Migrants in U.S. Do Without to Help Families Hit by Mitch

Lupe Ventura’s last Christmas was one of modest abandon: a pricey Super Nintendo set for her five children in Los Angeles, cartons of toys for nieces and nephews in Guatemala City and even a gleaming ring as a special treat for herself.

But this year’s shopping cart was decidedly barren, fallout from a devastating storm that spared her Guatemalan family’s health and home, but stung them sharply with skyrocketing prices. Along with hundreds of thousands of other Central Americans in the Southland, Ventura abandoned her traditional gift plans, instead scraping together as much cash as possible to send south.

“This year, maybe we’ll get one Nintendo game, and I’m searching for the cheapest one,” said Ventura, 38, as she shopped recently at La Curacao, a Pico-Union megastore that caters to Central Americans.

Reverberations from tropical storm Mitch, which devastated Central America nearly two months ago, can be felt throughout the migrant community here this Christmas, as strong ties to family back home alter consumption and travel habits, dent the sales of some local businesses and boost those of others that trade in the movement of goods and money.

Although Honduras and Nicaragua bore the brunt of the hurricane, El Salvador and Guatemala also were affected. Even those whose homes and towns escaped damage are feeling the blow of a deeply altered economy. Despite some government efforts to keep staples affordable in affected areas, relatives here say their families are deeply affected by price hikes and shortages of basic goods. The storm that killed more than 9,000 people, left 600,000 homeless and caused billions of dollars in damage also wrecked banana, pineapple, coffee and other crops and devastated roads and other infrastructure.

“We have to send them money or they won’t be able to eat. Everything now is very expensive,” said a solemn Merba Lopez, whose family’s home in Matagalpa, Nicaragua, was damaged.

Lopez and her aunt made a recent trip to La Curacao from Pomona but didn’t bother with a shopping basket. The aisles of talking dolls and shiny tricycles were “for looking only.”

“We can’t buy a single thing this year, nothing at all,” said Lopez, who sent so much of her money home that she canceled all holiday festivities here. “We’ve got no Christmas tree, nothing,” she said. “Our Christmas will be sad, very sad.”

Mitch Wreaks Havoc on Holiday Festivities

Christmas is always a time of heavy travel, extra gifts and money sent to families back home. But this year Mitch has wrought havoc on those seasonal habits, altering the lives of nearly all Central Americans long after flood waters have subsided in the south.

Central Americans here--particularly Hondurans and Nicaraguans--are sending fewer toys, favoring staples such as rice, clothing and even heavy appliances to replace those destroyed or damaged. Above all, they are sending money, with every extra dollar diminishing buying power for holiday festivities of their own.

“The community is in pain over what happened, and they are trying to mitigate it as much as possible, sacrificing here in the stomach to deliver more aid there,” said Roger Monge, cultural attache for the Nicaraguan Consulate in Los Angeles and head of the consulate’s aid donation efforts.

Levels of giving to El Salvador also have mushroomed.

“We’re sending clothes, money and electrical appliances, but we can’t do both parts. It leaves us very limited as to what we can buy for ourselves,” said Noemi Hernandez, a Pasadena resident whose mother, brothers and sisters are feeling the squeeze of higher prices in eastern El Salvador.

Cesar Masin’s family home in the Salvadoran town of Acajutla was flooded, ruining nearby crops and leaving his mother and three sisters hungry. In addition to the $100 to $150 he sends monthly from his job in shipping and receiving at a local clothing warehouse, Masin pulled together an extra $200, forgoing holiday purchases here. His only exception: a few $9 plastic Antz characters for his nieces and nephews in Los Angeles.

“Last year, I sent clothes and toys, but this year I’m sending only money,” he said. “More than anything I want their Christmas to be better. For myself, I don’t care. They matter more.”

The 1990 U.S. Census showed 250,000 Salvadorans, 127,000 Guatemalans, 34,000 Nicaraguans and 23,000 Hondurans living in Los Angeles County, but consular officials and community activists place the current number of Central Americans here closer to a million. The relatively young communities have maintained close ties with their home countries, supporting family members with a staggering level of remittances--$1.2 billion for Salvadorans alone--sent by wire, mail and courier in meager installments of $50 here and there.

