A 63-year-old widow and her sick son have been sleeping rough since being evicted from their home in San Isidro, while the institutions she turned to for help have either distanced themselves from the case or, in one instance, taken legal action against her.
Antonia Gutiérrez Vicente and her 40-year-old son, Jesús, have been without a roof over their heads since 28 May. Since then, they have spent their days and nights moving between public parks in Cox and Redován, occasionally managing to pay for a hostel room for Jesús from Antonia’s limited widow’s pension.
She says shame has pushed them into hidden corners, while exhaustion, heat and hunger have become part of daily life. The pair walk long distances between Redován, Cox and San Isidro in search of help, food, information and somewhere safe to sleep.
Antonia says she only needs temporary accommodation until 1 July, when she expects to move into a rented flat in Orihuela using borrowed money and her double pension payment. Until then, she says, every door has been slammed in her face.
Her difficulties began after the death of her husband, a lorry driver from Cox who died of pancreatic cancer. Antonia cared for him for five years. She later worked in garlic packing in Benejúzar and took weekend restaurant shifts, but lost regular employment after turning 60. Her son also worked seasonally in agriculture before falling ill.
After the eviction, Antonia first tried to shelter in a storage unit where she had placed her belongings, but the owner, she says, could not allow two people to live there.
She then sought help from the Church, the town hall and public services. According to Antonia, a former parish priest at San Isidro parish church told her months earlier that the Church “receives donations” but does not provide financial aid. She stresses that this was not the current priest.
She also says she attempted to speak to San Isidro mayor Manuel Gil Gómez, of the PSOE, but was refused entry. The mayor told local newspaper Información that since 2019 such cases have been handled by municipal Social Services and that he could not interfere with the work of civil servants. He said he was unaware of the specific case and declined further comment.
In a tiny municipality of around 2,400 residents, Antonia’s situation raises unavoidable questions about how a mother and sick son can end up sleeping outdoors without triggering an immediate emergency response.
The case has taken an even sharper turn involving the local Justice of the Peace, Francisco Gómez de la Torre, who is the mayor’s father. After Antonia posted online about what she describes as the refusal of local institutions to help, the judge initiated legal action for alleged defamation, claiming he had been insulted and his reputation damaged.
Antonia denies responsibility for anonymous posts and says she only stands by comments signed in her own name.
But for now, she says the help she needs remains painfully simple: somewhere safe for her sick son to sleep until their Orihuela flat becomes available.
In San Isidro, a woman asking for shelter says she found not protection, but silence, bureaucracy and a courtroom threat.
Image courtesy Diario Informacion: Antonia Gutiérrez Vicente outside San Isidro Town Hall
