My name is Ezequiel Lucero, I am 32 years old and I live in Suipacha, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. I am a teacher of Visual Arts Education and in September 2024 I was living my Vedruna volunteer experience in the Amazon Rainforest, in the community of Nuevo San Juan, Peru.
There I was accompanied by Sisters María José, Thècle and Isabel, Vedruna Carmelites with whom, through daily sharing, I experienced the charism of Saint Joaquina. With them I carried out artistic activities with children and adolescents of the community: we prepared and designed a mural on the walls of the health center and in the hall where we met in the afternoon to share a moment of play and drawing classes.
The missionary spirit was always present in my life and in this opportunity I was able to experience it, especially in the evenings, when the children went to pray at the sisters’ house. Between songs and praises we gave thanks to God for the new day lived. After a short time we had to extend the place of prayer because there were many of us who had to give thanks and we could not enter the house chapel.
On Sundays we celebrated the liturgy with families from the village, reading and sharing the gospel, singing and telling anecdotes, because God also lives in the jungle.
After a few weeks I started to visit Santa Isabel de Bahuanisho, a native Shipibo-Konibo community, to work in the school with 5th and 6th grade students of the primary level, getting to know a new reality, customs and culture. I was surrounded by nature and greenery that made this mission even more interesting.
The stories and tales kept me amazed all the time. I shared the festivities of the people and their customs, how they celebrate and celebrate, each family contributing what they have.
This experience has been very enriching in my life, allowing me to get to know new horizons and adapt to unfamiliar contexts. The service experience in this environment allowed me to learn, among many other things, about resilience, teamwork and gratitude.
Ezequiel Lucero, Vedruna volunteer
Volunteering is a precious way to connect with faith and different communities. For more information, visit our Vedruna Volunteering International page.