Hi Everyone,
Although writing this at the same time as our travel news we decided to make this seperate, for obvious reasons.
Our big news of late is that El Castillo is making some of its workers redundant – due to a big cut-back in the budget. Most of El Castillo’s support comes from Toybox in the UK, and with the economic situation at the moment, this support isn’t worth as much as it used to be – with the drop of the pound against the quetzal.
We have been saddened and in fact shocked by the news. Everyone at El Castillo only found out they could be losing their jobs on Friday and were told they would have to leave the following Tuesday! We’re worried by the lack of time everyone is getting to find a new job, and of course it’s been upsetting to see people who’ve become our friends being told they have to leave so soon.
- Right now, it’s Tuesday and we’re going out for dinner as a farewell for those made redundant on the Street Team. We feel uneasy and a bit useless, with nothing we can do to change all this, and it’s all a bit strange since we ourselves will be leaving in a month. We can see how some of the changes may be for the good, with a movement of two people who used to be on the Reintegration Team onto the Street Team – which means there will be a clearer view towards reintegration more quickly where possible. Nonetheless we are sad and concerned for the people losing their jobs, and our prayers are with them as they try to figure out where to go from here.
Everything else is continuing as normal, we are still at the refuge each weekend with the girls and continuing to go out on the streets with the Street Team during the week as well as Matt helping with the day process. As we head into our final month or so here, we’re intrigued to see how things will change in El Castillo. We’re looking forward to seeing some of the children we’ve worked with throughout our time here - progress and gain stability in their lives. We pray that God will use the current changes in El Castillo for good and that the teams will be strengthened and focused.
So please pray for El Castillo at this time, and we´ll keep you posted.
Love
Matt and Jo
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