HOUSES OF THE HEART

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WHAT ARE THE HOUSES OF THE HEART

The project Houses of the Heart has been created approximately 15 years ago with the objective of supporting Takiwasi’s workers with interest-free loans and/or small donations to be used to improve the conditions of their family home and, in some cases, for the purchase of a piece of land where to start building a basic house, thus improving their family life conditions.

WHY THIS PROJECT

Since its beginnings Takiwasi has maintained within its social policy to seek and allocate resources for the benefit of its workers in order to recognize in some way their effort, dedication, responsibility and loyalty to the institution. Takiwasi also encourages friendship and camaraderie between workers through the organization of celebrations and activities such as Mother's Day and Father's Day, to fraternize and share.

Our workers’ salary is a little bit higher than the legal minimum, an amount that is in line with local salaries and also includes all the social benefits demanded by the law, something very rare in the Peruvian work market. It is Takiwasi's concern to maintain high the level of care and protection of the workers and their families. However, even with this guaranteed salary, it is very difficult for the workers to be able to save enough money or access a financial credit to finally buy a land or a house of their own.

For this reason Takiwasi has been supporting for 15 years its personnel in need of a decent home with basic services. In order to achieve this objective, a revolving fund has been created, which has allowed to deliver interest-free loans to our workers, and these, as far as possible, have been reimbursed, thus ensuring that the fund continues to exist to finance new projects for other workers.

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WHAT HAVE WE ACHIEVED SO FAR

The management of the loans and donations has been operated directly by the Takiwasi Center, which during these years has been able to support several workers by financing part of the construction of their homes. The examples are many and we are going to name here only a few. Thanks to the loans of the Houses of the Heart, Luis Díaz, in charge of logistics with 15 years of work in Takiwasi, has been able to build part of his house. Elbis García, ergotherapist at Takiwasi for 17 years, was able to buy a basic home. Aracelli Réategui, in charge of the administration and working in Takiwasi for 14 years, has been able to buy a small piece of land near Takiwasi. Other workers such as José Vela with 19 years of work and Carlos Ijuma with 20 years of work have been able to improve the conditions of their homes. The fund has financed the construction of bathroom, floor, doors, windows, plastering of walls, etc. For Carlos Ijuma in particular, at the end of 2017 Takiwasi has donated materials and work force for the renovation of the entire roof and ceiling of his home. This donation has also been made as a sign of gratitude for his work and uninterrupted presence in the institution.

WHAT WE NEED NOW

At the moment we are seeking support for the construction of the house of Génix Tuanama, who works in Takiwasi since September 2012 as maintenance worker and apprentice of care assistance during the dietas (retreats-diets). Génix Tuanama is a native of the town of Copalsacha - Santa Cruz. He is married for 10 years to Mrs. Geslith and father of two children: Jiheum Sandy, 6 years old and Jacques Song, 5 years old. He moved to Tarapoto six years ago seeking better life conditions for him and his family. His work in Takiwasi is much recognized. With an interest-free loan from the Houses of the Heart project and returning a minimum monthly fee, he bought a land where he has managed to adapt a modest infrastructure, with still certain deficiencies in terms of security, comfort and lack of drainage system.

An estimate with a local company on the cost of a first stage construction using good quality materials and with all basic services has been made. The estimated value of this first intervention, considering materials and workforce, is around 3,000 euros. You can see the plan in the following image.

If you wish to support this project, you can do so with a donation through one of the different methods that you find in the left column of this page. Thank you very much for your support!

For more information on how to donate, please contact us:
Centro Takiwasi – Prolongación Alerta 466, Tarapoto, San Martin, Perú
Phone number: +51 (0)42 522818
E-mail: takiwasi@takiwasi.com