A new chapel for a rural parish
The parish of Saint Francis Xavier is in a very rural region of the Diocese of San Ignacio de Velasco, in the tropical eastern part of Bolivia. The people here are very poor and live mainly off traditional subsistence farming, and the region is largely undeveloped.
Juancito is one of the outstations belonging to the parish. It is a community of a little under 500 souls and only accessible by way of unmade roads. On feast days, Catholic faithful from the surrounding smaller settlements travel to Juancito to celebrate.
Until recently, there was only a very old chapel here, which had become far too small for the number of worshippers. It was in extremely poor condition and also had very little ventilation, making it suffocatingly hot inside. Over time, it had also become a shelter for bats, which were very difficult to get rid of. And finally, it was badly situated and hard to reach. What they needed was a considerably larger chapel on a site that was also more easily accessible.
The local faithful play a very active part in the life of the Church and practise their faith ardently. They sacrificed their own time and money for this dream of having a “proper” church and gathered local building materials such as wood and mud and invested all their skills and hard work. But their efforts and financial resources were still not enough. Thanks to the $20,700 donated by ACN benefactors, we were able to help them finally fulfil their dream, and as a result, there is great rejoicing in Juancito! Our heartfelt thanks to all of you for your generosity!
