Serving 1,765 elderly in our In-Home Care Program

Thanks to the PADAM of Coltauco: "Chlorine, food and even coal have been brought to us".

The Home Care Program for the Elderly (PADAM) of Hogar de Cristo in Coltauco, a region of just around 18,000 inhabitants, has become a beacon of hope after the overflow of the Cachapoal River in the O'Higgins region. From the provision of toiletries and food, to emotional support and medicine, its members offer a helping hand to the most vulnerable older adults affected by the emergency.

"The water entered through the kitchen, then went to the living room, bathrooms and bedrooms. There was nowhere to walk. We lost practically everything," says Sofía (68), from her home in the commune of Coltauco,  O'Higgins region. "That day was sad. It reminded me of the Valdivia earthquake of 1960. It was very similar: the water, the mud, the power cuts."

-Where are you living now?

-We are still in the house, we are not leaving. We were lucky that our little bed was dry and we are sleeping there with Guillermo, my husband, who is struggling to get the mud out of the house, but you know what...? What worries me most is the humidity, because we can't get sick... But well, PADAM has become a beacon of hope.

The recent rains have been the heaviest in the last 30 years, causing flooding, isolating communities and claiming two lives.

-Have you received help here in Coltauco?

-Yes, this tragedy brought out the positive side of Chileans: solidarity... For us, PADAM has become a beacon of hope, they have brought me merchandise, blankets, dry clothes, boots, medicines. We have received a lot of help, a lot, they have even brought us chlorine and charcoal. They took me out of the house with a backhoe, because I did not want to leave my house the day everything was flooded, people are so good.

PADAM has become a beacon of hope, because it provides support to thirty vulnerable older adults in the commune, ten of whom have suffered total losses due to the floods, being forced to move to the homes of relatives or to shelters.

Monserrat, head of Hogar de Cristo's social operation in O'Higgins, concludes: "Although Hogar de Cristo is not an organization dedicated to emergencies in catastrophes, it has never and will never stop collaborating and contributing with our logistics and experience to help the poorest and most vulnerable people in the country. Those people who, on occasions like this, are always the most harmed, the victims, the dead and even the missing. 

At 76 years of age and thanks to the support she receives from Hogar de Cristo's Home Care Program for the Elderly (PADAM), Beatriz is determined to finish her studies, which only went up to the third grade. "From the age of four to 12, I grew up in hospitals," she says. Her story is marked by illness and resilience.

In October, Beatriz  will celebrate 15 years living in the Manuel Bustos camp in Viña del Mar, the largest in the country. And in the midst of its steep and dusty streets, it is hard to imagine her moving from one place to another due to the enormous difficulties she has walking. She now uses a wheelchair and canes.

"From the age of four to twelve, I grew up in hospitals. Only when the doctor gave me permission,  I could go to school. Since I was a child, I walked with crooked knees. She was born with hip dysplasia that was never treated. "I walked just like the ducklings". At the age of 11, she was operated on at the old Deformes Hospital. Twice. And she was evicted. They told her father she would never be able to walk.

"My dad remarried and my stepmother was a very good, excellent woman. I told my father, who was illiterate and devoted to the Virgin of Lo Vasquez, that I was going to walk. Hiddenly I began to practice to stand up, every day I stood up with the help of a floor. When I saw my dad coming, I would sit on the bed. One Sunday I surprised the three of them: I moved the floor and started to walk. They all started crying.

Beatriz asked her father to make her some canes at the Metalmar factory where he worked. "The masters made me those canes and with that I could start living."

But she was in too much of a hurry. At 15 she became pregnant by a man 10 years older who was in the Navy and, although he wanted to marry, she turned him down. "He was a drinker and a womanizer, what life was he going to give me? The doctors told me I should have an abortion, that my body would not resist the pregnancy, but I also refused. If God sent me a daughter, there must be a reason."

Beatriz worked to support her daughter, always as a nanny and in two-story houses. "It was like a curse to have to climb stairs," she adds. Indeed, today her 60-year-old daughter is her main support. She has given her a grandchild and a great-grandchild who are her greatest joy.

GOING FOR A WALK ON THE PAVEMENT

She remembers perfectly well when Hogar de Cristo knocked on her door to offer her to be part of PADAM in the Manuel Bustos camp. Today there are 30 older adults who are bedridden or moderately to severely dependent, who are being visited by the entire team, which includes six monitors.

"When they came from Hogar de Cristo, I was very happy. I was happy to join, because although my daughter comes to see me, she has to work and can't take care of me all the time. Five years ago I had cancer and that is why my health has weakened even more", she says.

Her daughter admits that her mother has also had some depression. "That's why I am very grateful for this support for her and for me. It's not good for her to be alone. On weekends I always come to stay with her, but during the week, I can't."

Thanks to the PADAM support she receives, Beatriz now dreams of going out to downtown Viña del Mar. "I miss the pavement, don't you see that there are no paved streets here," she says, saying goodbye with a smile.