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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=629 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=3><DIV class=mxb><DIV class=sh>Ecuadorean footballer rebuilds village </DIV></DIV></TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=416><DIV class=mvb><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=416 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=bottom><DIV class=mvb><SPAN class=byl>Judy Fladmark </SPAN>
<SPAN class=byd>BBC News </SPAN></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
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<DIV class=cap>De la Cruz sends money home every week</DIV></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>A South American footballer playing in the English Premiership is spending his high salary not on fast cars and big houses, but on rebuilding an entire community where he grew up.
Ulises de la Cruz, who plays at Reading, was born in the Afro-Ecuadorian village of Piquiucho.
It is a three-hour drive north of Quito, the capital, nestled high in the Andes mountains, close to the Colombian border.
Ramshackle homes are perched on the hillside at the top of the Chota Valley beside the PanAmerican highway.
It is like stepping back into a little piece of Africa. Along with the vibrant culture, there is poverty.
Jobila Jorga lives in a two-room shack with her extended family of 12. She says Ulises "is the only one who cares".
"The government has done nothing to help us, we have been ignored by the authorities.
"He has provided a fresh water supply, it prevents disease spreading. We used to get fungus on our skin because of the dirty water."
Football success
The 32-year-old defender explains: "The 2002 World Cup, when Ecuador qualified for the first time, financed the 18km of water pipes and a treatment system.
"The 2006 World Cup in Germany, when we reached the second round, was important because the success means I can finance a new sports and community centre, now under construction."
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=203 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><DIV>
<DIV class=cap>Poverty is widespread in the Chota Valley</DIV></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>His priority for the 200 families is education. He has provided hundreds of books, a new roof and a playground.
Each day, 100 primary school children receive breakfast and lunch at school, courtesy of the Ulises De la Cruz Foundation.
Health, too, is a big concern.
Cramped living conditions means disease spreads easily.
He has built a medical centre and has been sending money to pay for a doctor, a dentist and a nurse at the clinic.
Dr Camillo Burbuano says Ulises has been doing "what the government should be doing".
De la Cruz is planning to build 40 new homes. The executive director of the foundation, Julio Cesar Larco, says building will start next month.
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It's not just about football, the players have to study every morning before practising in the afternoon, it's about developing individuals to improve their chances of a better life 
<BR clear=all></DIV></DIV><DIV class=mva><DIV>Jose Carcalen
D
<SPAN class=byd>BBC News </SPAN></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=203 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><DIV>
<DIV class=cap>De la Cruz sends money home every week</DIV></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>A South American footballer playing in the English Premiership is spending his high salary not on fast cars and big houses, but on rebuilding an entire community where he grew up. Ulises de la Cruz, who plays at Reading, was born in the Afro-Ecuadorian village of Piquiucho.
It is a three-hour drive north of Quito, the capital, nestled high in the Andes mountains, close to the Colombian border.
Ramshackle homes are perched on the hillside at the top of the Chota Valley beside the PanAmerican highway.
It is like stepping back into a little piece of Africa. Along with the vibrant culture, there is poverty.
Jobila Jorga lives in a two-room shack with her extended family of 12. She says Ulises "is the only one who cares".
"The government has done nothing to help us, we have been ignored by the authorities.
"He has provided a fresh water supply, it prevents disease spreading. We used to get fungus on our skin because of the dirty water."
Football success
The 32-year-old defender explains: "The 2002 World Cup, when Ecuador qualified for the first time, financed the 18km of water pipes and a treatment system.
"The 2006 World Cup in Germany, when we reached the second round, was important because the success means I can finance a new sports and community centre, now under construction."
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=203 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><DIV>
<DIV class=cap>Poverty is widespread in the Chota Valley</DIV></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>His priority for the 200 families is education. He has provided hundreds of books, a new roof and a playground. Each day, 100 primary school children receive breakfast and lunch at school, courtesy of the Ulises De la Cruz Foundation.
Health, too, is a big concern.
Cramped living conditions means disease spreads easily.
He has built a medical centre and has been sending money to pay for a doctor, a dentist and a nurse at the clinic.
Dr Camillo Burbuano says Ulises has been doing "what the government should be doing".
De la Cruz is planning to build 40 new homes. The executive director of the foundation, Julio Cesar Larco, says building will start next month.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=208 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=5>
</TD><TD class=sibtbg><DIV><DIV class=mva> It's not just about football, the players have to study every morning before practising in the afternoon, it's about developing individuals to improve their chances of a better life <BR clear=all></DIV></DIV><DIV class=mva><DIV>Jose CarcalenD
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