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Youth en route to Mexico for Heart Surgery
“I want him to live,” said the teary-eyed grandmother of 11 year-old Vicente Arturo Aguilar Hernández at the local airport’s boarding gate yesterday, moments before their departure for Mexico City where he will undergo life-saving heart surgery.
For the past eight years, the young adolescent’s health has been precarious. The congenital malformation, to be corrected during the surgery, was addressed at birth by means of a heart valve implant long overdue for replacement since he turned three.
Economic hardships forced him to postpone surgery but his grandmother, Francisca Isabel González, dedicated her time to ‘knocking on doors’ looking for assistance.
In spite of the fact that most doors did not answer her call, she did not lose faith in her endeavor. This past Children’s Day, she approached a group which had gathered to celebrate the occasion at Lomas de Polco, where the two live.
There she explained her situation and was able to achieve in a single month what she’d been unable to do in several years: ensure that her grandson receive the medical attention he needs. Although the 59 year-old grandmother’s main concern is for her grandson’s heart condition, she also stated that she suffered from a ruptured eardrum, resulting in a significant loss of hearing.
She added, however, that the condition is to be addressed after his operation.
They boarded the plane, yesterday, which would transport them both to Mexico City, where the boy will be admitted to the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social’s (IMSS) Hospital Siglo XXI (Mexican Institute of Social Security’s [IMSS] 21st Century Hospital) which specializes in cardiology. They hope that he will be able to regain his health, completely.
Andrea Rivas Álvarez, head of Social Service Assistance Project Implementation for the Fundación Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra, has accompanied them on their journey towards remedying Vicente’s health. The boy showed physical signs of weariness as he walked from the parking lot to the boarding gate.
But this was only one example of the hurdles the two had to clear yesterday morning. Police and military checkpoint activities in the neighboring locality of Anapra also caused them to arrive late to the airport.
“We learned of their plight by virtue of the fact that we carry out many programs for the foundation at Lomas de Polco, this past Children’s Day the dear grandma approached us, as a last resort, and told us what had been going on,” she said.
It turned out the woman had asked assistance from the General Hospital, the Municipality and other organizations, to no avail.
One organization in the United States reached out to help them, going so far as to clear their immigration status, but a few days before they were to travel to an American hospital the answer came back to Francisca as a “resounding no.”
Exhausted, she nonetheless approached employees of the foundation and asked for their assistance and they were determined to help her and her grandson.
They sought a hospital with a medical doctor, both here and in El Paso, who could perform the operation, with no luck.
When all seemed lost, things turned for the better.
They learned that the IMSS’s Siglo XXI had the equipment and the staff to perform the operation, so they contacted them to ask for their support.
Posted in Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation Makes a Difference for Kids
Commencing with the next school year, 2 thousand children in 11 preschools located in the southern and northwestern parts of the city will benefit from daily breakfast services including milk, yogurt and cereal thanks to a three-month long drive held by patrons of Oxxo stores for Fundación Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra’s Children’s Food and Nutrition Program.
In all, the convenience stores collected 751 thousand 734.82 pesos during the months of March, April and May, which guarantees breakfast meals for city children who are most in need, for a period of at least four months; this, according to a statement issued yesterday by Verónica Jiménez, Director of the Fundación Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra, during the award presentation ceremony.
“We’d like to thank the patrons for, this, the largest contribution to date; thank for your support in helping bring about change. We promise that your funds will be put to good use,” said Jiménez.
Thousands of children, who would otherwise due to violence and unemployment go days without eating, may now benefit from a healthy breakfast and take full advantage of their education, thanks to this donation.
“Studies made available to us show that, aside from being more disposed to the learning process, children with access to a proper breakfast also have better attendance and are late to class less often, with incidents of playground violence being dramatically reduced,” she pointed out.
She further stated that children skipping breakfast, or not having eaten dinner the night before, show signs of anxiety, aggression, and tend to act out against their peers, while those who’ve eaten breakfast are shown to be calm and more willing to help each other.
She added that among the 4 thousand children currently benefiting from the program’s services, cases of malnutrition, from mild to severe, we found to be evident, such that many have been handled through the appropriate channels and given supplements as part of their nutrition.
