Mexico is a Third World country. Many of its people live in poverty. San Juan Cosala was a fishing village on the north shore of Lake Chapala even before the arrival of the Spaniards in the early 1500’s.
With the demise of the lake whitefish shoals on which most villagers formally depended for their livelihood, it is today a particularly poor, essentially Mexican village, where many lack basic necessities – food, shoes, and even blankets for warmth. Houses are often little more than unheated, dirt-floored, semi-open structures. There is no social "safety net" as we know it for them in Mexico. Many children are unable to go to school because school supplies (books, paper, writing utensils, etc.) are not provided and must be purchased.
In June, 1995, two American couples, the Scotts and the Smithburgs, members of St. Andrew’s Anglican Church , joined a concerned Mexican couple in responding to the needs of their neighbors in San Juan Cosala – a need exacerbated by the upsurge in inflation and unemployment that followed the devaluation of the peso – and OPERATION FEED was launched. Financial and volunteer support from members of St. Andrew’s and from many others in the expatriate Canadian, American, and European communities in the nearby lakeside villages has enabled the work to grow rapidly.
By early November, 1997, plastic "dispensas" containing staples such as rice, beans, pasta, milk, cooking oil, sugar, cookies, and chicken parts were being delivered to forty-eight (48) families every Tuesday morning. Although numbers fluctuate from year to year, there are usually fifty (50) families at any given time in the program. All too typical among the recipients are elderly singles or very large families headed by mothers whose husbands have disappeared. In both situations, these persons are virtually completely dependent on their weekly OPERATION FEED delivery.
Despite its rapid growth, a set of principles established from the outset has maintained the remarkable integrity of OPERATION FEED:
 | The Father and the Mother Superior of the local Roman Catholic Church, together with a respected third member of the Mexican community refer families to the program based on greatest need. |
| Literally 100 % of all cash donations go to the purchase of food at wholesale prices. Administration costs are literally zero! This is achieved by the efforts of our volunteers. |
OPERATION FEED has approximately thirty (30) volunteers. Volunteers make needed shopping trips into Guadalajara to buy at wholesale markets. Volunteers repackage the bulk foods into "large dispensas" for families of five or more and "small dispensas" for families of four or less. Finally, volunteers make the Tuesday morning deliveries to our families. Of course, volunteers with vans are very popular!
The relationship between volunteers and the families served is a joy to experience. Tuesday morning has become a high point of the week for both as friends greet friends. Families are often large – our fifty families add up to 300 individuals. But each is known by name. Every Christmas, an additional "angel tree" project at St. Andrew’s Church ensures that each child receives and appropriate Christmas gift with his or her name on it.
Operation Feed, a major outreach ministry originating from St. Andrew’s Church, also enjoys considerable support from the community-at-large in the Lakeside area. Cash donations are now regularly supplemented with gifts of clothing, shoes, bedding, and other household items.
Many individuals from the local area and from around the world have inquired about the actual costs involved in supporting this ministry. At present prices (May, 1999) food for this entire program costs approximately $1,000.00 USD per month. Expressed another way, $15.00 USD will provide for a "small" family, or $30.00 USD for a "large" family, for a whole month!
Particularly encouraging is an emerging trend whereby church congregations, schools, and other groups in Canada and the USA have chosen to support Operation Feed as an on-going Third World outreach project. After all, so little goes so far! Donations that would seem modest in a Canadian or US context can dramatically change lives in the Mexican context.
 | Every member of a family living at home receives a "Goody bag" of fruit, nuts and candy. |
| Each family receives one or two chickens. |
| Every member up to age 13 receives a gift from St. Andrews' Angel tree. |
| If enough funds come in for the Christmas delivery, we buy more candy to give to other children who see what is being given out. |
| John Mistrik for his many trips to Guadalajara, plus weekly deliveries. |
| Julie Ray who alerts each person weekly of their delivery schedule. |
| The extended family of Jim and Anne Scott who give significant money. |
| The Smithburg's gardener, Arturo who prepares the weekly dispensas and goes to help each distribution. |
| The Outreach Committee of St. Andrews Church |