San Marcos Spring Update

Hello everyone! We just received another update from the family that received our first oven in San Marcos. At Bricks to Bread we believe accountability is key to ensuring the success of our ovens. Laura and Cristina Perez are doing an amazing job at keeping us informed about how their business is growing and what they are learning.

It is important to note that access to a computer and to the internet is not common in rural Costa Rica. Bricks to Bread provided the Perez Family with a donated laptop so they would be able to communicate with us and search for more recipes. The laptop also provides them with the ability to take basic small business and baking classes online; traveling around Costa Rica to take classes can be difficult and expensive.  Laura has put a lot of effort into learning how to use a computer by working with local Peace Corps Volunteer, Sam Demers. We congratulate them both on their efforts! Laura has taken five formal classes about basic computer skills; how to use the keyboard and mouse, how to use email, as well as how to navigate the internet though Google and watch baking videos on YouTube.

They bake bread on Fridays and Saturdays for 12 hours, from 6am to 6pm twice a month. They sell the bread to approximately fifty regular clients and to the local pineapple plantation. If someone requests bread outside of their normal baking time frame they will bake for them. Each time they bake they make 60 bags and sell them for 1,000 colones each ($5) and profit around 30,000 colones ($150). With the average income in San Marcos being $3 an hour the bread business is providing a nice income for their family.

Laura and Cristina would like to add, “We have learned so much. The reality is that this project has changed our lives. We have a new income that we would not have otherwise had. We have learned many new skills, bread baking techniques and we have found new recipes on the internet. Thank you to Nancy, Bricks to Bread, and all the donors.”