Our Mission
Our mission is to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of children and their families, in order to break the chains of poverty, violence, and family breakdown.
Who We Are
We are a community who love God, love children and want to see the community of San Francisco de San Isidro de Heredia uplifted.
Our story began in 1985 when Mr. Eliecer Bonilla and his wife Ana Herrera founded the Jesus Pan de Vida Church of the Nazarene. For the past 35+ years, they have dedicated themselves to serving children and families in need.
In the past few years, several church and community members, led by Scott Noguera, have embraced a vision to build a Children’s Center that will provide emotional, spiritual and practical support to families. For years, we have prayed, fundraised and worked hard to bring this dream to reality.
We have built a community center with our own hands, week after week, in hopes of serving children. We also partner with community groups and schools to serve young and old with the love of Christ.
The Problem
Too many Costa Rican children in neighborhoods outside of San Juan face crippling poverty resulting in malnutrition, an inability to thrive academically and struggling families.
In 2021, UNICEF reported that 1 in 3 Costa Rican children under 18 lives in poverty.
Government officials, school principals and teachers, and parents are overwhelmed and need more support to help children succeed.
Our Solution
Through our children’s center, we will provide for children’s physical, emotional and spiritual needs.
Our center will offer meals for food-insecure children and after-school childcare for working parents. Our tutors will support children’s academic learning. We plan to provide support for families through workshops and counseling. We invest in children’s health through physical activity, healthy eating and activities that build self-esteem. Through it all, we show and teach children about God’s love.