Help Indigenous Family Rebuild after Tragic Loss

A Heart-Wrenching Tragedy: On July 21, the Martinez Lopez family's world crumbled. Minutes of distraction led to a tragedy that no parent should ever have to endure. Their 2-year-old daughter, Mariel, wandered away from their market stall where they sell artesanía / handicrafts as her 22-year-old mother, Patricia, tended to her one year old baby sister. Gone for less than five minutes, they began to search for her everywhere. The 2 year old child’s body was found an hour later. 2 year old Mariel had slid under the fence and drowned at the Oromapas water treatment plant on Avenida Palmar by the entrance to the market. She was taken to the Sayuhealth clinic out by the highway by ambulance where they tried to resuscitate her, but it was too late.

In the wake of this devastating loss, the Martinez Lopez family faces a mountain of challenges. The financial burden from hospital bills, the ambulance ride, and the cost of repatriating body to their tiny Oaxacan town weighs heavily on their already fragile hearts. The funeral, tomb, lost work, and travel expenses have plunged them into debt after already having very little.

About the Family

Eight years ago, when Jose Luis Martinez Gonzalez was 16 and Patricia Lopez Ignacio was 14, they left behind their village in the mountains of Oaxaca in search of a better future for their family here in Sayulita. Patricia and Jose Luis are indigenous Mixtec Indians (a people native to the Mexican states now known as Guerrero, Oaxaca and Pueba) and their native tongue is Mixteco, although they are both now well versed in Spanish and also know some English words

In their hometown of San Simon Zahuatlan they had little opportunity for work, most people there are employed sewing soccer balls for 20 pesos each (about $1) or making sombreros.

Patricia and Jose Luis started small, selling bracelets on the streets of Sayulita. Two years later, and coinciding with the birth of their first daughter, they were able to put together enough money to open a stall in the hippie market by the river (stall #8 coming from the ocean on the river side of the hippie market). They had three beautiful daughters; Yaneth (age 6), Mariel (the one who was lost) (age 2) and Romina (age 1).

Many of you have passed this hard working family daily. With the fruits of their labors they built a small dwelling to call home, by the bridge at the top of Pelicanos, alongside the gully near the Punta Mita highway.

Every tragedy has the power to unite communities and kind-hearted individuals. After hearing the story of the loss of their daughter, I couldn’t stop thinking about the family and what they must be going through. I saw several pleas for help posted online but with no easy call to action. I contacted the family, and on Monday sat with them to hear their story.

I am personally planning to help this family with a modest financial contribution of my own. I want to invite anyone who feels called to to donate to this gofundme to help them get back on their feet. I will accept the donation money through my personal US bank account (as required by gofundme), transfer the money to my Mexican bank and then take the money out in cash pesos and give it to the family to help them repay the debts they are facing as a result of the devastating loss of their middle child.

Here’s what I’m fundraising to help the family cover:

Medical Bills and Ambulance Ride: Mariel’s medical treatment and ambulance transport resulted in expenses that their limited resources could hardly cover. Sayuhealth is it comping 80% of their bill, but the 20% remains is an overwhelming amount for this family.

Repatriation: Sending Mariel’s body back to their Oaxacan town for burial meant additional costs for transportation and funeral arrangements.

Funeral and Tomb: The cost of the funeral service and a dignified resting place for Mariel have further strained their finances.

Lost Work and Travel: The family's work has been interrupted due to the tragedy, causing them to lose essential income.

Alternatively to contributing to this gofundme, you can look for Patricia, Jose Luis and their family at their handicraft market stall to help them out directly. It’s on the river side counting up from the ocean side stall number eight on the right.

Your contribution, no matter how small, can make a significant difference in their lives.

Best wishes,

Sayulita Storm

Real estate agent, daughter, sister and mother of a 3 year old and 9 month old. (I was born here during a Storm and named after the town)