Case Story: Construction for community centre in Santa Clara

Sector: Shelter

Project: Community centre construction

Location: Santa Clara, Cuba

In late 2024, Missio Malta received a project application that spoke quietly but powerfully of need, faith, and perseverance. The request came from Fr Stephen Magro, a Maltese parish priest serving in Santa Clara, Cuba, who shared the story of a small Catholic community that had been gathering faithfully for years, without ever having a place they could truly call their own.

Missio Malta committed to supporting the project, and works began in early 2025, and by October the construction and refurbishment of the Casa de Misión were completed, marking an important milestone not only in bricks and mortar, but in the life of this community.

The Casa de Misión now stands as a dedicated meeting place for the local Catholic community on the outskirts of Santa Clara. It serves as a space for prayer and liturgical celebrations, catechesis, faith formation, and social gatherings. Recently, the community has also begun offering music lessons for children, an initiative that nurtures creativity and creates a space where friendships can be built.

What makes this project especially meaningful is the strong sense of shared responsibility it has inspired. Members of the local community, many of whom are workers with practical skills, have willingly offered their time to help embellish and maintain the house. Farmers living nearby are ready to care for the large garden surrounding the property, transforming it into a welcoming space that benefits both the community and the wider environment.

Beyond its physical presence, the Casa de Misión plays a vital role in fostering belonging. The community is located on the periphery of Santa Clara, an area marked by poverty and limited resources. For many residents, attending parish churches in the city centre has long been difficult. While Santa Clara has several parish churches clustered close together in the centre, there are very few chapels serving the outlying suburbs.

Despite these challenges, this community has remained committed. Since its beginnings a few years ago, members have been faithful to weekly Mass celebrations and catechism, showing a deep desire to grow in their faith. Before the purchase of the house, gatherings were held in the home of a single family, an arrangement that required constant dependence on availability and space. Having a place of their own now opens new possibilities for regular formation, prayer, and outreach.

Today, many locals participate regularly in Mass and moments of formation, alongside their children who attend both liturgical celebrations and weekly catechism sessions, which now include music lessons. The impact of this formation goes beyond the walls of the Casa de Misión. By nurturing values of faith, responsibility, and community from a young age, the project helps shape a better future for the younger generation, and provides a sense of unity to the community.

This completed project is reminder of what can be achieved when solidarity meets local commitment. Through your support, Missio Malta has helped create more than a building, it has helped establish a spiritual home where faith can grow, community can flourish, and hope can take root on the peripheries.

If you’d like to be part of this mission and help us reach more communities like the Santa Clara, you can do so by donating here: https://missio.org.mt/donate