Students from the Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra kindergarten will be among the 2 thousand newly benefiting from the program. The director reassured those in attendance that she will continue ‘knocking on doors’ in order to secure funding for the program beyond the current four months.
Posted in Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
JMAS launches its ‘Water For All’ program with Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
The Junta Municipal de Agua y Saneamiento (Municipal Sewerage and Water Board) announced the launch of its “Water For All” program this week. It will distribute clean drinking water and donate one thousand water tanks each holding 750 liters (approx. 198 gallons) of water.
The purpose of the program is to benefit families who, due to the geographical location of their homes, lack access to clean drinking water and a sewage system.
The local government office issued a statement noting that it will support Fundación Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra’s program by distributing water and delivering water tanks each holding 200 liters (approx. 53 gallons) to residents of the Bello Horizonte settlement.
Nora Elena Yu, president of JMAS, announced that the “Water For All” program will distribute clean drinking water and donate one thousand water tanks each holding 750 liters (approx. 198 gallons) of water to the Campesina, Villa Esperanza and El Centauro settlements, among others.
She stated that the “Water For All” program is by request of César Duarte Jáquez, State Governor, and is ongoing through the summer. She cautioned against the misuse of water and the water tanks, so that families may reap their full benefit. According to reports by the local government office, 6 thousand 48 families in 20 settlements throughout the city benefit from the service delivered by cistern truck. In winter months six water bins each holding 200 liters (approx. 53 gallons) are delivered per family, per week and in summer months, eight water bins each holding 200 liters (approx. 53 gallons.) In addition to the settlements previously mentioned, one finds Granjas del Desierto with 583 families, Granjas Unidas with 303, Kilómetro 28, with 433 families, Kilómetro 29, with 858, Polo Gamboa, with 11, Valle Dorado, with 131, Santa Elena, 132, Poleo Alto, with 101 and Plazuela de Acuña, with 337.
Posted in Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
Miguel Zaragoza Fuentes Family: The Gas Pipe Confiscation in San Diego
The gas pipe which was confiscated last week near San Diego, and which carried a four-ton load of cocaine, could be part of an extensive drug trafficking operation, according to a statement issued Wednesday by a United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) official.
“This could be the tip of the iceberg,” said special agent Julius Beretta, who heads the DEA’s Southern California office.
North American Customs agents discovered the cocaine, valued at 262.5 million dollars, within a gas pipe belonging to “Hidro Gas de Juárez” on October 3rd at the Otay Mesa port of entry, near San Diego. The pipe was initially held because it was 7,700 pounds above the weight limit.
Hidro Gas belongs to the Miguel Zaragoza Fuentes family, one of the wealthiest families in Mexico. Hidro Gas has subsidiaries throughout Mexico, in many Central American countries, and the state of Florida.
Bobbie Cassidy, Customs spokeswoman in San Diego stated that approximately 12 to 20 “Hidro Gas de Juárez” pipes are transported across the border to the United States through ports of entry in California. She stated that, in 1985, marijuana was discovered within Hidro Gas pipes on two separate occasions, hidden inside the spare tires.
Ken Squires, Customs inspector in El Paso, said that an average of 50 “Hidro Gas de Juárez” pipes are transported across Zaragoza Bridge every day. “We have found small quantities of marijuana aboard some of these shipments”, he said, “enough for the driver’s personal consumption. Once we discovered heroin adhered to the side of the beading. We pay special attention to these pipes, seeing as the potential for hidden objects increases. Representatives for the company in the United States, however, have trained us quite well in the detection of any abnormalities specific to these tanks, going so far as to show us how to open them.”
Beretta stated, via telephone interview from San Diego, that he was one of the first to witness the pipe prior to its opening at the port of entry and saw no evidence that the seal had been compromised.
Posted in Uncategorized
Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation Thanks Mayor
In 2006, the Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation thanked Mayor Hector Murguia Lardizabal for his assistance in finding a solution to the problem that Mr. Pedro Zaragoza Fuentes had with his estate located in the “Anapra” region.
As recounted by Mr. Pedro Zaragoza Fuentes, “Likewise, members of the “Comité Procreación Granjas Lomas del Polco, A. C.” (Procreation Committee of Polco Hills Farmland, Civil Association), represented by Mr. Faustino Olivares Nava, brought the same matter to Mayor Murguía’s attention.
