LIFE CONTRASTS
I was born in Venezuela, which was considered one of the richest countries in Latin America because it had the largest oil reserves in the world. Many people from neighboring countries emigrated to Venezuela in the golden years to live in that earthly paradise. Sadly, things have changed so dramatically that one US dollar that used to exchange for 4.3 bolívares (currency of Venezuela) now is exchanged for 1,875,001 bolívares. Currently, the minimum wage of a Venezuelan worker (490,000 Bs) is barely enough to buy half a carton of eggs. This explains the reason for the historical diaspora of around five million Venezuelans who have left Venezuela for other countries in search of a decent life for themselves and their families and to support relatives who cannot do the same.
Nothing that happens in the United States economically is comparable to that financial, social, and political debacle that occurs in the country where I was born. Yet according to the latest USDA Household Food Insecurity Report, more than 35 million people in the United States struggled with hunger in 2019. In 2018, 14.3 million American households were food insecure with limited or uncertain access to enough food.
Feeding America, the nation’s largest national network of hunger relief organizations, says that “in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, unemployment has skyrocketed and food insecurity is on the rise. More than 50 million people in the USA can go hungry because of the coronavirus.” That is why one of the most important services that the Alpha and Omega Community Center provides is the distribution of food to help families of the community so that no one goes hungry. We are working with others to end hunger in America.
As an organization we are committed to sharing God’s love every time we offer our social and educational services to the community. We want to impact the lives of those who come to us in a holistic way, including spiritually and emotionally. We desire that our testimony, our words of encouragement, and our faith bring peace and relief to the afflicted heart.
God has placed us on top of this Cabbage Hill for the purpose of being light and an influence for good in this beautiful city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
