Careful belt-tightening and a couple of hefty donations are helping Cruz Roja Chapala stay on an even keel as it recovers from many years of operating in dire financial straits.
Fresh funding includes the recent 16,000 pesos in proceeds from the Mariachi Festival concert organized by the Chapala branch of the Guadalajara Chamber of Commerce and 32,063 pesos kicked in earlier in the summer by local employees of the Federal Electricity Commission.
”We’re not rolling in money, but we are managing to get by,” says Norm Pifer, head man for the Chapala’s Red Cross International Volunteers 501C3 tax-deductible fund.“Ambulance operation eats up about 40 percent of our budget,” he explains. “Since the newest one in our aging fleet is a 1997 model, expenses for maintenance and repairs add up.”
Taking advantage of a Cruz Roja Jalisco peso-for-peso matching fund program, the organization is tapping into the 501C3 kitty for a sum of 150,000 pesos to buy a used 2003 model ambulance. The new acquisition should bring cost savings, while boosting the clinic’s ability to provide reliable emergency services to the community.