It’s always great to be back in Guatemala, which feels like
a second home.
We’ve been visiting for almost 20 years, and we’ve seen some
impressive changes. The adult illiteracy
rate in the Western Highlands (where poverty is worst) has dropped from 2/3 to
1/3. Though the reasons for this are
varied, including redoubled commitment from the Ministry of Education,
nonprofits like the one we work with are a solid part of the change. There’s
also a rising middle class, which I see as a very positive change. The only really discouraging thing is that
the (already horrendous) traffic problem is worse.
Florentina, about age 13, Santiago Sacatepéquez Guatemala
The whole family, Santiago Sacatepéquez Guatemala
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| Marco, Flor, Daniella, Rebecca, Carlos, Santiago Sacatepéquez Guatemala |
Those who have been with me for some time will remember that
we have been fortunate to enjoy a visit with our first scholarship student,
Florentina, each trip. This time we gladly
accepted an invitation to meet the ENTIRE family at her house. 17 years ago, we met a determined 12-year-old
girl whose family couldn’t afford school.
The Government pays through the equivalent of 6th grade. Now she is a banking professional, married,
and has an 18-month-old daughter, Daniella.
She’s sent her sisters to school, and lives in a lovely home, which can
certainly be described as middle class.
None of her family will ever be illiterate or live in poverty again. We’re
so proud. By the way, there was food and
a piñata (nothing is so funny as a laugh-at-the-gringos game, but all in good
fun) at this party.
There are currently 3 kids we sponsor in middle school. This is Madelyn and her mom, who we met for the first time last week. She’s in the 9th grade. We’ve seen such an increase in confidence in these kids in two years. Partly that’s because the program includes activities one Saturday each month to build self-esteem, work in their communities, and learn about career opportunities to name a few. There’s also social support, because poverty brings many of the same struggles there as it does here in the states.
This trip was for Members of Rotary Clubs, and the group included Rotarians from Canada and The Cayman Islands in addition to US Club members. One of my favorite parts of this trip is meeting them, as well as Rotarians from Guatemala. International friendships are a great benefit of being a Rotarian. We were welcomed at a meeting of the 100-year-old Quetzaltenango Club. After a good meal and some scotch, several of us were invited to join in on a club tradition, to be given an animal nickname. We walk around the room to music, and members vote on the monicker. I’m the Flamingo (thanks for asking). I figure it could have been worse.
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| Delfina, Casa Flor Ixcaco, San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala |
The Western Highlands are mostly populated with people of
Mayan descent. They’d like you to know
that Mayan civilization didn’t disappear – they’re still there. Lots of adroit folks are re-kindling native
arts with co-ops. We had the honor of
visiting Casa Flor Ixcaco in San Juan
La Laguna, Where Delfina told us all about the process of bringing
just-harvested cotton through the prep, spinning, and dying process. The quality is mind-blowing.
The burning of the Bull, Chiquilaja Guatemala
Learning about different cultures is priceless. Here’s a somewhat frivolous, if shocking example. There’s a tradition called the “burning of
the bull,” which involves lighting fireworks which are attached to a sort of
cage with a bull’s head attached. The alarming
part is that there’s a teenaged boy dancing around with the cage on his
back. Once we saw this display indoors!
Guatemalans do love their fireworks.
And then there are the students.
So many stories.
There are more images in the Winter 24-25 Gallery on the
website.
