Cuatro Palos is a community with a cooperative that goes by the same name and five years ago, with the approval of the Council of the Ejido where they live, refurbished an old chapel to open a small restaurant run by enterprising local women with the drive to overcome their circumstances and to gain a certain amount of economic independence.
One of the founders is Doña María Irene Aguas Melchor, the eldest of the cooperative’s twelve members. Working towards the shared goals of the project, each member has their obligations and each tourist who arrives to enjoy the amazing views, a meal and to walk the trail are greeted and guided by Doña María or one of her peers. Despite serious health issues with her heart, Doña María has 5 children who live in Queretaro City and took a few months to recuperate and has returned to work recently. At 70 years young, she lives alone with her husband and looks forward to building and offering lodging to tourists in the next few months.
After more than a year of negotiations on behalf of the cooperative, our team accompanied the women to a meeting of their Ejido´s Council, the local authorities in tourism and the local government. As a result of this meeting an act was signed by all concerned authorizing the construction and management of the cabin by the Cuatro Palos Cooperative. The women are very content and excited to start learning and building. In the coming weeks they will begin to prepare the site, so stay tuned and see how this project becomes a reality.
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