Francisco Ayuy and Noah Chon Lee are starting a construction company in Ecuador that will provide sustainable revenue to support a kids' shelter.

This fundraising campaign is for a loan repaid one year after the date someone sends funds plus 10% interest.

Update: As of 15 Apr 2026 now we are repaying 15% APY.

The idea of this fundraiser is to raise enough to build and sell the first house. We would use that to build and sell the next house again and again. This way the business will support the community long-term rather than always relying on donations.

Here is our story:

Francisco was abandoned in the Amazon Jungle in Ecuador as an infant. He found community at an orphanage as a kid and as an adult he helped steward that orphanage.

See a vide of his story here - https://youtu.be/ODQUhKChTLo

I met Francisco when I volunteered teaching juggling at the orphanage. I was depressed for years before, and being in that community made me find hope and radically turned my life around for the better. I continued to return 2x/year for several years and it is now the place that feels most like home.

Then the person funding the orphanage died from covid.

I tried to work multiple jobs to support the community while training with the Marines and being a full time student, but ended up sleeping on a friend's couch sobbing as I realized the people who had given me so much hope were eating one meal a day. I ended up dropping out to find a full time job to support them.

I (Noah) have been supporting the community for years now including sending $3000/mth as charity for years. This community is both the greatest joy in his life but that financial pressure has also been my greatest stress and has prevented many opportunities. This business is how we can finally have them be self-sustaining rather than relying on donations.

We already raised $35k in loans and are halfway through building the house.

We need $15,000 more to complete and sell the house

Update: We finished building the house!

See it here - https://open.substack.com/pub/themasterfool/p/we-finished-building-a-house-in-ecuador

Now we're trying to raise the last 10k out of 55k total (some prior contributions were before we launched this GoFundMe) so we have the funds to sell the first house and start building the next house.

Your support is immensely appreciated. Please contact me to learn more.