Marist Ministries Rebound from the Ruins

Two years after a 8.2 magnitude earthquake devastated Tehuantepec in Mexico, causing dozens of deaths and destroying several buildings, the Brothers have managed to rebuild part Guadalupano Boarding School and Asunción Ixtaltepec High School.

After the disaster in September 2017, the Asunción Ixtaltepec High School educational community did everything possible so the students could quickly return to classes in temporary classrooms. This was made possible thanks to the collective and intense effort of the Brothers, the families, the teachers, the students, and so many others who joined in the efforts.

In 2018-2019, the Provincial Solidarity Campaign was launched to rebuild the schools, under the motto "One by One… a Brick, a Wall, a Classroom".

With this objective, the schools looked for creative ways to raise funds. At the international level, Marists from the United States, Central America, South America, Germany and Spain actively mobilized to support the rebuilding.

"Getting here was a process that involved several stages: demolishing buildings, clearing rubble, building temporary classrooms to quickly resume classes and finally, beginning permanent reconstruction with all that this involved at the level of people and resources," says Socorro Alvarez Noriega, coordinator of Provincial Solidarity. She also mentioned the progress they have made so far:

• 6 classrooms: 2 classrooms per academic level (1st, 2nd and 3rd).
• 1 classroom for the Shinaywa Independent Living Project (GEM)
• 2 video libraries
• 1 office for coordination
• 2 administrative offices
• 1 room for teachers

Still to be completed: 2 computer rooms, a chemistry laboratory and a physics laboratory.

"We would like once again to express our heartfelt gratitude to students, teachers, Marist families, and friends from near and far for their constant, close and supportive presence in this whole process," she concluded.