Por Cristo's mission is to improve the health and well-being of poor children and their families in Ecuador. There are many ways we work toward accomplishing this mission. Most importantly, in 1996, we opened the Por Cristo Nutrition and Health Center in Isla Trinitaria, a poor neighborhood in the city of Guayaquil, to offer year-round, primary health care.

Staffed by local medical professionals, our clinic offers prenatal and pediatric care, as well as primary medicine, gynecology, vaccinations, dentistry, counseling, nutrition and respiratory therapy.  Our community outreach in wellness and disease prevention is an equally important part of our community health program. This includes work with local daycare centers; a dental hygiene program for 2500 children in 11 schools; community health fairs, and home visits to at-risk pregnant women and families.  Our Girls Self-Esteem program encourages young girls to make positive life choices, strengthen their self-confidence and formulate life goals. All of this enables people to become more informed about their health and thus able to make healthy choices for themselves and their families. 

Elsewhere in Ecuador, we have been proud to partner with the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother, offering advice and financial support for their Saint Hildegard Clinic in Jaime Roldos, on the outskirts of the capital, Quito. Their St. Boniface School Lunch Program provides over 125 school lunches daily to at-risk school children each year. The St. Jude Soup Kitchen for the Elderly serves over 50 senior citizens each day. Additionally, our Pediatric Cardiac Team has been working side by side with our Ecuadorian counterparts in Quito for many years on annual visits to improve pediatric cardiac care.

Over the past 35 years we have seen real improvements in the quality of life and economic opportunities in the area we serve. We are proud to do our part, working together with our friends and neighbors in Ecuador, to improve their health and well-being.

Since 1979, Por Cristo, a non-profit charitable medical service organization, has been involved in health care work for at-risk women and children in Latin America (primarily serving Ecuador.)

Por Cristo carries out its mission in four distinct ways:

An Evening With
Por Cristo

An evening with Por Cristo, a fundraising event, was hosted by our dedicated board member, John Griffin, General Counsel at Hologic, last month. The event was a great success thanks to all our wonderful sponsors and guests. Por Cristo is funded by companies and individuals who are supportive of our mission to improve the health and well-being of poor children and their families in Ecuador.

We are so grateful to those who supported this event with a generous sponsorship. Click here to learn more about our generous sponsors.

 

President Leo Morrissey

All of us at Por Cristo were deeply saddened to learn of the death of our longtime Board member and past President, Leo Morrissey, who died on January 17. Leo was extremely devoted to Por Cristo and was always looking for ways to help the organization improve the lives of poor children in Ecuador. He brought strong business skills to his work with us and was constantly reaching out to others to invite their participation. We send our most sincere condolences to Leo's children Lee, Daniel, and Michelle and all his loved ones.

 

 

 

"Why I Give" by Diane Kaneb

“Health education and community outreach is so important.”

Diane Kaneb,  her husband Gary, and their four children visited Por Cristo's work in Ecuador a few years ago.  They are long-term supporters of our work.  Diane recently shared a personal story of her family's trip, as seen through the eyes of her son, Luke. Learn more.