Two non-governmental organizations are running a donation drive whose goal is to brighten the Christmas celebrations for at least 200 families in Puerto Escondido and towns in the mountainous areas outside the city.
Sembrando Buenas Semillas and Helping Hands, two charitable organizations made up of Puerto Escondido residents and foreigners, are conducting the campaign, receiving monetary and in-kind donations.
This year, the NGOs have the goal of raising 200,000 pesos, or just under US $10,200, an amount they explain will allow them to deliver Christmas packages to 200 families, containing a dinner for four consisting of a roast chicken and accompaniments, packaged in a reusable container.
The families will also receive holiday gifts for children, described as “non-gendered educational toys and games, using minimal single-use plastic.”
The Christmas package will provide more than holiday joy, as it will also include dry food staples like pasta, rice, beans, oats, lentils, milk, and oil, as well as a hygiene package containing soap, toothpaste, cleaning and sanitary products, among other items.
The organizations estimate that these packages cost about 1,000 pesos per family, hence their donation drive goal of 200,000 pesos.
Along with that goal, they are also receiving in-kind donations of cold-weather clothing, non-perishable food and personal hygiene items, and toys.
The latter are being gathered at a Helping Hand and Sembrando Buenas Semillas collection center in Calle Vicente Suárez, Colonia Lázaro Cárdenas, where they are also prepared to receive cash donations.
Money is being collected online through their website, and the organizations’ phone lines, 954 120 2370 and 954 100 8452, are available to provide more information.
Sembrando Buenas Semillas and Helping Hands have been providing emergency relief to communities in Oaxaca since 2020, delivering more than 6,700 food and hygiene packages to families during the pandemic and 4,500 more, along with building materials and labor, after hurricane Agatha in May 2022.
El Sol de Puerto
