About Mano

MANO was founded in 1962 by members of the Cardijn Center, an alliance of social action groups concerned with the betterment of human relations.
Our intention was, and still is, to cross the Mexico frontier and join with these neighbors in their endeavors to improve their living conditions. Our motivation stems from love of God, recognition of the dignity of every human being, and conviction that we need to be joined hand to hand with those we can reach.
In Spanish “MANO” means hand—many hands joined across the border, in friendship and in work, to serve those most in need by providing community development assistance.

Activities

Over the past 40 plus years we have gathered food, clothing, household goods and money for distribution to many neighborhoods, children’s homes, senior facilities and individual families in need. We also answer requests from groups and families in California and other countries when special needs arise.

MANO volunteer drivers collect food and household goods and deliver them to Tijuana several days per week. MANO has no paid staff. Our expenses include fuel, service and insurance for our van and printing and postage for our publication. All other monies are used to aid the poor.
In 1996 we established a medical outpatient Clinic for the poor in Colonia Miramar, Tijuana which provided direct medical services to over 350 people a month, many of them living in the impoverished colonias nearby. The Clinic was staffed by Dr. Ester Fuertes and sisters who are trained nurses and administrators from the order of the Sisters of the Poor, Servants of the Sacred Heart (Hermanas de los Pobres, Siervas del Sacrado Corazon).
This evolved into a 2-story 11,000 sq. ft. modern charity Clinic, the Clinica Medica San Luis Obispo, providing dental, prenatal care and internal medicine as well as outpatient services, nutritional education programs, mental health and psychology programs, home health, family and teen counseling, and an improved pharmacy. This care is free to those who cannot pay, but those who have the means to do so pay according to their ability.

The construction and operation of this charity Clinic was made possible through the help of many individuals, organizations and contributors such as the International Relief Teams (www.irteams.org), US Navy and Marine Corps, church groups, foundations and businesses in Mexico, the United States and Europe. Volunteer laborers and in-kind donations of materials and medical equipment are a vital portion of this project. To meet the ongoing expenses of our projects, we need your continued support!
Our closest collaborators and advisors in Mexico included Father James Hagan of Fundacion de Colores and the nursing staff from the Sisters of the Poor, Servants of the Sacred Heart. Many local advisors suggest new expansions of service for MANO, and we also provide help and support to Casa Hogar Children’s Home and Orphanage and to Father Hagan’s C.A.N.O.A. project for disabled children in Tijuana.