The Franciscan Missionaries of St. Joseph have 3 missions in Ecuador. Colimes, a rural area some two hours journey outside the city of Guayaquil was their first mission and opened in 1980. Later they started another mission in El Guasmo, a large slum shanty town near the port on the outskirts of Guayaquil. There is also a Novitiate house in the capital Quito, where the local girls who wish to join their congregation are accepted.
The population of Ecuador is about 8 million and about 5 thousand live in the actual town area of Colimes, where the church is and where the Sisters work. A further 20 thousand live out in 51 ‘recintos’ (villages). The recintos are far from the town, with few decent roads, many are cut off in the rainy season (which can last up to six months) as the mud can be waist deep. The only means of transport then is by horseback or walking; it can take up to 7 hours walking to reach Colimes from some of the recintos.
Health is a problem for the people of Ecuador because there is no state system or public funding. The Sisters run a Health Centre and dispensary in Colimes which is a lifeline to the people and offers a great range of services. A doctor attends several days a week and deals with both routine conditions and emergencies. The dispensary also caters for births, full laboratory tests are undertaken and so are x-rays, all this is only possible with the help of donations from overseas.
There is no state ambulance service available in Colimes so the community has to rely on local volunteers with make shift stretchers.
The local Colimes Voluntary Ambulance Service at work.