LETS GIVE THEM THE DIGNITY THEY DESERVE

All the residents of the Josse Van der Rest are elderly people who lived most of their lives on the streets. On the margins, isolated, practically outside of everything. Excluded. Today they are well cared for and well treated by the team of which psychologist Nelson Figueroa is a member. The professional recognizes that it is with those who live or have lived almost on the margins with whom he has learned the most.

"The hard life they've led takes its toll. Ninety percent use medication to boost their mood and some have problems in the cognitive area, memory and even dementia". This is how the professional, who has been working at the residence located next to Hogar de Cristo's headquarters in the Estación Central district since 2021, explains it.

However, they are all aware that there is no better place for them since they have no family or other support networks.

"None of them want to go back to the street," she says, adding, "They know that the street is very bad." On the other hand, at the shelter they always have visits from 

schools and volunteers in addition to the Expreso workshop that allows them to work wood and sell their products.

-How do you see them in terms of mental health?

-Everyone here is empowered to make decisions and if they want to leave they can do so whenever they want. My role as a psychologist is more of a passive listener, but with active communication. I am very close to them, I listen to their problems and try to solve them as much as possible. I've managed to get them to be calmer.

He clarifies that they still do not go out alone or every day, because they themselves request it. They know that the street is very bad. This is their home and it is a very cozy place that covers all the needs they have.

"One challenge we have is to organize the team every time they have to go to collect their pensions, because they don't go alone. They see me as an older son, they invite me to lunch, I can't say no because they get angry. They are old, old-fashioned, they have their codes," he says.

Recently, he went with five senior citizens to watch Parapan American soccer at the Bicentenario stadium in La Florida.

"They were happy. They need to go out, and these outings are very therapeutic, we try to talk a lot. The visit we made to the stadium helped them to see the changes the city has undergone. It had been a long time since they had been to that sector of Santiago," explains Nelson

In an emotional ceremony, took place the inauguration ceremony of the Hogar de Cristo's facilities in the El Colorado neighborhood of Iquique, after almost a year and a half of waiting. The event was attended by regional authorities, parliamentarians, special guests and, most importantly, the users of the center, who were grateful for the help provided. The high standard infrastructure seeks to provide dignity and social reintegration to street people and the most vulnerable senior citizens of the capital of the Tarapacá Region.

The new acommodation, which has been in operation since April, represents a major step forward in the struggle to provide assistance and dignity to people living on the streets. With a built area of more than 800 square meters and an investment of more than one billion pesos.

"We are with a happy heart," said the general chaplain of Hogar de Cristo, José Francisco . "Today after many years we have been able to inaugurate this Community Center, which in addition to recognizing the dignity of people, will seek to develop trajectories of inclusion for almost one hundred people who by justice deserve dignified treatment, so thank you very much. We are very happy and also challenged to provide good conditions for the elderly and street people, who are the most visible face of poverty".

It has a capacity to house 96 people, of which 30 can stay overnight in its facilities, and 26 currently do. This space provides not only a safe place to spend the night, but also the opportunity to rebuild their lives.

One of Hogar de Cristo's users expressed his gratitude at the inauguration ceremony: "Being here has liberated me, it has given me a new opportunity in life. I cannot describe the relief I feel. Hogar de Cristo has saved my life and rescued me from drugs".