When the mid-February polar vortex caused temperatures to plummet to historic lows, Fellowship Southwest’s close ministry partner Hearts4Kids showed up to provide physical and spiritual warmth on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.

With temperatures well below freezing—a rare occurrence in the region—Jorge Zapata, Hearts4Kids’ founder and associate coordinator of CBF Texas, was able to purchase eight space heaters to help immigrants in the refugee tent camp on the banks of the Rio Grande in Matamoros, Mexico—just across the border from Brownsville, Texas. 

Because demand outstripped supply, Zapata could not buy as many heaters as he needed. So, Hearts4Kids helped transport immigrants to an indoor shelter Fellowship Southwest sponsors with Iglesia Valle de Beraca in Matamoros. 

Hearts4Kids’ freeze-relief ministry of warmth spread on both sides of the border, Zapata reported.

“In South Texas, we were able to supply 100 families in colonias with food, blankets and jackets,” he said. “In Matamoros, we were able to help supply 150 blankets, 300 families with food and water, and 300 jackets for children and adults.

“In Matamoros, we are working in three different areas—the refugee camps, the Colonias Invasiónes shelter in South Matamoros and the Fellowship Southwest shelter,” he said. Hearts4Kids’ goal is to supply provisions to help at-risk people survive winter’s brutality.

North of the border, in Rancho Viejo, Texas, a small community north of Brownsville, Hearts4Kids supplied 300 families with food, water and bread. While local restaurants provided hot meals, many families lost power and had no water, he said.

Zapata expressed appreciation for support provided to Hearts4Kids, including funds supplied by Fellowship Southwest, which have been contributed by Fellowship donors concerned about the plight of immigrants along the borderlands.

“With this unexpected frigid cold weather, many families in the colonias and surrounding communities in the Rio Grande Valley and Mexico have benefited from all the donations we have received,” he said. 

Fellowship Southwest is raising funds for storm relief—to be distributed by FSW to Hearts4Kids and other partners helping freeze victims put their lives back in order. To contribute to the 2021 Winter Storm Relief Fund, click here. The funds will be prioritized by need—providing support for families whose homes sustained water damage after pipes froze, as well as those who lost groceries when power went out, and also workers whose income was curtailed when they could not go to jobs due to the weather.

“We want to take this time to thank everyone who has donated financially and provided supplies,” Zapata said. “We would also like to say, ‘Thank you’ in advance to anyone who would like to donate or continue donating in any way. It has been a great big blessing to us and to every single family and community we have served.”

Sadly, some families sustained heartbreak that funds and an outpouring of love cannot repair, he lamented.

“Due to the frigid cold weather, a family of four from the (Matamoros) camp got desperate and intended to cross the Rio Grande River. In the process, a 2-year-old child drowned in the river,” he said. “Saturday, we visited a colonia in Matamoros, where we will start working, and we learned of the death of a baby and a toddler due to the cold.” Hearts4Kids will continue to provide love and support to the families who lost children.