Guía de Paz

Guía de Paz is a new drug- and alcohol-rehabilitation center being built near Pailón, Bolivia. What makes it unique is that is will be the only such center in the country geared specifically for Low German-speaking Mennonites. The idea, planning, fund-raising, building, and program-development has and is all being done on local initiative. In fact, nine different colonies, Mennonite conferences, and agencies (including MCC) are working together to make it happen - somewhat unusual in this rather fragmented Bolivian Mennonite context.

As these things tend to go, the building is going up before the program planning has all been completed. The photos above and below show how far built it was last November; now it is almost done. Much of the funding has come from within Bolivia, in part through semi-monthly fundraising meals and auctions. Much of the building has been done by volunteers; some are pictured in the group shot in front of the building. Now the committee is working hard on programmatic aspects such as staffing, methodology, ethical issues, and so on.

This is an important project that MCC Bolivia is privy to (but does not in any way direct). The need for a professional response to drug and alcohol addictions among Mennonites is great. We hope that Guía de Paz will truly guide some of these hurting folks towards a profound peace.


Progress on the center as of November 2011. It is located about an hour east of Santa Cruz.



These are some of the volunteers who helped put up the building. Ramont is sixth from the left in the front row.



Here Ramont says a few works (in Low German!) at a volunteer appreciation event.

[Photos: Willmar T. Harder]