My Story

Hello! It’s a pleasure to introduce myself. My name is Manuel De La Cruz Riz. I was born on December 27th, 1961. I am 63 years old. I am a widower. My wife passed away eleven years ago. Unfortunately, she passed away when my son Victor was six months old; she died due to an illness and I did not know exactly what happened with her. I live with my son Victor Manuel. He is eleven years old. He has some mental problems and vision problems. Due to our limited resources, I have not carried him to a doctor. Besides that, he is doing well. I am not very well because some years ago I was diagnosed with an undefined neurological problem. I cannot walk by myself. I need to use crutches because I lose my balance and I fall. I do not have pain in my arms or legs, but my body starts shaking which makes it hard to walk or work. We have faced difficulties in our lives since I am not able to work due to my health condition. We survive thanks to the mercy of God and the people who bless our lives with food when we walk on the streets.

Before, I worked a normal job. I drove for the Living Water Ministry with the founders Mac and Peggy McKeown. But sadly, now I cannot do it. We do not have our own house. We live in a borrowed house which has one room and a kitchen. It is made of adobe walls, tin sheet roof and concrete floor. We do not have running water. One of our neighbors gives us water and we go to collect it with gallon containers. Thanks to God, we have electricity; I do not pay for it. Mr. Camilo is the owner of the house and he pays for the electricity. God has shown His love for us by touching Mr. Camilo’s heart, so he allows us live in his house without paying anything. There is no bathroom and we do our physical needs outside the house. We do not have a bed, so we sleep on the floor. Our greatest needs are beds, clothes, footwear and groceries. One of my dreams is to have our own house someday. I trust in the Lord that he can do a miracle. In spite of our situation, I can say: “The Lord never has left us”. We live 15 minutes away from the feeding program by bus; even though we need to pay Q10.00 = $1.29 for transportation, we like to attend. We attend a Christian Church. May our almighty God bless you in each area of your life!

Hugs and love,

Manuel De La Cruz Riz

Translated by: Magnolia Gómez, AAC Secretary / Guatemala.