For the last 10 years Heartland has been building relationships in and around Berlin, El Salvador. This area has many extremely poor mountain communities surrounding the small town of Berlin. When we travel twice a year to El Salvador, we land in San Salvador, the country's capital. From there, we will travel 2 hours by van or truck to Berlin. Berlin is halfway up a mountainous range in the middle of the country. The villages we work with are a 45-60 minute 4x4 truck drive from Berlin depending upon the weather. Frequently, the rainy season will wash out roads, create mudslides, and treacherous travel conditions. Below you will see maps of the areas that Heartland International Mission Committee currently works in.
Why Berlin? During the war, the fighting was intense in and around Berlin. Families left the area because many people were getting murdered. After the war, families started to return and there wasn't much left for them to rebuild their lives. Groups started to form to help those in need, one of which was the Pastoral Team at the Parish of Saint Joseph in Berlin. To learn more about the Pastoral Team visit www.oursisterparish.com. Heartland became involved with the Pastoral Team through the Presbytery of Des Moines which lead to the the partnership with El Tablon, located outside of Berlin.