Ten years in the making. Still waiting to open our doors.
Refugio El Nazareno is a shelter for girls and young women aged 11–17 in Fajardo, Puerto Rico for girls facing abuse, neglect, and unsafe homes. The building exists. The mission exists. The need has never been greater.
What is still missing is the funding to finally begin.
The building exists. The dream exists. The need exists. What is still missing is the support necessary to open these doors.
This is not a project looking for more resources. It is a dream waiting to become real.
For nearly a decade, founder Blanca Iris Vázquez Caraballo has worked tirelessly with faith, perseverance, and the support of generous donors to build a safe home for the most vulnerable girls in Puerto Rico. The facility has been renovated. The vision is clear. But without operational funding, the doors remain closed.
Every day that passes is another day a girl in need has nowhere safe to turn.
Our Faith Garden
A space already growing even before the doors open.
Led by Pro-Agronomist Carlos Gautier and inspired by Matthew 25:40, our therapeutic garden is one of the first living pieces of the Refugio. Through our "Nurture & Thrive" workshops, young women will learn farming, sustainability, teamwork, and the healing power of nature — watching their crops grow as a mirror of their own recovery.
The garden is a promise of what this place will become.
Our Facilities
See what your support has already built and what still needs to be done.
Thanks to the generosity of donors and the trust placed in this mission by the Government of Puerto Rico, significant progress has been made on the facility. Classrooms are being transformed into dormitories. Bathrooms, a kitchen, recreation rooms, and gardens are taking shape.
We share these images not to show a finished project, but to show you the real progress and the real distance still left to travel. Your support makes that journey possible.
Thousands of people don’t yet know this place exists. Today, you can be part of its beginning.
Refugio El Nazareno has waited long enough. The girls who need it have waited even longer. A donation of any size and sharing this story with someone you know brings this mission one step closer to opening day.