Becca Armstrong

Brothers’ Bakery International is OPEN! And wow, this little neighborhood store is a hit. Since day one when Xavier and his wife Johana cut the opening ribbon, they have consistently sold out of every single item by the end of the day.

In Venezuela, it’s not uncommon to find lines in front of bakeries that wrap around blocks for hours. Bread has been hard to find and afford, and has been a rallying cry for protestors. So for Xavier and the other Venezuelan refugees working in Brothers Bakery International, baking bread is a symbol for justice and progress.

This bakery was once an impossible dream in Xavier’s heart, but now it is REAL and it is thriving. Xavier currently employs eight full time bakers – Venezuelan refugees who are actually making a living wage. While we go to bed at night, Xavier and the team stay up. They bake bread through the night and throughout the next day to keep up with the demand. And they are so happy to do it, because it provides for their families, they get to work with people they trust, and they know they’re supporting the bigger community as a whole.

Your donations and support have been incredible, and Xavier could not have opened Brothers’ Bakery International without you. But he does not want to stop there. The average monthly income in Venezuela right now is $2.50 (no, that is not a typo). That is enough to buy one bag of flour for arepas. Xavier plans to open a second bakery location so he can employ more workers and support his community. Will you help us back Xavier and this incredible dream? Click here to donate!

You may have seen the story we shared on social media a couple weeks ago about Jason Makaroff–or JMak as we call him. He is one of our longtime volunteers, and he is also married to my twin sister.

JMak went to Peru in March of this year to help Xavier get Brothers’ Bakery International off the ground. His experience with business start-ups and process improvement is a perfect compliment to Xavier’s master baking skills. 

Jmak ended up getting sick in Peru and shortened his trip before the bakery’s opening date. When he returned home, he found out that he has pancreatic cancer. 

This is a big diagnosis for a healthy 47-year-old. JMak has always been someone who lives BIG, and this new chapter called “Cancer” with a capital C is just giving him an even greater drive to make a big impact.  

One BIG thing that matters to JMak is this bakery in Lima. The bakery represents audacity and courage–the audacity to not settle for mediocre, low-wage jobs and the courage to start a business that will provide jobs for many brothers (and sisters), not just Xavier. JMak’s heart beats to see other’s dreams come true.

We are getting closer to reaching our fundraising goal for Brothers Bakery International and they are making major strides in getting set up. Check out these pics!

JMak set up a Dream Fund to help raise the additional money that Brother’s Bakery needs and to see many more dreams come alive in the future. He is also documenting his journey to live and love with pancreatic cancer at JMaksDreamTeam.com. I highly encourage you to join his dream team and follow along. He is going through a difficult natural process, but I can personally testify that he and my sister are finding a deep and solid peace, joy and trust in God in the middle of it all. 

Join us in supporting JMak by supporting the bakery. JMak is fighting to live each day to make a difference in someone else’s life, and Xavier is currently at the top of his list. Nothing will make JMak happier than seeing Xavier’s bakery dream come true.

Thank you for all of the support,

With gratitude,

Becca Armstrong

Executive Director

True confession — I am a big fan of professional bass fishing.  Well, at least one special bass fisherman — my 17-year old son, Noah. This past week was his first tournament “on his own,” and it’s a big deal. A really big deal for a kid who knew how to pronounce all the different kinds of baits long before he knew the alphabet. I LOVED watching him step up on that stage for the weigh-ins.  It represents A LOT.

We have always told Noah that we would support him in pursuing his fishing dreams under one condition — he has to go for it. No dipping his toe in or trying the smaller tournaments first. Don’t settle…go BIG…get the experience..take risks…find the money you need to do it right….fight for your dream. And here he is doing just that!

This is the same message Jason and I left with our community in Lima before we came back to Atlanta in March. Instead of settling for mediocre low-wage jobs under horrible work conditions, we urged them to GO FOR IT. Do what is in their hearts to do. Build businesses that are different and can provide a steady place of income for their families and many more to come. Finish the degree they had to put down when they made the difficult decision to leave their homes in Venezuela. Discover a new passion. Help someone else with their dream.

This is what life is about. 

We don’t have time to hold back or play it safe, especially in Lima, Peru, and especially right now. COVID continues to rip through South America, and new more dangerous variants are causing big global concerns for both public health and economic survival. There is no time to waste.  

The needs are great and the opportunities slim for most people in Peru. But, that isn’t true for our little corner of Lima. They are able to GO FOR IT because of the support– financial support from people like you and on-the-ground support from mentors, teachers, and friends.  

Many have never had an opportunity to dream big dreams, and others have tightly held secret dreams once considered impossible. ALL are finding a bigger purpose in pursuing their own dreams and helping someone else with theirs.

Here are three new businesses that represent the dreams of so many:

Brothers Bakery International

Xavier, a master baker by training, bought a dough roller for roughly $5 US dollars two years ago because of the dream in his heart to one day own a bakery. At the time the idea seemed impossible. Recently displaced from Venezuela and barely able to pay rent, Xavier held onto the tool and his dream. Xavier, his brother, and his brother-in-law have signed a lease on a beautiful corner building that will open as Brothers Bakery International on May 17. 

Hope House Food Carts

The informal economy is huge in Lima, and the location of our Hope House is prime for selling all kinds of food. Several residents started out with a simple food cart selling tequeños at the beginning of March. Within one day they sold all the products they had expected to sell in one week. Now they are more like a mini-mall of food carts selling tequeños, specialty hamburgers, the best fried chicken you have ever tasted and all kinds of other delicious goods. The food carts provide income for 5 people already and there is much opportunity ahead for this business.

