Welcome to
Santa Cruz al Salvador
Santa Cruz al Salvador connects Greater Monterey Bay Area faith communities with communities in El Salvador, enhancing and enriching the lives of all participants. This mission is guided by the philosophy of accompaniment — walking together in a solidarity resulting in interdependence and mutual respect. Learn More
Featured
Prayer Child Sponsorships
We seek sponsorships for students in the Guillermo Ungo school (pre-kindergarten through high school). These donations fund 120 scholarships each academic year as well as additional supplies for the whole school. The awards are made by a local Scholarship Committee.
Your sponsorships enable student success
Primary / Secondary Education
We provide 120 scholarships for pre-Kindergarten through High School students in the Guillermo Ungo school, one of the communities we accojmpany in El Salvador.
Water & Sanitation
In the communities of Bendiciòn de Dios and Las Orquideas we funded composting latrines and manual wells. We are currently investigating adding an electric pump to one of the wells.
Health Care
iDuring our delegations, we provide fluoride treatment for children’s teeth. In previous years, we supported the Guillermo Ungo medical clinic before it had Ministry of Health support.
University Scholarships
We provide up to 15 partial scholarships for students who have graduated from the Guillermo Ungo school. They may be used for trade schools as well as private and public universities.
Building Relationships for Better Lives
What does this mean? Early in our work we would often be asked questions like “What do you do when you go to El Salvador?” and “Do you build homes or schools or churches?” The founders of Santa Cruz al Salvador did not have construction skills, so they focused on another approach. If we build relationships between the visitors and the visited, they thought, it just might improve the lives of both.
So, how do we do that? There are two primary ways we help people build relationships: by visiting our communities via delegations and by connecting sponsors and prayer children.
Delegations
Delegations are led by one or two people with experience in our style of travel to and in El Salvador. The photo above is the group on the November 2024 delegation. Our trips are usually a week to 10 days long and involve staying in guest house accomodations in towns near our communities. We share meals with our prayer child families in their homes; meet with the Scholarship Committee; hold craft project days with supplies for children and attend graduation (if available). The group may also tour recent project(s) to see current progress (especially applicable in Las Orquideas/Bendiciòn de Dios). There is also usually a side trip to one or more historical sites in El Salvador and often conversations with our partners in the area, such as Sister Peggy at the Centro de Arte para La Paz in Suchitoto. Are you ready to share the excitement, adventure and love experienced on our trips? Contact us — we’re planning the November 2025 delegation now.
Prayer Children & Sponsors
Becoming a Prayer Partner to a student in El Salvador is a powerful way to build a personal connection with and support a scholarship recipient, as he/she grows and develops. Not everyone is able to travel to El Salvador to meet their student, of course. The Prayer Partner program is designed to help bridge the distance without travel. Prayer and communication are the keys to the partnership. By engaging in this partnership with a student, we ask that you:
- Accept the obligation of praying for the child on a regular basis.
- Communicate at least annually to that child. Yes, there is a language barrier, but if you keep the message simple it will be translated. Sending a picture of you and your family is a tremendous start.
- A gift for your prayer child and his/her family is chosen and purchased in El Salvador as part of the donation you make.
Reflections
After a few delegations, the people of Guillermo Ungo told us we were different from other groups — we stayed in the community and came back. Others got off their bus, looked around, returned to the bus and were never seen again.