Since Nov. 1, more than 2,000 people have streamed through the doors of MTOM Tours and Courier Services on Fountain Avenue to send money and packages to Nicaragua, three times the level last year. About 1,500 of them have wired money, up from 500 last year, said President Jorge Obregon, who also heads the local Nicaraguan Chamber of Commerce.

“Business is booming,” said Obregon, whose Van Nuys store has seen a similar increase. “We’re getting people in and out the door Monday through Sunday. It’s nonstop.”

Instead of twice weekly trips to the airport, Obregon has been shipping nightly. Monday, deliveries that had piled up since Sunday overflowed into the front lobby, spilling onto the floor. Although people are still sending some toys home, “they are also sending everything else that people need,” Obregon said.

He also has seen holiday travel patterns shift. Instead of traveling to Nicaragua, customers are purchasing tickets to bring family members here, he said.

Some Immigrants Deliver Aid in Person

But not all Central American immigrants are postponing travel plans, determined instead to deliver their relief in person. Local applications for travel documents to Honduras have surged by as much as 40% from pre-Mitch levels, said Vivian Panting, the Honduran consul general in Los Angeles.

“It may not be the best way to help, but this affects the emotions,” Panting said. “People tell me they just want to hug their mother. They want to bring food, clothes and money to their relatives.”

Those who aren’t traveling are keeping loved ones in their hearts by forgoing many of the trappings of a traditional Christmas, sending money and goods home instead, she said.

The impact is evident at Gigante Express, a Miami-based courier whose West Washington Boulevard office mainly serves Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. Volume is up 20% from the same time last year, said general manager Lilian Calderon, primarily due to demand by Honduran customers.

“In past years, people sent toys and games and Christmas trees. This year everything has changed completely,” she said. “Now they’re sending crackers, rice, powdered milk, beans. They’re sending clothes, new and used, and medicine for headaches and stomach ailments.”

La Curacao managers also have noted the change. Customers can order goods here for relatives to pick up at La Curacao stores in Central America, which share a name but are not linked to the Los Angeles business. Advertising and marketing manager Javier Araiza said the store has offered 10% to 30% off on goods sent to the affected countries. Volume is up 25%.

Although business has boomed for some, others have seen sales dip as families here tighten belts.

At La Tapachulteca, a Salvadoran-owned Vermont Avenue grocery store that carries specialty products for Central Americans, sales this month are down about 5% from last year.

“[So many] people gave clothes or whatever they could, even if they didn’t have families there, so they cut down on buying nonessentials,” said La Tapachulteca general manager Wilfredo Reyes. “Unfortunately on our side it’s very bad, but it’s for our country so we don’t care. If we can help in any way, even if it means a decrease in our business, we are happy to do that.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

How to Help

Southern Californians can help victims of Hurricane Mitch through many sources. The following are some of the organizations accepting contributions. Checks should be marked for Hurricane Mitch Relief Effort:

* U.S. Committee for UNICEF, Department 1125I, 333 E. 38th St. New York, NY 10016; (800) FOR-KIDS or e-mail: information@unicefusa.org https://www.unicefusa.org

* The American Friends Service Committee, through its Pacific Southwest Regional Office at 980 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena 91103-3097; (626) 791-1978.

* B’nai B’rith International, through its Center for Community Action at 1640 Rhode Island Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036-3278; (202) 857-6582 or e-mail cca@bnaibrith.org.

* Operation USA, at 8320 Melrose Ave., Suite 200, Los Angeles 90069; (800) 678-7255

* Doctors Without Borders, through their West Coast office at 2040 Avenue of the Stars, Fourth Floor, Los Angeles 90067; (310) 277-2793 or (888) 392-0392.

* The Consulate of Nicaragua is accepting contributions of cardboard shipping boxes, packing tape, plastic shopping bags, insect repellent, medicine, water, clothing and financial donations at Cordoba Electronics, 5120 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles 90029; (213) 669-1028.

* The Consulate of Honduras is accepting food, medicine, water, clothing and financial donations through ASOSAL, 660 S. Bonnie Brae St., Los Angeles 90057; (213) 483-1244.

* The Salvation Army is accepting cash donations; 900 W. 9th St., Los Angeles 90015; (213) 553-3255. Credit card donations are accepted by calling (800) 725-9005.