The Velasco family lives in Villa Bahareque, a poor community outside of Rubio. The parents, Carlos and Nancy, have ten children ranging in age from 15 to 2 years old. Their home was the size of a two car garage and each wall was made of a different material - sheet metal, carpet, plastic wrap, and bahareque. Bahareque is cane lashed together to form a wall, sometimes coated with mud.

Andean Aid was sponsoring the education for two of the children and received a desperate message that this home had fallen apart and washed away in torrential rains. Could we do anything to help this family? Andean Aid supplied the resources to build a block home with concrete floors and separate bedrooms - a first for the family! The children are delighted with their new casita (little house).