Urania, a student in JustHope’s University Scholarship program, has completed her coursework in Education and is on the cusp of receiving her degree. She is writing her thesis, and after she defends it, her university work will be complete.

In October, JustHope provided funds for the "Food Bonus for families in extreme poverty" project of ACOPADES, our partners in Chacraseca, which has seen increasing hunger due to the pandemic, increasing costs, the war in Ukraine, and hurricane damage to crops.

Through new English enrichment classes at the Chacraseca Cultural Center, Patricia gives back to the community and programs that formed her.

This is the third year in a row that teachers from our partner community of Chacraseca have won best-teacher contests sponsored by the Ministry of Education.

An encounter between three individuals encapsulates JustHope’s approach: Recognizing that all parties have important contributions to make in a partnership.

Partners in the U.S. help alleviate hunger in Nicaragua, because an empathy of Solidarity includes a decision to act.

Access to a school printer: a small thing that makes a huge difference in the lives of Chacraseca's teachers and students.

The patron saint of farmers is celebrated in a big way in the agricultural community of Chacraseca every May. This story includes a short video of the parade and celebration.

Save lives by supporting a new community truck in Chacraseca. Welcome to our new director, Ali Hawkins! The triplets from La Flor have a birthday. And more...

Nimia puts her entrepreneurial skills to good use by opening a store to fill the need in her community.

Rosa Ojeda, a dedicated community leader in Chacraseca and shaper of JustHope, died last week. JustHope Founder Leslie Penrose remembers the important role that Rosa played in making JustHope the organization that it has become.

Chacraseca, one of JustHope's two main partner communities, is a sprawling agricultural area covering about 30 square miles (76 sq km) just to the east of the city of León. Since we often refer to Chacraseca's 12 Sectors, we wanted to offer some background on how Chacraseca and its sectors developed and got their names.

Jesus Guido was a leader in his community working tirelessly to fulfill his dreams and inspiring other leaders.

Claribel and her family's lives have changed thanks to running water in their house.

Lesbia is a hard-working wife, mother, grandmother, and leader for Chacraseca, the community where she lives and where she was born. She says, "The satisfaction of being a leader is working hand by hand with my community."

Ilce, a teacher in Chacraseca, talks about the struggles of teaching during the pandemic and what she holds dear from JustHope's cultural exchange trips.

Dr. Sampson improves his quality of care with a new air compressor.

COVID vaccine campaign runs at the clinic in Chacraseca for 2 days.

Abi and Lynne show how collaboration works for teaching music across borders.

I am Saraí de Los Ángeles Cajina Romero, and I am 8 years old. I am in 2nd grade and I am from a small sector in the community of Chacraseca called La Concepción. JustHope's backpack scholarships are important to me because...

Elba, our Social Enterprise Coordinator, witnessed this act of kindness on the flooded roads of Chacraseca. “It was dangerous,” she says, because the water was deep. “But it was beautiful… a small act filled with kindness and solidarity.”

by Elba Delgado, trans. Francis González

Ramona Francisca Manzanares, a resident of Nicaragua’s Miramar community, is a role model for women in JustHope’s microcredit program. However, this 74-year-old widow and mother of eight wasn’t always this confident. In fact, when she received her first $250 loan in 2014, she was so scared that she buried the money.

JustHope's education program has come alongside the children and teachers, expanding its efforts greatly in recent years. What started first with scholarships awarded to children grew to collections of books and supplies for donation to the schools. View a video about our Education programs and read a letter from a university scholarship participant in our monthly newsletter.

In Chacraseca, schools and families are often ill-equipped to give children quality education. Despite this, the many dedicated teachers in the community work tirelessly on behalf of their students. Often lacking sufficient supplies, such as books, textbooks, and paper, these teachers stretch all that they have to the best of their abilities on behalf of their students.

For one year, JustHope was unable to send medical or dental teams to Nicaragua (we are now booking trips again!), but that doesn’t mean that JustHope abandoned health programs in our partner communities. In this newsletter, we look at five critical health initiatives that continue and introduce you to a family who benefits from JustHope's health programs.

Handwashing stations, also called Tippy-Taps, are a low-cost solution for schools that do not otherwise have a place for children to clean their hands during the school day. Fashioned from low-cost and readily found materials, they are easy to install and maintain.

Thanks to perseverance, prayer and a partnership between JustHope and the Northeast Ohio-based Hands United in Hope & Love, a joint ministry of St. John of the Cross and St. Mary Parishes, people in a remote area of Chacraseca, Nicaragua, who once worshiped in a makeshift sanctuary will soon gather in a permanent chapel.

Soluciones Comunitarias Nicaragua is a local social project supported by U.S. non-profit Community Empowerment Solutions.

Sonañdo Juntos Ferretería y Tienda

June 2020

In 2010, 30 women in our microcredit program approached us with a new dream – a hardware store in Chacraseca. JustHope funded the building with a $10,000 donation and the store inventory with a $6,000 interest-free loan. All the women signed the note, and Ferretería Soñando Juntos (Dreaming Together Hardware Store) opened, aptly named for representing big dreams for a small but mighty group of women.

With farmers in Nicaragua facing severe crop loss due to climate change, our partners in Chacraseca decided to establish a Model Farm and Farmer Field School.

JustHope partners provide scholarships for primary school children and college students from our partner communities.

A group of 270 farmers from the furthest sectors in Chacraseca sent representatives to us with an urgent request to help them buy a new tractor.

At that time their only option for getting their fields ready to plant was to rent a tractor from someone in a nearby community, which is expensive, and they have to wait in a long line, often meaning they can't get their crops planted in time for the short spring growing season.

Baby Lizbeth was just 8 days old when a scorpion stung her. Normally, a scorpion sting hurts and can cause some dizziness, but Lizbeth was so small that the sting site immediately swelled and her heart started racing. Her little body was covered in sweat, and she started having difficulty breathing. Fortunately, the Chacraseca Clinic was open.