Nov
29
Volunteer Day · Sunday, November 29 · from 8am
🎨 Paint & Plant 🌱
A hands-on day at the church near Jacó to plant the community garden and finish the outside walls of the church. No skills needed — we'll put a tool or a paintbrush in your hand. Come for the morning or the whole day; families welcome.
The Story
It started four years ago with four kids in the pastors' living room. Then a tent. Then a church — built piece by piece from gifts: one donor gave the roof, each family gave a single wall sheet, and someone who doesn't even attend gave the windows and doors.
In one of the poorest communities in the region, the pastor and pastora feed 60 to 80 kids every Sunday — sometimes more than 100 — chicken, rice and beans, cooked before dawn on one tiny stove and paid for out of their own pockets and the congregation's.
Beyond Sunday lunch, they hand out food baskets to families who need them — elderly neighbors with no pension, single mothers. More than 100 families could use one. Right now they can help five a month.
See the Church
Built piece by piece from donated materials — and still a work in progress. This is where the kitchen and dining room will go.
What Your Gift Builds
A two-story building: a kitchen and dining room (comedor) downstairs — the heart of the project — and classrooms upstairs, including art classes for the girls. The comedor comes first; the second floor is phase two. Here's what specific gifts cover (estimated):
$15
buys a bag of cement
$30
buys a roofing sheet
$35
buys the kitchen sink
$100
buys 200 concrete blocks
$500
buys all the plumbing & electrical
$1000
buys the whole roof
Where the Money Goes
Trust is everything here. We keep a private fund tracker with every dollar raised, every fee, and every planned cost — and we save GoFundMe transfer screenshots and receipts. Because GoFundMe takes a card-processing fee, we always say “every dollar raised.”
$7,385
Raised
$189.12
GoFundMe fees
$6,104.88
Available after fees
$4,140.33
Transferred to the bank
$1,964.55
Still processing
Snapshot updated November 4, 2026. Figures move as donations process.
What the kitchen costs
Colón amounts converted at ≈₡455 per US$1 (approximate). Quotes and estimates as labeled; receipts are linked here as purchases begin.
Ways to Help
Businesses feed the kids. People feed the families. Every link goes to our one GoFundMe.
Give once
Any amount goes straight to the build. The film alone has already raised thousands.
Donate →Give monthly
$20 a month helps feed families with a basket of rice, beans, milk, soap and more.
Give monthly →Padrinos del Comedor
Businesses feed the kids: ₡25,000/mo (≈$55), or ₡150,000 (≈$330) for six months. Thanked publicly each month.
Become a Padrino →Sponsor a build day
≈₡37,500 (≈$82) pays the whole crew for a day of work on the kitchen.
Sponsor a day →Volunteer
Deliveries, build days, the garden, a monthly-donor newsletter — there's a place for everyone. Our next volunteer day — Paint & Plant — is November 29.
Email to help →Drop off gifts
Toys and school supplies can be dropped at Tienda Line Up Jacó (our CTL pickup point).
Donate instead →The Bigger Vision
The dream is a comedor that serves the kids lunch every weekday, not just Sunday — and that pays its own way. Picture Tico cooking classes for visitors taught by the church's own cooks, a little soda serving breakfasts, the room rented for birthdays, and classrooms upstairs for Spanish, English, music and art. Food baskets for 100+ families instead of five. The goal isn't one more donation drive — it's a place that sustains itself, creating paid work for women in the community along the way.
Next idea taking root
🌱 A community garden
Right beside the comedor we want to plant a shade garden — leafy tropicals, herbs the kitchen can cook with, and a cool green place for the kids. It keeps lunches healthy, trims the grocery bill, and gives the whole project another way to sustain itself. We break ground on the November 29 volunteer day.
What to bring on November 29
Shade plants are the big one — bring anything from your yard that likes shade (cuttings count!). You can also keep an eye out and dig up volunteers along the road, like we do all the time. The more green, the better.
Follow the Progress
Watch the story of Semillita de Amor. 🎥 New video coming this Sunday.
Nov 4, 2026
Past $7,000 — 74% funded
We've crossed $7,385 raised, thanks to this community. We're closing in on the $10,000 goal that gets the kitchen built.
Nov 3, 2026
63% of the way there
We're at $6,294 raised, and the first $4,140 has already been transferred to the bank — with the rest still processing. Thank you. The goal is now $10,000.
Nov 1, 2026
The story goes live
Our mini-documentary premiered on YouTube. In its first days, the film alone brought in more than $5,296 raised — proof of what this community can do together.
Questions & Trust
Is this legit?
Yes. The project runs under RelocateNow Costa Rica and Sarah Elena, who has helped people relocate here since 2019. Every donation goes through one public GoFundMe, we keep receipts and transfer screenshots, and we post the running total with an updated date. Nothing goes through a personal PayPal or a side link.
Where does the money go?
Straight to building the kitchen and dining room, then the classrooms — plus feeding the kids and families while the build happens. You can see the raised total, the fees, and the full cost estimate right on this page, with receipts linked as purchases begin.
Why do you say “every dollar raised”?
GoFundMe takes a small card-processing fee on donations, so we never claim “every dollar” goes to the build. “Every dollar raised” is the honest version — and donors can choose to cover the fee so more reaches the project.
Who runs the church?
A local pastor and pastora in Herradura, near Jacó. They started with four kids in their living room four years ago and now feed up to 100 every Sunday. We keep their family and the children they care for private.
Padrinos del Comedor
The businesses feeding the kids. We thank our sponsors here every month — with their permission.
We're gathering our first 20 founding Padrinos. Want your business on this wall?
Become a founding Padrino →You're Part of It
Whether you give once, give monthly, sponsor as a business, or roll up your sleeves to volunteer — you become part of Semillita de Amor. Thank you.
Want to stay close to the project? Join our community on WhatsApp — pick the groups you want to be part of and get event updates like our volunteer days.
Join the community on WhatsApp →Business sponsors & volunteers can also email sarah@lasarahelena.com.