One morning, a concerned mother and father arrived at Casa Jackson with their youngest child. Lidia, 18 months old, was weak and frail. She was immediately admitted to Casa Jackson to begin recovering from severe malnutrition. As Lidia sobbed upstairs, too sad to be comforted by hugs from our volunteers, her parents told us their story.

Lidia’s father is a migrant coffee bean picker, earning Q35 (about $4.30) per day to feed Lidia, her mother, and her ten siblings. Two other children passed away in infancy. Saving another child from a similar fate dragged the family into medical debt. Lidia’s siblings, ages 2 to 17, spend much of their day alone while their mother helps their father with his back-breaking work.

A couple days later, Lidia’s parents brought her younger siblings to visit her in Casa Jackson. We gave them each a bath, a check-up and new shoes and clothing. The family returned to their temporary home on the coffee farm with a large bag of oatmeal from our pantry and clothing and shoes for the other siblings. Their home? A large horse stable with migrant families living in each stall. The 13 members of Lidia’s family share one stall.

We are determined to find a way to help these loving parents provide a better life for their children. They are receiving a weekly donation of vegetables, rice and beans, and the children will be enrolled in “summer camp” activities at the Dreamer Center. Lidia’s mother is the newest member of our Mothers’ Club, a support group for impoverished women.

And any day now, Lidia will leave Casa Jackson healthy, returning to her large family. Sadly, they will move on to another coffee farm when her father’s contract ends in February. While they will not be with us long enough to be “lifted out of poverty through education,” her parents are infinitely grateful for the opportunity to take their small, first step up.

You can help Lidia’s family take this first step up out of poverty on October 19 during our online Matching Funds Challenge on Global Giving. That day only, Global Giving will match all donations up to $1000 at 30%. There are bonus prizes for the projects that have the most donors and raise the most money that day. For Lidia’s sake, we’d like to win those bonuses. Please, remember to visit Global Giving on October 19 to donate. Take a second to share Lidia’s story with your friends and family.

Below is a photo of some of Lidia’s brothers and sisters in front of their “home,” or the horse stall that all 15 family members are currently living in. Stop this inhumane treatment NOW.