Semi-Permanent Roofing and Apprenticeship Program

The construction of three ceilings and the installation of essential home infraestructure components like light bulbs, electrical wiring, light switches, among others. The house owners were subcontracted and supervised by an architect and a contractor from the community. This has helped house owners have the means to pay for their own home terminations. Community leaders originally estimated that phase 1 would be completed by March 2019. However, so much progress has already been done, they are aiming to begin phase 2 by mid-January of 2019.

Additional progress reported:

• Excavation of a common well
• Installation of a solar energy system
• Line of blocks and soil using recycled bitumen for the camper’s floor base
• The camper has been installed and has energy, water, and gas service and it is ready to shelter a family during the next phase of the project
• A water pipeline, the electrical wiring, doors, floors, a shower, a toilet, and a bathroom sink have been installed in the house for orphan children

UPDATE #1

We believe strategic alliances are key to Puerto Rico’s sustainable recovery. A few weeks ago, we partnered with Sol es Vida, the leading community organization at “Villas del Sol” in the municipality of Toa Baja.

 We are so inspired by the community’s resiliency and how they came together to help each other clean debris and rebuild their houses. Villas del Sol is building a global model of community driven success. However, there’s still a lot of work to be done.

 Before hurricane Maria, most of the households in the community were made of wood and zinc and had been built informally based on the limited income each family had. Even the houses of owners who managed to build walls in cement had zinc roofs that collapsed during the storm.

 With your help, we are supporting the community’s efforts. They will be able to build houses that are safe, they will learn how to build in a resilient way and more jobs will be created in the community. The houses would go from being an informal construction to a more secure and resistant one, using the design of architect Elio Martínez, who is also supervising the construction in collaboration with a certified contractor from the same community.

 The scope of the project seeks to directly impact 14 low-income families that are still recovering from the devastation of the hurricane. The plan is to build 7 concrete roofs, reconstruct one house that is partially built, and build 6 houses for families that completely lost their homes.

 We have selected the families we are going to help and the model we are going to use.

 Below are the houses that will be fixed with cement roofs and renderings of the seven homes that will be built.

• Update_Global_Giving_.pdf (PDF)