Informant38

Another gem on the plus side is the impassioned work of Dave Evans, a US veteran who lost both of his legs in the Vietnam War. The beneficiary of artificial legs supplied by our government, Dave and a dedicated group of Salvadorans work in a clinic in downtown San Salvador to provide prosthetic devices to soldiers and civilians who lost limbs in the war. Their services go to needy people--regardless of their current politics or which side they fought on during the civil war. And if a child comes in who has lost a leg or an arm in picking up an unexploded shell or a landmine--or because of cancer or some other affliction--Evans and his staff fit the child with a prosthetic limb. All of these services are provided within the limitations of a tightly administered, underfunded budget. They're short on money and are currently getting no direct help from either the Salvadoran or US governments.
On a broad scale, what we were privileged to witness in El Salvador was a dramatic demonstration of alternative sources of power that in the long run may prove to be stronger than military or material power. Call it spiritual or moral power, or compassion and courage, or faith, or love--but do not overlook it if you wish to see a brighter, more hopeful future for Central America.
We are thinking of the four American churchwomen who lost their lives in service of the poor.
A quarter of a century later the light of these brave women shines as an inspiration to the multitudes across El Salvador. Who remembers except with a shudder the heavily armed soldiers who brutalized these women?

Rep. James P. McGovern