“Having people affected directly as members of the staff in our operations allows us to work more closely with our beneficiaries” says Marta Moreton, Head of mission for TSF. This is particularly visible on a mission like the one we are carrying out in Brazil, providing Venezuelan migrants with free calls. “From the beginning we started with teams formed by one Venezuelan and one Brazilian and it always worked very well, not only for language issues, but as they share the same situation, they are more aware of their needs and know how we can provide better assistance. They also feel a stronger mutual connection and they make their best to be of any help.” Marta adds.
David: Venezuelan.
David is one of the first Venezuelans working for TSF in Boa Vista. He was in the shelter where he currently lives when he first met with Marta. “Since the beginning, there was a lot of empathy between us. Days later, after several conversations, I was invited to participate in the project.”
David with Marta learning the ropes of TSF calling operations
Just as Marta previously explained, David has been doing his best to help every single person coming to benefit from TSF’s free calls: “Since I am Venezuelan, I live and suffer the crisis every day. I am not indifferent to their pain, I identify with them. So for me, this is an opportunity to do something for my people, to alleviate their pain, even in a small way.”
Now David helps close to 100 people to place free call everyday in Boa Vista
David decided to leave his country to seek medical treatment for his sister, who had kidney failure. In Venezuela there was no dialysis for her, so he went to Colombia but could not find what he was looking for and unfortunately his sister passed away. “The world must act quickly before the tragedy reaches the point where we regret not having acted before.” He dreams about coming back one day: “Venezuela is a beautiful country with very kind people. Anyone would like to live there if the conditions were better.”
Vania: Brasilian.
Vania has worked for TSF in Pacaraima since TSF started its operations in this border city in September 2018. What she likes about working for TSF is to “be able to take a small part in helping people in need.” She says that sometimes the help goes way beyond a simple call: “Recently, a Venezuelan woman came to place a call to talk to her mother after her husband beat her.” Since that call the victim explains “TSF’s staff has been assisting me in finding the help I needed.”
Legend: Viana in one of our centers in Pacaraima
Since the start of this mission in April 2018, TSF employed 4 Venezuelans and 7 Brazilian team members, helping more than 50,000 migrants. We are extremely proud of this collaboration. It goes without saying that our work wouldn’t be as effective without their support and we are extremely thankful for their work.