Nicaragua is complete crisis as you read this. Over 528 people have been killed since April and families are losing loved ones to exile, jail, and extra-judicial killings. More than 40,000 Nicaraguans have poured into Costa Rica in the last 6 months. Nicaraguans need help!
Corner of Love has responded to the crisis by opening a Relief Center in La Cruz, Costa Rica where Nicaraguan refugees are warmly welcomed and connected with key resources in order to stay in country legally. Among the services being provided at this border-city facility are: clothing, bedding, and shoes distribution, provision of food, medical, dental, and optical services, and refugee-direct donations of funds for bus transportation, legal services, and shelter.
Corner of Love is uniquely positioned to successfully assist large quantities of refugees due to its long track record of humanitarian work with the Nicaraguan population. Prior to the socio-political crisis that broke out in April 2018, Corner of Love worked for nearly twenty years in the Matagalpa area, where the organization has a Leadership School, hospital, dental clinic and a ten-exam-room Plaza. On average, 30,000 impoverished Nicaraguans have been receiving services at these facilities since 2009. The organization’s beginning dates back to 2000 in San Ramon, Matagalpa where they first began by drilling wells, building a pre-school, and funding numerous construction projects, including the creation of more than 30 churches and schools.
Each day Corner of Love staff receive new groups of desperate Nicaraguans who cross into Costa Rica at Upala, Peñas Blancas, Los Chiles, and other blind-crossing spots. Most individuals arrive with less than 1,000 Cordobas (equivalent to $33) and have no where to go. Corner of Love accompanies refugees to the Costa Rican government for processing of the required identity document, secures initial hostel placement for migrant families, and provides numerous items like backpacks, pillows, nourishment, and more, bridging the gap to temporary housing and eventual integration into Costa Rican society.
