Agros Blog

Agros Family of José Angel Villalobo and Modesta Magadalena Chávez
Futuro del Mañana, Nicaragua

The family of José Ángel Villalobos, 44, and his wife Modesta Magdalena Chávez Chávez, 44, is an exemplary case of overcoming the grips of poverty. This young and entrepreneurial couple, including their four hard-working sons, has earned the trust and admiration of many through their creative solutions, service towards those less fortunate and commitment to repaying their land loans.

Five years ago, the idea to hand-craft rustic wooden beds for his family dawned upon José. Seeing the natural beauty and excellence of his work, neighbors became interested in purchasing his beds — beginning a new commercial opportunity for José. Ever since, José and his family have been seeking to build upon their skills and expand to other hand-made wood products. José’s oldest son Roberto enrolled in a nearby carpentry workshop where he learned to refine his designs and how to use industrial equipment. Following the workshop, Roberto shared what he learned with his father and brothers. As they perfected their techniques, their family income began to increase, improving their overall quality of life.

In 2005 José’s family was presented with the opportunity to take a loan through Agros to acquire carpentry machinery and move into a more competitive market. The family decided to take the risk to expand their infrastructure with a loan, and with these new tools, José and his sons increased the quality and design of their work, again improving their economic circumstances, but to a much greater degree. With this advancement, the family has been able to not only repay loans on the machinery, but make payments on their land and improve the production of their basic grains and small livestock as well.

Despite the success of their enterprise, the insecurity of decreasing demand for wood products still exists for José’s family, as expressed by one of his sons, “Every day it’s harder to find wood to use. So we need to go to school so that in case we are forced to look for another type of work, we can have a job in another field.”

Fortunately, José and Modesta know the importance of education. Envisioning a better life for their sons, José and Modesta were led to invest their own lives in their children’s education. Their sacrifice is paying back as all four are currently attending or have completed higher level studies.

Daniel de los Santos is now in his third year of college studying Agriculture Engineering and José Ismael is in his fourth year. Douglas and Roberto Enrique, having passed their final exams, recently graduated from high school.

Modesta, although not extensively involved in the carpentry business, has made a lasting impression through her leadership skills and sacrifice. Serving on the community’s development committee as Treasurer and caring for the sick and elderly through the church she leads with her husband. Through these roles, as well as her concern for the well-being of her family, have returned to her the trust and admiration from the entire community.

Together, Modesta and José, along with their four sons, form a strong family that has brought their community and many others hope that they too, can experience a life of opportunity.