Helping an Unemployed Woman Transformed Her 

Raquel was an unemployed single mother of three when the Altius Foundation helped her get back on her feet. She shares her story 

Raquel’s Testimony 

I arrived in Spain almost 14 years ago because in Paraguay the situation was complicated. I came to raise money to go back and finish college, but in the end, I made my life here and did not return. I worked cleaning houses, then when I had my oldest son, I stopped for a while. After that, I started working in hotels and restaurants. 

I separated from my partner when my son was 1-year-old because I was suffering abuse. I spent 5 years raising him alone until I met someone else. I had two children with that person but the same thing happened again. There I sank. 

I had a protection order, a restraining order. For a while, I could not work because of anxiety problems. At first, my family helped me a lot but there came a point where they could not support me anymore and I had to knock on all possible doors to ask for help. 

Casually when I was in the park with my children, a person who saw me in anguish told me about the Altius Foundation and I called them. After that call, I became part of the food support project that also helps you with the employment issue. With food I have taken a lot of weight off, now I feel more stable because my priority is the children’s food. 

In addition to the food program and job search, Altius has been able to participate in a course of Commerce and Customer Service. I learn many techniques and gives me tools that can help me improve my chances of finding a job. Now, I will have more areas where I will be able to work and not only in the hotel industry or cleaning houses. 

I want to finish the course and get to work. That way I can take care of myself, be well myself and take care of my family. If I am better prepared, I can be calmer in front of a job. 

I’ve had a very bad time. I have hit bottom. But you can leave and more having support from family and foundations like this. Participating in these courses has made me feel important and think that I can, that I can do it. 

There are people who can help you, who can help you when you think everything is lost. I thought everything was lost, but now I have more hope. If I have been able to leave that situation, others can do it too. Many people really need help and out of shame, out of fear, for which they will say they do not come close. 

Altius Foundation 

The Altius Foundation is a Regnum Christi apostolate of charitable work in Spain helping cases like Raquel with various forms of support as she describes: helping with food, training, psychological and spiritual help. 

Translated from the original on the Regnum Christi Spain site.