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TRANSFORMATION........Living out our Mission’s Purpose

Catalina Tiburcio Benites

The Special Recipe is

“Love”

Sometimes you come across a story
that completely fulfills our FoC Mission,
Vision and Values. The story of Catalina
Tiburcio Benites gives your mission
heart a huge tug knowing that YOU are
making a difference in people’s lives.
This is a story of Love, Perseverance,
Tradition and Family!
Catalina (41) has 3 children, William
(15), Fernanda (8), Susan (5 months). Santos decided to travel to Argentina to Light, Get Lit mission team that her
Catalina met Santos, her first love, when work in civil construction. He traveled distant dream was to have a bakery and
she was 16 years old. He was a young just before the pandemic began and bake bread for the community. From
man who was responsible and loving, ended up getting stuck there for over 8 a very young age, Catalina learned to
and they wanted to get married. But months, without work and with barely prepare artisan bread, watching her
her family would not allow their union enough to eat. Catalina did everything mother daily when she lived in Santiago
and they decided to send her to Lima to she possibly could to make money de Chuco, a skill that she had to put into
study and work, so that she would have including selling some of the items from practice again six months ago at home.
a better future. Catalina worked very the restaurant and sent what she could Santos got injured again and was out of
hard to make a life for herself and after to him so that he could buy food and work and Catalina generated income
some time she met a man and they had eventually return to his family. Catalina with the bread she was making. She
two children together, unfortunately and her children had to stay with her knew she could make more bread if she
their union was unhealthy and he was parents to survive. A year later, Santos had a larger, wood-burning, brick oven.
a very violent man and she had to file a was able to return to Peru. So with just Thanks to ACAF’s commitment to her
restraining order against him. the clothes on their backs they traveled family and the additional support from
Catalina continued to work hard for the to Cambio Puente and settled on a plot the mission team, Catalina’s dream
of land and began a life. There have
sake of her two young children. 6 years became a reality.
passed and by chance Catalina ran into been many ups-n-downs in their lives, Now in the back of her home there is
Santos (her first love) once again in injuries, illnesses, a new baby but their a brick, wood-burning stove (a special
Lima after all of those years. Catalina love for each other and their family thanks to Steve on the team). Steve
and Santos rekindled their romance stays strong. only asked that when he comes back to
and have been together ever since. This February 2023 Catalina and her visit that he gets a piece of bread and
They opened a restaurant together family received the blessing of a new she shares her secret recipe. Which she
in Lima, but it was not sufficient to home with the help of the Be the Light, replies the special recipe is “Love”.
support them financially. Get Lit Mission Team. Catalina was
overjoyed and shared with the Be the Making bread is an inheritance that

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