Walking With El Salvador

The following letters are not real, but the facts are real.  Names have been changed.  Several young people who have known me since they were little ones call me "Madrina" - it is a term of endearment which means "Godmother." Dear Madrina, Our prayers were answered!  I have work.  I am very excited.  I will start on Monday.  I will care for a cancer patient in her home - two 24 hour shifts per week.  It is a probationary job, but I feel really good about it because I am reminded of the care I gave my mother.  My cousin will babysit for my son and I can pay her too. God bless you! Your Amiga __________ Dear Amiga, Congratulations!  We are so happy for you!  You have a gift for caring for people who are very ill.  May God bless you as your new life begins! Your Madrina __________ Dear Madrina, I lost my job.  I cared for the woman for three days.  She died.  Now the agency won't pay me because I did not work for a whole month.  I know this is

The following letters are not real, but the facts are real.  Names have been changed.  Several young people who have known me since they were little ones call me "Madrina" - it is a term of endearment which means "Godmother" ________________________________________________ Dear Madrina, I am wondering if you showed the doctors up north the photo that you took of my leg.  I am so ashamed of my skin.  I only wear jeans.  Let me know what the doctors say. My big brother dropped out of school.  We need him to work to help support the family.  He is working at a mechanic shop.  Maybe you did not hear that my dad left for the United States.  I am worried about him because we have not heard from him for a long time. My little sister and I continue with our studies.  Did you like the necklace I made for you? Love,  Yenny Dear Yenny, I do love the necklace that you made for me!  I wear it often and people ask me where I got it. I tell them that you made it for

The following letter is not real, but the facts are real. Several young people who have known me since they were little ones call me "Madrina" - it is a term of endearment which means "Godmother" Dear Madrina, I hope this letter finds you well, surrounded by your loved ones. My situation in El Salvador has become desperate.  As you know, I still have not found work in my profession, despite the fact that I graduated from the university a year and a half ago.  In fact, no one in my graduating class has found work in our profession.  I am trying to survive, but I cannot afford even the smallest things like a few clothes or a notebook for my son. You asked what kind of work I have been doing to support us.  I buy small things and resell them on the buses that run near the community.  Yes, I know it is dangerous to hop on and off of the buses.  Yes, I know it is dangerous to carry the little quarters I earn on the bus because the gang members also come on board

Children hopping on trains.  Mothers carrying babies through the desert.  Thousands of dollars passing from families to coyotes  (smugglers who guide migrants to or across borders). Stories of the harrowing journey north, stories of abandonment by coyotes,  stories of arrest by immigration police, stories of help received along the way, stories of successful border crossings, stories of appeals for sanctuary, stories of deportation.  These are not stories of the moment, attractive in their drama to mass media.  These are not stories to be twisted for political rants. We see and hear the stories of thousands of Salvadoran children who left their homes or were sent from their homes by their parents.  They leave with a small bundle of clothes.  They carry no phones nor phone numbers so that drug thugs or gang members cannot track down their families and demand ransom.  They depend on the kindness of family and strangers in Guatemala to give them food and shelter.  They sneak across th