By Leo Montecinos

Walking the streets and alleyways of the city of Valparaiso has always a good sightseeing outing; however, ever since the morning of Saturday, February 27th, the outing has changed from touristic to horrifying.

This time on our walk we saw cracked streets and destroyed homes, downed communication lines, water shortage, injured people, death and families who lost everything. This is the result of one of the most intense earthquakes ever registered in the history of Chile.

In the city of Valparaiso, the damages are palpable; homes that have lost their facades, mounds of rubble, broken glass, and above all else, the worried faces of our people. That is what we saw on our tour of the city. “Don’t leave us. Please help us,” a passer-by implored with anguish upon recognizing we were from Children International.

As we continued on, a phone call informed us that a volunteer had lost her home. We quickly made our way to her house... We found ourselves at a desolate scene.

Nevertheless, comfort and hope aren’t totally absent. “The most important thing is that my family is okay,” María Jara told us with a mix of sadness and satisfaction. María is an outstanding volunteer for Children International. “The policemen came to visit my home, and they told me that I had to leave, that I couldn’t keep living here anymore.”

María, along with her family, went to live temporarily with her mother, while they wait to regroup and overcome this tremendous hardship. Her daughter, Javiera Sandoval, doesn’t want to go home. “She’s very scared. She doesn’t want to go back to that place,” says María. At just four years old, Javiera will never forget what she went through in the early morning hours of Saturday, February 27th.

Today, Chile is sad. Valparaiso is sad. Her people are sad and frightened. Aftershocks are common place, yet the the outpour of kindness from every corner of the world is comforting. It is comforting to know that so many people care about this little country, which despite it’s difficulties, will find a way to keep moving forward... and without a doubt, we will!

Leopoldo is our Communications Coordinator in Valparaíso, Chile.