Francisco Gomez has been running an old-fashioned blacksmith shop from his front yard for the past 15 years. His shop sign reads: “Los Fachos Blacksmith. We do every type of work. High quality. Good prices. And the best guarantee.” Los Fachos is a family nickname.
Francisco and his wife Xiomara are strong Christians today, but they have been Christians for only three years. A few years ago, at his wife’s urging, Francisco, Xiomara, and their three boys began attending a local Bible-believing church. Francisco and Xiomara soon gave their lives to the Lord and have been walking faithfully with God ever since. They are thrilled to have the Lord in their lives, and He has brought about many wonderful changes in their lives.
Their walk has been so impressive that their pastor, Carlos Zepeda, recommended them to the Society of the Good Shepherd for an interest-free microloan. Carlos himself is a former exemplary loan beneficiary. So Francisco applied for a loan, which we recently granted him. The loan has drastically improved his working conditions. In the past, Francisco was working out in the open. During the rainy season, it meant he was having to stand in the mud all day and often work in the rain. With the loan, he was able to pour a concrete slab for his front porch, from which he now works. He was also able to add a metal roof over the porch. So he no longer has to work out in the rain.
Francisco was able to do all the construction work himself, including the welding on the framework for the roof. He did the welding with the welding equipment he was able to purchase with part of the loan money. Francisco hopes to expand his shop even more in the future.
Francisco’s business up until this point has mainly been repairing tools. Most labor in Honduras is still done with hand tools (machetes, shovels, axes, hammers, and saws) rather than with power equipment. Workers take good care of their tools, as their livelihood depends upon them. Most workers cannot afford to purchase new tools when their old ones break or wear out. Instead, they get them repaired.
People come from all over Siguatepeque for Francisco’s services. He has rigged up an electric fan to heat up the coals to do iron and steel work. He then uses an old-fashioned anvil and hammer to beat the metal to the needed shape. He also has an assortment of other hand tools to do the work. Francisco charges about $7.00 for a shovel repair. Although this is extremely inexpensive by U. S. standards, $7.00 represents a little over half a day’s wage for a construction worker. However, workers are happy to pay the price. As Francisco asserts, and his customers know, their tools are better than new after his repairs!
As I have mentioned, Francisco used part of the loan to purchase some used welding equipment. This has enabled him to expand his business to other metal work like constructing metal roofs, repairing certain car parts, and building metal balconies. He is excited to continue expanding his business, which will help him to better provide for his family. For Francisco, it has been an example of Christians helping one another and a testimony of how God has blessed his life.
This month Francisco was able to make his first payment on his loan, and he and Xiomara could not sufficiently express their gratitude to God and to the donors who made this loan possible.
Julie Nyhoff de Valladares
The Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210 • (717) 349-7033
Click on the following link if you would care to make a donation to the work in Honduras: Honduras Donations