"Several times I have decided to leave El Salvador," lay missionary
Jean Donovan asked 25 years ago, two weeks before her murder, which
we commemorate on this day. "I almost could," she went on, "except
for the children -- the poor bruised victims of this insanity. Who
would care for them?"

In memory of Jean and the 3 other Churchwomen kidnapped, raped and
murdered 25 years ago, the Foundation for Self Sufficiency in Central
America, FSSCA - http://fssca.net - seeks to plant fruit trees around
schools in El Salvador. The healthy snacks they provide to low income
children that Jean Donovan cared about will help carry on the work
and memory of these 4 brave women. These women devoted their lives
to serve those in greatest need. Their noble tasks involved carrying
out family education programs for the poor and distributing food and
medical supplies for the homeless and dispossessed, particularly
women and children.

The missionaries' work with El Salvador's poorest threatened sectors
of the country's ruthless military dictatorship. Because its
opponents spoke out in favor of the poor, the government interpreted
all help for the poor as being subversive. Rather than working
against the government, the missionaries dedicated all of their
energy to following Jesus' example of serving the poor. Nonetheless,
their benevolent work cost them their lives. Although five low
ranking National Guardsmen were eventually sentenced for the murders,
nobody else was brought to justice in what seemed to be a
premeditated crime ordered from above.

The Foundation for Self-Sufficiency in Central America along with our
Salvadoran partner, the Coordinadora, will plant fruit trees in
memory of these extraordinary women. The fruit trees will be sowed in
groves around schools in El Salvador's Bajo Lempa region. In
communities where most kids go to school hungry, their fruit will
serve as one of the main sources of healthy snacks for children, who
the missionaries cherished tremendously. This project will be a
constant reminder of the power of regeneration, and the spirit and
solidarity of the martyred women.

Your gift of $10 will plant a tree in your name or the name of
someone you designate. For more information about this project,
visit FSSCA's website at:

http://fssca.net/martyrs/index.html