Rancho Agua Viva is providing jobs for young men from the community to work and learn hands-on ranching skills. The three teen-age boys that currently work at RAV on a daily basis build and fix fence, irrigate the pastures, clean pens, and check cattle among other general ranch work.
Marcos, one of RAV's employees, has worked at the ranch since August 2016. He has taken care of cattle, watered crops, built fence, and watched over the ranch while his supervisor was gone. He works around 40 hours per week. When asked about his favorite aspect of the job, he says "I enjoy working with the cattle and learning how to take care of them."
Joel and Stephanie Rinkenberger, serving as missionaries at Casa Vida y Esperanza, are Marcos' parents. They say "From our perspective (as parents of several boys), the opportunity to get outside and do some physical work is always positive... and the ability to learn a trade, see how a ranch is managed, interact with stable, mature men and feel useful is so helpful for our son's esteem and overall sense of well-being. So far it has been a positive experience... he respects the men he works for and with and has learned aspects of ranching and livestock care that he hadn't experienced before. We are thankful he has this opportunity."