Page 17 - FoC 2024 Summer Newsletter

Custom Home Panels

Bob Cikanek Carpentry Shop

In 2017, FoC made an important decision to move away from building estera
(woven reed) homes and to begin to build wooden homes with cement floors.
This change was paramount to our growth as a faith-based, community
development organization. It also meant that homes would be significantly
more costly; we wondered if our community would support the changes. The
Friends of Chimbote community of supporters responded with generosity and
compassion! Just in the last few years, FoC and ACAF have partnered to build
more than 55 homes in Upper Cambio Puente. These homes are significantly
safer, cleaner and will last 10 to 15 times longer at about 4 times the cost.

The ACAF and FoC teams were buoyed by the success of the wooden
prefabricated homes, but still asked, “What can we do better?” Led by the
curiosity of the ACAF team, we have taken the next step in our home building that is more flexible and more cost efficient.
From our Bob Cikanek Carpentry Shop, we are now building and designing new homes with custom-built panels. This has solved
an important obstacle of building standard homes from prefabricated walls purchased in Lima. These premade walls were
proving difficult if not possible to use on the steep slopes of Upper Cambio Puente and other areas we serve where poverty is
most severe.

Our team now works to assess the site where the home will be built and then custom makes the floor plan. These new plans
include models that are “split-level” and “two rooms” with an open air hallway bridging the gap and accounting for the massive
slopes we are working on today.

Not only are these homes more flexible, this process is also providing more income for the people of Chimbote now engaged in
the fabrication process. All of this was made possible by the investment of Saint Michael’s Church in Prior Lake, Minnesota whose
consistent and generous support allowed for an investment of materials to begin this initiative. We believe we will save 15-
20% per home, and also provide steady work for 2-4 carpenters and opportunities for young apprentices from the areas we are
serving. As we learn from this new process, there will surely be additional lessons that will lead to efficiencies and innovations!

Simple Act of Kindness

In April, Martha Villarreal and her children Kiara and Matias’s lives changed forever. The
Riverstone Church mission team from Bismarck ND, led by Pastor Sam Coleman spent
a week with Martha and the children building a home for them and creating life-long
friendships. ACAF recognized the great need that this single mother had and put her
in the “Better Life Better Home Project”. With this, Martha also will get assistance and
guidance from ACAF to make a
better life for her and the children.
Martha has enrolled herself in the
ACAF sewing school and has been
thrilled to learn a skill set to help
provide for her family.

When the Riverstone Church
Mission Team learned of Martha’s
dream to be a seamstress, a surprise was in the works! At the home
dedication, the Riverstone team presented Martha with a brand new
sewing machine including a supply of fabric. There was not a dry eye
in this home as Martha proclaimed that she wanted to make each of
her new friends a pair of pajamas.

friendsofchimbote.org PAGE 17