All parties were fully aware that Mayor Murguía had, since the early days of his administration, expressed profound interest in providing legal certainty to families displaced within the region. As part of his intervention, he appointed Carlos Morales Villalobos, Director General of Urban Development, to the task so that he, in full use of his physical and mental faculties as well as regulatory powers, hold immediate talks towards a settlement, one whose main objective was to resolve the longstanding dilemma and find a solution which would benefit the inhabitants of that part of the city.”
As a result of the mayor’s actions, there were many benefits. Ten hectares were donated on behalf of the Fundaction “Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra” to develop a housing complex. They received aid as well in the form of supplies for the self-building of housing. They constructed a kindergarten, an elementary school, a church and a commercial strip.
Posted in Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
Pedro Zaragoza: Featured Video
This story is just one more example of the impunity with which one can act in Mexico. Since almost eight years ago, a group of squatters seized several farms in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua.
Posted in Uncategorized
Sowers of Peace Project Helps Teens in Lomos de Poleo
The youthful head of the Youth Expression Sowers of Peace Project, Grezia Andrade Meza, observed the actors in the play “Everything in its Place.” To Meza’s satisfaction one of the objects of the project was met: the promotion of art among the teens attending Federal High School district 14 in the town of Lomas de Poleo, where Pedro Zaragoza actively works to help the people, through the staging and performance of the play.
“I feel that the project has made significant advances since I got involved in it, that each of the actors personally changed a lot and that the project achieved its goal of giving students a new lease on life,” said Meza in an interview.
Meza continued: “We had wonderful results, including first of all changing the attitude of the young people.”
For instance, one of the actors is Mélida, who has been an orphan for several years already despite being still just a teen. He comes from a town called Tabasco. He was adopted by a humble family that welcomed him and gave him the opportunity to study. Because of his life’s circumstances Mélida became introverted and sometimes even hostile. But his participation in the play allowed him to approach peers and form new friendships.
“Before he was quite introverted, but now he has changed a lot,” said Grecia.
Mélida’s foster mother is thankful for the Youth Expression Sowers of Peace Project, saying that she has seen a remarkable positive change in Mélida, with his friends, family, environment, and even his life itself.
Posted in Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
New Community Center Inaugurated
A new community center was inaugurated on Friday located in the Francisco I. Modero colony west of the city. Named the Francisco I. Modero community center, it was inaugurated with authorities from three levels of the government. The opening includes the Secretary of Social Development Heriberto Felix Guerra, Governor Cesar Duarte, the Mayor Hector Murguia, businessman Pedro Zaragoza and Magdy Martinez of the United Nations Organization.
Next, there will be an intervention program which will include 141 actions that are related to social development, public safety, education, health, economy, sports and work. The goal is to benefit some 290,000 inhabitants living in ten nearby colonies.
As Jaime Munoz, the manager in the municipality that deals with Targeted Intervention Project, said, “The intent is to measure indicators to see what impact the actions and to replicate it elsewhere.”
See some of the many activities that the Pedro Zaragoza Viscarra Foundation has done in the area.
Posted in Uncategorized
The Development of Water, Sewage and Drainage in Lomas de Poleo
In November of 2009 in the town of Lomas de Poleo Alto, an important project was implemented by the Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation. The community developed the necessary infrastructure, through the use of temporary employment and the creation of jobs, to install a working water supply, drainage and sewage system for the welfare of the residents. Not only did the people of the area receive a life-changing need for their community’s development as well as new residential area, but thanks to the Pedro Zaragoza Foundation, those who worked on the project also benefitted from the receipt of three months’ worth of salary during the course of the project.
Posted in Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
Self-Sufficiency with the Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation
In addition to the many other charitable projects that the Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation has been doing, they are offering residents of the area a way to raise themselves up. There is a famous expression that says, “”Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.” This is what Pedro Zaragoza is doing.
As of June of 2010, community members have been encouraged to present projects that are in need of financial resources from SEDESOL. Businesses that have, so far, received support include grocery stores, locksmiths, blacksmiths, stationery stores and others. The goal is to spur economic development in the area and to help the people to be self-sufficient. The total investment in this project by the Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation has been $362,500.00.
Posted in Pedro Zaragoza Vizcarra Foundation