Bittersweet Ministries

OUR STORY

In the suburbs of Tijuana, Mexico, lies a community next to a landfill. Fifty years ago, before the first trash truck ever arrived, it was nothing more than a couple of ranches spread across a canyon. However, due to population growth and urban sprawl, it has been swallowed up by city. Today, there are hundreds of people who live crammed together on the slopes of Cañon Carretas (Canyon of the Carriages).

Yolanda Real has lived in Carretas for most of her life. Her husband was killed when their 7 children were still young, so Yolanda had to work in the landfill in order to save enough money to send her kids to school. However, supporting her own family was not enough for Yolanda. What really troubled her was that many of the children who were attending school could not concentrate because they were hungry. So she decided to help by providing them at least one good meal every school day so that they would be able to excel in their studies.

Yolanda was also troubled by the fact that many landfill workers would bring their children to the landfill during the day or leave them locked up at home. One day, after a child was killed by an earthmover, she decided to take action. With the help of the community, she built a rudimentary building out of pallets found in the trash. Now the families had a safe place to take their children while they worked and Yolanda had a place to serve food. That was the start of the community center. Bittersweet Ministries has been partnering with Yolanda and the community center for the past 15 years. 

School sponsorships

At the heart of Bittersweet's work in Cañon Carretas is taking care of the children. By providing them with food, school supplies, and uniforms, kids are given a chance to pursue an education, break out of the cycle of poverty, and positively impact the community. Our sponsorships are currently supporting over 150 children.

Empowering locals 

Bittersweet partners alongside local leaders that are committed to serving the members of their community. We spend time learning from each other and growing together so that we are all more empowered to lead God-glorifying lives.

Community building 

We develop relationships through community Bible studies, Bible schools for kids, work camps, and outreach initiatives. For many people in Cañon Carretas, this is the first encounter with the life-giving message of the Gospel, and their first step towards a restored relationship with their creator.