Breaking Bread with Friends

El Barial is a village on the top of the mountain in an area known as Ciudad Segundo Montes located in the eastern part of El Salvador. There is a single road leading in and out of El Barial. It is only 1.5 miles long but the incline and the poor condition of the surface cause our micro bus to have to work for over half an hour to climb into the sky and meet with the friends we made there last year.

When we met the people who live in El Barial in 2007, we listened to their stories. We heard how these families were forced from their homes due to the heavy violence in this area during the civil war. We listened as they told us how they had all lost family members, mostly husbands, sons and brothers. We heard them tell us of how they all became refugees in Honduras and what it was like to live together in Refuge Camps in Colomoncagua.

We were very aware of the sadness in the eyes and spirits of these people as they went on to tell us that once the peace accord was signed, they were resettled here, on top of the mountain. There was less violence here at that point and they were safe. Later, they were told they could return to their original homes but since they had been in exile together, had survived together and had learned to live as a community, they choose to stay here, on top of the mountain. The fact that there was no work, limited access to health care and huge challenges as far as nutrition did not change their minds. They choose to stay together as a community. Survivors all.

As they talked last year of their current condition we learned that they lived on corn and salt. We heard that many of the children were suffering from amoebic infection from the water and that malnutrition and illness forced them to bury loved ones regularly. They told us that if they could only get started on a project they knew God would restore hope to their community and they would begin to truly recover from the trauma that the war had left them with.

We met with Miguel Ventura and his wife Evelyn. Miguel had been a Catholic Priest before the war and now he and his wife work with communities like El Barial to start economic and vocational projects so that the communities may become self sustaining and vibrant once again through Christian Based Communities of El Salvador or CEBES. Miguel and Evelyn told us of a project to help the people of El Barial build a bakery and teach them to make and sell cakes. The people of our group set about raising over $3000.00 for this bakery project. We had no idea the impact this would have on this community.

When we returned this year, we saw hope. There were smiles and laughter, happy greetings and a bustling of activity that was absent on our last visit. Something was very different this year. We were welcomed back like old friends and we walked together through this village. When we got to the far side of the village we sat together in a circle and shared the news of both of our villages, El Barial and United States. While I can't recreate the feeling of the day, I can report the facts.

God blessed us in the United States group with the ability to raise the money. It was sent to the community and they bought an oven, work table, trays and pans and went to school to learn the mechanics of running a bakery. The team had been baking for about a month when we arrived. They bake three days and walk it down the mountain in baskets on their heads to sell for three days. They always sell all of what they make. They are currently trying to build the bakery's capacity so that they can make and sell more as they are only covering their costs at this point. Part of the challenge is that they can only walk a limited number of breads down the mountain. They are planning ways to build a bigger facility (they currently rent space in the back of a home). Our friends asked us to consider if we could help with that project and it's estimated $8,000.00 cost. It was a question asked not out of need, but out of cooperation and that motivation was clear and received. We sat and talked for 2 hours and shared stories of hope and joy. It had the feel of a planning session between friends.


As this bakery project has unfolded for the people of El Barial, other signs of hope are springing up. They have established a medical team to educate about boiling water, medications, and immunizations. They have a woman who works as a dentist, another who dispenses medicine and a third who teaches health related issues. There is a standing team now in place for future planning. They are researching how the community can plant other crops so that their diets are more nutritionally balanced. This team is called the Production Team and will help lead their community forward as they learn and grow. They have an education team in place that is very active in making sure that the young children of El Barial are given a solid foundation and seeking to build a scholarship fund so that they can all go on to high school or university. They are looking to get some computers into their school so that the kids will be familiar with them when they move on to higher education levels. They asked us to help them name this bakery that was bringing not only bread, but hope for a future and a sense of pride in their own accomplishments. This project was truly the light they needed to see to begin to move forward again. After some discussion someone suggested Manna. Everyone knew immediately that this was the right name. Bakery Manna. Manna supplied by God so that His people could be sustained in sufficiency while they moved out of exile and toward the promised land. Manna, a true gift from God delivered through the cooperation of peoples who had once been strangers but were now forever connected in friendship and miracles. And then we ate bread, together. Sweet bread that tasted of honey and friendship. Bread that left a distinct aftertaste of the Holy in your mouth. It was a true Communion.


Those are the facts. A miracle of hope. A people given sight of what they are able to accomplish with help from friends and God and the transformative power of that hope. We are not wonderful because we helped, we are called and we are blessed so we responded. The gift the people of El Barial gave us was so much bigger than any dollar amount we gave them, They invited us into their home, shared their stories with us, and trusted that we would return. When we did, we truly saw how great God is. We were witnesses to His healing power and the resiliency of his people. We were able to eat Manna. We could not say that before our visit.

God bless the Bakery Manna. May it continue to be a symbol of hope and a project that not only feeds people stomachs, but also their souls, their hearts and their friendships.


For more pictures of this wonderful day, click here.