Magdalena Atlazolpa is one of the original villages in Mexico City. The Formation and Human Promotion Center, Casa Claudio María Dubuis, is located here. We have received a legacy of Incarnate Presence for more than 60 years, as well as the legacy of the Ahuejote Willow, a tree that is sacred for the Nahua Tribe.

Now we want to take you on a tour to show you the heart of this small mission that donates itself in every act of kindness, recognizing that its roots are in the life of people, in a dynamism of giving and receiving, that is the basis of the habitat of this community nucleus.

We will tell you how the inter-disciplinary team has intensified its activities by choosing the month of September as the Integral Health Month. Estefanía and Monserrat share with us an aspect of their daily life:

“As an area of Social Work, we developed the logistics of promotion and dissemination of the services delivered by Casa Claudio, in order to give information through Stands, posters and visits to several neighborhoods around the Magdalena Atlazolpa area. This allowed us to be close to the community, and we identified persons with the adequate profile to be part of the “Community Caretakers Project” and to Study the “Healing the Heart Certification Course”.   

 Our task is to carry out the first interviews and make social diagnoses that would allow us to assign cased to the specialized therapists. We also make appointments for homeopathy and flower therapy consultations[1]. We see that the number of beneficiaries increases day by day.

Finally, we want to share with you that the agreement with CECATI 176 was signed for another year. Through this agreement, we have a commitment to foster group activities that benefit the people who live in the Magdalena Atlazolpa sector.”

In the nutrition area, we count with Paulina Valdez who is doing her social service tasks. She is a brilliant young woman who shows great solidarity and responsibility. She shares her experiences with us:

“In the area of nutrition, the integral health month was relevant, because we have seen that the population is interested in caring for their nutrition.  Nutritional consultations were given to 23 persons of different ages (from 6 to 82 years old). I attribute the people’s response to the information given by the whole team at Casa Claudio. I participated in Stands on September 4, 7 and 29.

I also gave a speech promoting the activities. In addition, the students who are in the seventh semester at the University of the Incarnate Word started nutrition practices on September 6, 8 and 20.  We went to the market to promote anthropometric measurements (weight, size, BMI (Body Mass Index) circumference and creases). During these days, from late September to early October, 17 free consultations were given by the students.

As a final activity, On September 24, I taught a Webinar on “Intestinal Flora (Microbiota)” through Facebook with my colleague, Rodrigo Torres. The people showed great interest in this topic.

This was a very productive and satisfactory month. The activities reflected the need for nutrition in the population of Magdalena Atlazolpa, and their interest in caring for their health.”

Family Intervention Program

The Family Intervention Program [Programa de Intervención Familiar (PIF)] in Casa Claudio provides psychological attention to families, children, adolescents, adults and senior citizens through a brief intervention with a systemic humanistic approach. Its purpose is to integrate the family to a community, restoring family links and healing the wounds that hinder a healthy life experience. It offers psycho-emotional support, creating consciousness and offering safe spaces, free from discrimination and violence.

Through a constant and close interaction, our inter-disciplinary team listens to the needs of the people who live in this community. Based on this, the create workshops, certified courses, support groups and lectures that give information and benefit everybody according to their needs.

In another area of community activities, with the participation of community leaders, we have started the adventure of creating community cells that generate support networks for economic reactivation. Currently, we have two projects for foster family saving habits: Community purchases for the basic expenses for homes that have great needs, and the organization of a Christmas Bazar with the participation of 12 enterprising women who work with handicrafts. Both projects respond to the needs of the area.

We have felt God’s love in these signs of life. As Sisters, we know that we have the privilege to share our time and our life in this space, with families that we feel are a part of us. This year we have been enriched by the presence of Sister Laura Soto and Sister Clarita. They came as a blessing with their spiritual gifts, showing a loving face in community sharing. Their soft steps and diligent hands are an expression of genuine love. They generate a circle of kindness and wellbeing, and even the garden is flourishing.

The community grows in its inter-congregational experience. Beginning three years ago, we have shared our life and mission with Sister Marilú, who belongs to the Society of the Helpers of the Holy Souls. Rosa María and Pilar, who also belong to this Society, are in their integration process. They are incorporating into the Casa Claudio Project and their participation is very positive. We are very grateful for the Sunday Eucharistic Celebrations that we have with the small Catholic community in La Magdalena. This has been our support during this pandemic period. This way we feel that we are part of a greater community, that is always becoming greater, summoned by faith and reinforced by charity.

[1] Flower therapy and homeopathy are alternative medicine procedures which we offer at Casa Claudio.

FLOWER THERAPY is based on Dr. Edward Bach’s method, “a simple and universal method to calm minds and to heal bodies from all types of maladies.” The subtle energy of flowers is very helpful in achieving inner harmony and in improving life quality. Flowers are a bridge through which human beings may have a re-encounter between human beings and nature. Each flower is associated with an emotion, so their use may heal or relieve the discomfort caused by maladies caused by imbalances.

HOMEOPATHY is a clinical and therapeutic medical model which uses substances obtained from plants, animals and minerals, in very small concentrations dissolved in water and alcohol. It is based on an immutable natural law which uses the practice of applying healing remedies to heal maladies depending on the healthy changes produced in the organism that is ill. It brings balance to metabolism and it strengthens the body so it may cure itself.