Impact > Chaparral Family Development Center
Project: Chaparral Family Development Center
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The women in the Chaparral community live in most difficult circumstances. Chaparral is a semi-rural community of 6000 residents located approximately 10 miles away from the nearest metropolitan area. The Chaparral community is largely composed of mobile homes with people struggling to improve their lives. In 2001, a group of women joined together to address the lack of quality child care options in their community. Over time, other women came together to try to create opportunities for themselves to earn some supplemental income through sewing and handy-crafts. By 2004, these small groups had joined together with a common vision of opening a ‘Center’ that would help women and their families create opportunities to improve their economic situation.
The group faced substantial opposition and outright racism from other community groups and individuals over time, but persevered and gained respect and assistance from others in the community. The Colonias Development Council (CDC) served as fiscal agent for the Chaparral Family Development Center and assists them in developing plans, financial projections, and funding proposals for their activities. In addition, CDC is invested in helping each member develop their professional and leadership skills, while assisting them in developing policies and procedures to govern the group and their activities. To that end, CDC has been working with the members of the Center, who collectively form the Board of Directors, to plan and implement their projects. The Center opened in August 2007. Members held a grand opening celebration in which they recognized their own dedication, commitment, and the sacrifices they and their families had made to the project for more than six years. |
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