from Chiapas. Having jobs is very important to them. They are currently living with their parents and grandparents, and it is very crowded. The bare lot that they own is on the outskirts of the El Nino area. The area is fairly undeveloped and the lot currently has no utilities or water services. This is a hard working family and building a home for them would greatly improve their living conditions. Utilities could be added to the home as they become available.

The views from the lot are beautiful.

Maria and Manuel with their three children, Ximena 12, Manuel 16, and Willi 14.

Maria and Manuel help with the lot measurements during our visit.

Family #2

Naomi and Juan Camacho Salazar were born in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon. We were touched by the love of the family members for one another. Juan and Naomi have 4 children 10, 5, 3 and 1 year old. They took in Naomi’s three siblings, 17, 9 and 7 years old when their mother abandoned them. Juan is an Uber driver. All the school age children are in school. Their tiny 2-bedroom home was very neat, but had few possessions. They have several leaks in the roof including over a bed. They need to be hooked up to the sewer and the electric pole but have not been able to afford it. The front of the lot is steep and unbuildable, but the existing structure is on a flat area large enough for our standard house. Almost half of their front area of the lot is a black hole (fosa septica) for sewage, covered lightly by some wood with plenty of cracks & spaces in it. If we build to include this septic tank, we will want to make sure it is properly covered and safe for the family. The streets surrounding this location are dirt but the job site would be accessible. This is located in the El Nino area.

Naomi and Juan with their 4 children and Naomi’s three siblings

Family #2 with the BASICS scouting team

In the bedroom, you can see the air gap between the roof and the wall and where the water leaks in over the bed.

Family #3

Eduardo, a mechanic, and wife Maria Guadalupe are grateful to be staying with their daughter-in-law after their house burned down. This happened when their drug-involved neighbor’s house caught fire and jumped to the Guadalupe home. Both homes were destroyed in the ensuing blaze. They escaped with only their lives, clothes & pets. Maria and Eduardo’s household includes their daughter, Brenda, 28, and their two grandchildren Jeremy, age 8 and Alyson age 4. One of the grandchildren has asthma, and Maria has diabetes and back issues, which often require a walker. Eduardo also has diabetes and high blood pressure, as well as a benign tumor around his left clavicle that was just removed. Their son is a mechanic and helps to support the family.

Their daughter-in-law wants to sell her home this summer; meaning that Eduardo & Maria Guadalupe will be forced to find a new space to live in. The Mexican government gave them a small grant to build a cinder block wall between them and the drug property, but they don’t have enough money to finish the project quickly so it advances by 8-24 inches every now and then. Building a home for the family this summer would ensure that they would have a safe, comfortable home to move into. The house would be in the upper space toward the back of the lot.

Guadalupe lot from street

Maria and Edwardo with daughter Brenda

Family #3 with the BASICS scouting team

Looking down from the elevated build pad above a retaining wall.

Family #4

Alma Valenzuela has 3 children, Aaron 18, Angel, 14, and daughter Laura, 13. Also living in the home are Alma and her mother, and two nieces Amayca 9, and Chebi 8. Total of 7 people. Alma, born in Sonora, works in a factory (maquiladora) and came to Tijuana for work. The children are in school. They have owned their land for 10 years and lost the house when the house of a neighbor- mere feet away- caught fire and spread to theirs. They live in a quickly put-up shack. Access to the house is by ladder, down a cliff. Their bathroom is outside, open to the air and surroundings, and with water that they gather and store in a 55-gallon plastic drum. They also need help with utilities, sewage, etc. They love Tijuana and value the love of family most. Alma says that taking care of their family is their biggest challenge.
There is a significant issue of safety to building on this lot because of the limited access from the street including a narrow dirt pathway down to where the cement slab would be, or down a makeshift ladder from the street elevation down to the pad. It was felt that this would be hazardous for the majority of our travelers to move materials to this build site, and to traverse up and down the road at any time. Because he was with us, along with his crew of local carpenters, we consulted with Wili who says he would oversee and engage the local construction crew to build this house. BASICS would pay for the build, and it would probably happen outside of the work we do during our mission trip. It would be great if the building included a safe set of stairs from the street. The scouting team feels this is the best solution to help this family.

Alma Valenzuela with children Aaron, 18, Angel, 14, Laura 13, Niece Amaya 9, and niece Chebi, 8

Existing temporary house structure built after fire destroyed their home.