The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently donated 450 wheelchairs for the disabled in Bolivia, 216,000 glasses for those with sight impairment in Peru, 12 medical posts in Chile and various firefighting equipment in Argentina.
Read more about how each of these donations will improve the lives of those in need.
Wheelchairs in Bolivia
The Church donated 450 wheelchairs and other assistive equipment such as canes, donkeys, crutches and spare parts to benefit people with disabilities — especially those living in rural areas — at an event for the Weaving Hope program on Oct. 15 in La Paz, Bolivia.
The Weaving Hope program supports people with disabilities in Bolivia, and this specific donation is estimated to benefit 1,600 people.
The Community Action and Solidarity Management Unit of the Ministry of the Presidency held the public launch of the Weaving Hope program in commemoration of the Day of People with Different Abilities and the Day of the White Cane.
“Today we reaffirm our commitment to this donation of 450 wheelchairs and other equipment because we believe in the transformative power of solidarity and service,” said Sebastian Espinoza, representing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “As part of this donation, the staff of the Community Action and Solidarity Management Unit has been trained, forming them as clinical evaluators and technical evaluators, ensuring that those who receive these wheelchairs can use them in the best possible way.”
Espinoza also stressed the importance of the year 2024 for the Church, which is celebrating 60 years of service in Bolivia. The Church has made multiple donations to the Weaving Hope program throughout its 60 years in the country, contributing food, medical equipment, school desks and other humanitarian aid totaling several million dollars.
During the event, various authorities — including Rolando Quisbert, head of the Community Action and Solidarity Management Unit — expressed their gratitude to the Church, calling it a “strategic ally in the work of serving others.”
After the event, Maria Nela Prada, minister of the Presidency of Bolivia, expressed her special thanks for the Church’s donation: “The wheelchairs were a necessity. It was something that they constantly asked us for, and now with your help we can reach these people who need it.”
Glasses in Peru
Thanks to Church and the Pensión 65 Program of Peru’s Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion, 166,000 pairs of reading glasses and 50,000 sunglasses with UV protection were donated to elderly people in extreme poverty on Nov. 5 in Trujillo, Peru.
Local figures witnessed the glasses delivery, including Mayor Wilmer Sánchez Ruiz, mayor of the La Esperanza district; Leonel Cruz, council member of the municipal council; Linda Bueno, deputy manager of social programs; Piero Custodio Herrera, technical coordinator of Pensión 65 in La Libertad; and Beiman Rodríguez Mozo, director of communications for the Church in Trujillo.
Pensión 65, with crucial support from the Church, strives to help the elderly population prevent visual damage and improve their low vision.
Advanced medical posts in Chile
The Church donated 12 fully equipped advanced medical posts — places where disaster victims are treated and equipment assembled — in Valparíso, Chile, in November 2024.
“This equipment will allow us to provide safe, warm and high-quality care,” said Osvaldo Salgado, the undersecretary of Healthcare Networks.
The equipment — including portable ultrasound machines, mechanical ventilators, neonatal ventilators, 40 burn blankets, video laryngoscopes and other items — will significantly improve the response of the local health system during future emergencies and guarantee higher quality care.
“We follow the example of Jesus Christ in loving our neighbors and putting that commission into action, especially with those who have suffered so much,” said Ricardo Spencer, the Church’s local director of communications. “We are grateful for the collaborative work with ONAR and the Reconstruction Fund, who were the coordinators to materialize this donation for the direct benefit of people in the health field.”
Trinidad Undurraga, executive secretary of the National Reconstruction Fund, added that her team is “very grateful to have been able to be a bridge of collaboration both with the public-private coordination as well as with the regional coordination and with the private sector to deliver this benefit to the citizens.”
Firefighting equipment in Argentina
The Church made a significant donation to the the Volunteer Firefighters Associations in Chubut, Argentina, in October 2024. It included a state-of-the-art automatic external defibrillator (AED), a rescue board and a thermal blanket for each of the four fire stations.
Present at the ceremony were Luis Yllana, Luis Silva and Daniel Sleiman, representing the Rawson firefighters; Marcelo Dopaso and Alberto Alesio from Puerto Madryn; Alejandro Diez and Orlando Evans from Gaiman; and Cristian Otero with Hernán Montes de Oca representing the Trelew fire station.
Representatives of the Church included President Alejandro Mayor, president of the Trelew Argentina South Stake; Detlefsen Daniel, director of multistake communications; and Walter Ricart, from the welfare department.
Church leaders expressed gratitude for the chance to collaborate with volunteer firefighters and strengthen the region’s emergency response.
