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Why do they need our help? Guarjila has decided to remain free of the Ministry of Health in order to maintain their commitment to being a community-based clinic. Through education and prevention practices, diseases which are commonplace in the rest of the country have almost been eliminated. Prenatal care, well-baby and malnourished programs, and chronic diseases occupy their attention. All a tribute to the work Ann began during her six years in El Salvador. For the last couple of years, medical students from St. Louis University have spent time at the Clinic learning about community medicine and the lives of Ann’s friends. This life-changing experience will influence their practice in the future. Nerinx Hall students continue to visit each March. A documentary film and a book about Ann are in process. The chapel has been made into a monument of remembrance of Ann and Fr. Jon Cortina, SJ. El Salvador is facing a grave economic situation with hunger and violence as the daily reality for so many. Nearly 1,000 try to leave each day while many return as deportees. Families depend on the remittances of family members working outside the country, but the current economic downturn has radically diminished the ability of workers to earn enough to send home. The “immigration crisis” here in the US has led to desperation for the young people who have no hope of finding work at home; so many of them were children when Ann lived in Guarjila. This March I was able to bring a check for $8,000 for the Clinic through your help and a generous contribution from the Loretto Community’s Special Needs Fund. We need to raise this amount again for 2009. Hopefully you will be able to continue to give to match Ann’s birth anniversary (62 this July). Perhaps a donation of $15 is more within your budget. Please help us keep the Clinic alive and well in Guarjila. In Solidarity, Marilyn Lorenz
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