Children and families together at Una Luz in Cartagena

Cartagena, Colombia

Help us feed more families and build a school for our kids.

We want each child to know they’re loved, that God loves them and that their life matters. We’d love for you to get to know this community and help us grow.

Donate What we’re working toward

Our vision

The school we hope to build

238 children are waiting for a place in our program. Our next goal is to welcome 100 children by 2027, up from the 32 who spend their afternoons with us today.

children by 2027: our next goal: 100
children: our long-term school goal: ~390
lunches a day: our long-term kitchen goal: 500

What we’re working toward

To get there, we need more food, better kitchen equipment and a larger space. Your gift helps us care for the children already here while we work toward welcoming more families.

How your gift helps

Join us each month

We’re looking for 100 monthly supporters. Giving each month helps us plan for food, our teachers’ stipends and rent. It gives our team something they can count on as we grow.

Give monthly

Una Luz today

children in our afternoon program: 32
neighbors served by our community kitchen each day: ~100
Children waiting for their turn to join the classroom.: 238

Our kids

What an afternoon can mean

Some of the children who come to Una Luz used to spend their afternoons on the street looking for food or money. Some have grown up without a parent they could count on.

Here, they have lunch, learn with their teachers, practice everyday habits like brushing their teeth and hear about God’s love. They spend the afternoon with people who care about them and head home with a snack.

During our visit, parents told us again and again how much it meant to know their children would have lunch when they couldn’t afford it themselves.

That’s the work we’re inviting you to be part of.

Meet our kids

Our community kitchen

A good lunch matters to the whole family.

Families and children sharing a meal at Una Luz

Neighbors and children together at the community kitchen

Marylan and Doris work alongside three other volunteers to prepare lunch for the children and meals for around 100 neighbors each day.

Food is our biggest need. To serve more people, we need more money for groceries, better equipment and a larger space.

Your monthly support helps this team keep cooking and work toward welcoming more families.

Donate

Our team

Our team in Cartagena

These are the teachers, cooks and neighbors who care for the children and prepare meals in Cartagena. Get to know the people behind this work.

Maricel Marmolejo Salinas

Director

Maricel leads Una Luz in Cartagena and teaches children that God loves them.

Yesenia Vargas Altamar

Early Childhood Teacher

Yesenia brings years of teaching experience, creativity and faith to the classroom.

Cruz Maria Gómez

Early Childhood Teacher

Cruz is an early childhood educator who shares her faith and care with children and parents.

Berta Luz Revolledo

Early Childhood Teacher

Berta loves teaching children and keeps learning alongside them.

Angélica Barrios Buelvas

Early Childhood Teacher

Angélica is studying education and brings patience and empathy to her work with children.

Doris Mendez Zapatero

Cook

Doris cooks for the children and loves seeing them enjoy their lunch.

Marylan Periñan Camargo

Cook

Marylan prepares meals for the children and is grateful to God for this work.

David Rodríguez Marmolejo

Social Communicator

David helps his mother Maricel with administration and the monthly accounts.

Leyber Alberto Torres

Administration

Leyber helps with administration and brings his love of technology and music to the team.

Mar y Luna Rodríguez

Team Member

Mar y Luna has been part of Una Luz since its early days and loves spending time with the children.

Meet our team

Our story

A note from Alejandro & Mariela

We got married in Cartagena in December 2021, after COVID changed our wedding plans in Argentina. Before the wedding, a local church helped us take our guests to bring food and small gifts to hundreds of children. That’s how we met Maricel and the teachers.

We asked them what happened to those children the other 364 days of the year. They’d started a foundation in 2019, but the pandemic had interrupted their work. We offered to help.

Today, we have a little classroom and a community kitchen, and it’s the best thing we do. In August 2026, we went back with our two daughters. The children called Alejandro “Padrino.” It’s hard to put into words what it means to be welcomed that way.

There are 32 children with us today and 238 waiting for a place. Our next goal is 100 children by 2027. Further ahead, we want a permanent school for about 390 children and a kitchen serving 500 lunches a day.

When you give, you help keep lunch on the table and our teachers there for the children. You also help us work toward making room for more families. We’d love for you to get to know this community and be part of what we build together.

We thank God for putting this team and the people who support Una Luz in our lives.

Alejandro & Mariela

Donate

Give once or monthly. Every gift helps.

US$10

About 5 lunches

A school week of lunches for one child.

US$40

About 20 lunches

A school month of lunches for one child.

US$100

About one child’s month in the program

Meals, teaching and a share of rent.

These are estimates. Gifts support the classroom and community kitchen together.

What will my gift make possible?

You help give children an afternoon they can count on: a good lunch, time to learn and people who care about them. You also help parents who are struggling to feed their children and neighbors who need a meal from our kitchen.

We want these children to grow up with faith, hope and the confidence that their lives matter. Your gift helps our teachers and volunteers keep being there for them as they grow.

How we use your gift

Lunches are our biggest need and where most of our resources go. Your gift also helps pay for school materials, teachers’ stipends, rent, electricity and other operating costs in Cartagena.

Our local team receives modest stipends to support the work they do, and our amazing network of volunteers helps keep it all going. Our US board is unpaid.

Registered US 501(c)(3) nonprofit

Give once or monthly. Every gift helps.

Give an amount that works for you. We’d be grateful to have you with us.

Amounts are in US dollars.

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