Responding to expressed, felt needs, the Parroquia continually endeavors to provide the tools necessary for the community to bring concrete solutions to its specific situations. Among the most visible of the parish’s projects are those which utilize the skills of Lucas Xirúc, master stone mason and head of parish construction, and his team of apprentices and assistants.

     Lucas has been serving the parish since 1965. During these years, he has taught more than seventy apprentices all they need to know about construction. Along with these formal apprentices, there are often many youth helping with the work and learning these skills. Many apprentices eventually leave to begin construction careers of their own; some remain in the area, and some seek work as far away as the capital. Several recent apprentices have temporarily left to work on the completion of the new headquarters of the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging (CFCA), being built just outside of town.

     Lucas regrets that he cannot accept everyone who wants to work with him. There are always more willing people, and more work to be done, than there is money to pay them for their service.

     The work of Lucas and his students is far more than the construction of buildings or careers. It is a fleshing out of parish and community hopes. This becomes obvious when looking at the four current projects: a house, a clinic, a coffee drying patio, and Colonia San Raymondo.

     Several workers are building a house for Margarito Mucia Campa, who has worked faithfully in the Parroquia’s office for the past five years. The construction began in June of 1997 and should be finished before this writing goes to print. It is a one-level block house with the possibility of a future second level. It sits adjacent to his current wooden house, which has become unsuitable for Margarito and his family. Four young men – Manuel, Oscar, Amerigo, and Cesar – are working hard to assist Margarito in finishing his home.

     Clinic construction began in November of 1990 and should be completely finished by the end of 1999. Lucas stresses that finishing dates on the projects are always unknowns; they depend on numbers of helpers, financial conditions, and the weather. The first level is finished, where dental and eye care are already operational. The ten or so young construction workers, the youngest being ten years old, are currently working on the second level, a fence, and detail painting in the interior of the first level. Much of this work is in conjunction with that of carpenter Abraham Hernandez and his team of apprentices. When finished, this clinic will have sixty beds, compared to the twelve beds in the old clinic, and will be a fully functioning regional health care facility.

     The coffee patio is a three-week project to add a sixth coffee drying area to the parish’s Café Juan Ana cooperative. Lucas’ brother and nephew, both named Anselmo Xirúc, are handling this job as a father and son team.

     Work on Colonia San Raymondo has been progressing steadily since September of 1996. This large piece of land a few minutes northwest of San Lucas, in an area called Pacóc, was purchased by the Parroquia to sell to families in need through long-term, low-interest loans. This land will bear their houses, their gardens, and their hopes for a secure future for themselves and for their children. The land will be legally and irrevocably theirs. Currently, the workers are completing the steps and walkways leading from the pila, or clothes-washing area, to the area that will become housing. The recipients of the land will assist in clearing brush and rocks and in constructing their homes. Many of the Parroquia’s visitors and volunteers have spent time at this project. Some of the young men from Casa Feliz are currently assisting apprentices Zacarías, Mario, and Luis in this, the fifteenth colonia the parish has worked with.

     Walking through town and seeing the many structures constructed through the work of the parish, and adding to that the work taking place now, it is evident how deeply committed the Parroquia has been in bringing the hopes of the community of San Lucas to concrete realities.

     Lucas’ personal hope is that the parish will remain as active as it has been in meeting the expressed needs of the community. His work, and the work of his apprentices and assistants, is an important element in the expression of the Parroquia’s care for its people. He has a strong desire to see it grow and continue to provide this opportunity of service to neighbor not only for himself but for those who work with him as well.