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Enterprising Women
Bonita Springs group endures through hurricane recovery
Prior
to Hurricane Fay in August, the Manna Christian RV Park in Bonita Springs was a
place where a group of enterprising women met on a regular basis. But when the
park was flooded by the storm, members of the Manna Christian Women's Enterprise
Project not only lost their place to gather, most lost their homes and
belongings.
Hispanic Services of Catholic Charities in Bonita Springs organizes the
group of low-income Latino women who until the flood lived in the RV Park and
surrounding areas. The goal of the group is to provide the members an
opportunity to learn English and crafting skills, develop a source of income
from selling the craft items, build a support group, and connect to Catholic
Charities programs and services. Today most of the women and their families are
struggling to recover, but the Manna Christian Women's
Enterprise Project endures.
“Manna Christian RV Park was a vital community that
supported each other and now they are being separated and dismantled. Their
sense of security is gone,” said Chris Nolan, District Director of Catholic
Charities of Lee County. “They cannot afford to move into the local low-income
housing as many are either unemployed or work as day laborers. Their wages are
unpredictable and they are hard to place,” she said. The cost of living in the
trailer park was considerably lower than the cost of affordable housing
available in Bonita Springs.
Initially
when the hurricane blew through Southwest Florida, Catholic Charities, St. Leo
the Great Parish and the local Christian Brothers, responded immediately to the
desperate families forced to flee the Manna Christian RV Park with shelter, food
and clothing. Now, with the majority of the trailers condemned in the park, the
focus is on offering long-term care.
Catholic Charities, along with the Salvation Army, Lutheran Services and Bonita Springs Amigos Center, are banning together to find affordable housing for the more than 1,000 displaced people. Funding from the United Way of Lee County and the Southwest Community Foundation of Lee County is being dispensed through Catholic Charities to help victims of Hurricane Fay resettle into permanent housing.
Right after the storm, the Manna Christian Women’s Enterprise Project resumed weekly meetings at the Red Cross Shelter set up to help flood victims. Recently, the group has been able to gather again at the reopened RV park community center and at an apartment complex where many of the displaced women and their families are now living. “They have not given up,” said Nolan. “They need each other now more than ever.”
Catholic Charities volunteers and staff teach the women crafting skills so they can create trendy hats, purses, rugs, water bottle holders, scarves and shirts, flip flops and more. They sell the items at area craft fairs, flea markets, and festivals. “The women not only have the opportunity to make much needed extra money for their families, but they have learned new skills and become a valuable support group to each other,” Nolan said. “For some, this is their only outing all week long.”
Maria Brito has been a member of the Manna Christian Women’s Enterprise Project since it started a year ago. “I got married last year and learned how to make the favors for my wedding at this group,” she said with her newly learned English speaking skills. “I also made my own veil.”
Brito said she pays bills with the money she earns but that is not why she keeps coming back to the group every week. “I like the friends I have made, “she said. “Otherwise I would be very lonely. We take care of each other and always check in with each other to make sure everything is OK.”
Hispanic Services of Catholic Charities is accepting donations of money and food to continue to assist the victims of Hurricane Fay. Donations can be sent to or dropped off at the agency located at 27050 Old 41 Road, Bonita Springs, FL 34135. For more information, or to find out where the crafts items of the Manna Christian Women’s Enterprise Project are on sale, please call the agency at 239-390-0687.
Photo #1: Leticia Godoy, (left to right), Gloria Gonzalez and Nancy Perez work diligently on the crafts they plan to sell at area flea markets, craft fairs and festivals.
Photo #2: Members of the Manna Christian Women's Enterprise Project show off the items they have worked on for the past several months.