Constructora Sin Fronteras

The name means “construction without borders” and represents a multinational team of Venzuelans, Peruvians, and some North Americans, who are building a one-of-a-kind construction company. We have a team of 7 skilled construction workers who are learning to work as a team as they stay busy with all kinds of jobs. They are looking to fill a critical niche in the market for expatriates. 

While we can all celebrate the start of three incredible businesses, there is much work ahead. Right now we are focusing on getting the bakery up and running.  This is our greatest financial need.  We have already received a generous $25,000 donation, but more is needed.  There are many things to purchase — huge mixers, an industrial sized oven, lots of fun baking tools and several not-so-fun government licenses.

We will be sharing more on social media in the days ahead about specific needs. We know we have the right people in our corner to help Brothers Bakery International open its doors AND do so much more beyond that.  Our network is incredible because it is made up of people who do want to see other people’s dreams come true. We appreciate your support so much! Donate

With gratitude,

Becca Armstrong

Executive Director

What felt like the biggest disappointment turned out to be the greatest victory.  

We all felt the weight of not being able to get Juan Carlos into a hospital a few weeks ago. And now, 25 days later, we understand there was a much bigger plan.

Juan Carlos passed away early yesterday morning in peace and with his family at his side. He and his family had 25 more days together that they would not have had if there would have been a bed in a hospital the night that Jason and his sons spent six hours searching for oxygen and additional medical help.

We thought we knew what we needed.

We know that patients with COVID are not allowed visitors in most if not all hospitals right now. And we also know that Peru’s hospitals are stretched to their limits. What we thought he needed that night ended up being something so much better–not just for Juan Carlos but for all of our community.

There was a much bigger purpose.

Juan Carlos received care at the Hope House far superior to what he would have received at a hospital. His three adult sons and his wife made sure he was never alone. Jason taught them how to check his vital signs, keep him comfortable and mostly how to make the time count. He had visitors who came to sing songs and pray for him and children who made him cookies. They laughed and cried, shared old memories and made new ones. Most importantly, they were together. 

Today we celebrate.  

We celebrate Juan Carlos and how much life we shared these last 25 days. Somehow the days seemed more significant knowing how opposite the alternative would have been — lonely, dark days in a hospital bed somewhere in Lima. The days were deep and at times long. We watched Juan Carlos gain complete peace, and we saw how happy he was. Happy to see his wife and children happy. Happy to be a part of a vibrant community, dedicated to helping each other along the way. Happy to be shedding the struggles of this life for something better. In his final days on this earth, Juan Carlos taught us that the end truly is the beginning.

Tomorrow we get to work.

Now that the Hope House has weathered the worst of this COVID outbreak, they are ready for a new beginning. Armed with an incredible bonding experience and COVID antibodies, they want to get to work. Some have found a job, others are starting businesses and there are some pursuing a career for the first time.  All have the goal to contribute to the daily operations of the Hope House and even go beyond their own needs so they can help others.   

Jason is right in step as he returns to the U.S. and to his work. It has never been about the paycheck for him, and he will continue to work so that 100% of your donations will go to help people who need it the most.

There are exciting things ahead.

I can not wait to tell you about Angel’s pet business. It is a business that is much bigger than simply providing a place for Angel to use his veterinary training. And then there is Milagros, and you will love meeting her.  She is 21 years old and makes the BEST fried chicken I have ever tasted (even better than Chick fil A!).  She already needs to add a helper to keep up with the nightly sales. There is also a new delivery service of Venezuelan imports that was hatched right in the Hope House and is now a fully operational business that gives two special young couples an opportunity to work together.

I can not wait to tell you more and share opportunities for you to get involved. This is 

how we honor Juan Carlos and all the ones who have invested in the vibrant life at the Hope House. Your support this last month has made a huge difference.  We appreciate it and we appreciate you.

Thank you for being in it with us —

Becca Armstrong

Executive Director

You may think this is crazy, but Jason is back in Lima. We made a quick decision to send him down last week not knowing exactly what it would all look like but feeling a purpose in sending him. 

A couple days ago we began to understand more of the purpose for Jason being there — one young woman in the building just tested positive for COVID-19. Today about 50% of the Hope House residents have at least one COVID symptom. We have been bracing for this moment through the pandemic and now it is here.  

Today I read that there are only 102 ICU beds available in the entire country of Peru right now. 

The President has reinstated strict lockdown measures again to try to slow the spread.  Experts also are saying that Peru needs roughly 1,250 doctors to adequately care for that many ICU beds.  The current number of doctors in Peru — 600.  It starts to feel a little like facing a major battle with just a butter knife.  

Jason is right smack in the middle of it. And the truth is, I could not be happier! 

He has antibodies from his recent COVID sickness and the first dose of vaccine. But more than that, this is what Jason was born to do. This is the man I fell in love with. Someone who used to seek out jobs in emergency rooms and community health clinics. The man who regularly treated snake bites and broken bones as people risked their lives to cross the southern U.S. border in search of something more. And who was affectionately called “Dr. Jason” by many, many patients.  

They are taking every precaution they can in Lima. Everyone is staying isolated in their own room. The ones who are well are taking turns preparing meals and delivering food to those who are sick. Bathrooms are being disinfected after each use.  

Several times a day I hear from Jason after he has made his “rounds” — going through all five floors to each room to check on his patients. As of right now, their symptoms are all being treated with tylenol, ibuprofen and a ton of reassurance.  They do have the best “doctor” I know taking care of them!