Located just southeast of Mexico, Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America. Its spectacular mountains boast a wealth of natural resources and stunning biodiversity. For centuries, this land served as the core territory of the renowned Mayan civilization. Following two centuries of Spanish colonization, Guatemala gained its independence in the early nineteenth century, only to endure another 150 years of political instability and civil unrest. Additionally, this area is prone to devastating natural disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and hurricanes, which cause mudslides and flooding. Despite recent economic growth and successful democratic elections, Guatemala still struggles with widespread poverty, illiteracy, crime, and high rates of unemployment and underemployment.
Though a seemingly small gesture, for these children and their parents, creating something handmade as a way of saying thank you to sponsors shows just how important our sponsorship program is to them, as well as to the school and community.
These maladies are perhaps even more pronounced in the city of Tecpan, located some sixty miles west of Guatemala City. The overwhelming majority of Tecpan’s 50,000 inhabitants claim direct descent from the Maya. However, despite their rich cultural heritage, indigenous people often find themselves marginalized, left to endure the brunt of poverty and its associated effects. For this reason, the Tecpan School, one of our affiliated projects in Guatemala, is incredibly important to these families. Run by nuns of the Hijas de la Caridad (Daughters of Charity) Order, the school strives to aid the impoverished children of this region; and thanks to the help of their sponsors, children and their families are receiving basic needs, which helps them to break the cycle of poverty.
Families in Guatemala work together to make gifts for sponsors.
Showing appreciation
Recently, we received pictures from our volunteer coordinator at the Tecpan School of children and their mothers making small gifts of handmade bracelets and bookmarks for the kids’ sponsors as a way to show their gratitude for all that our sponsors do to help these families. Though a seemingly small gesture, for these children and their parents, creating something handmade as a way of saying thank you to sponsors shows just how important our sponsorship program is to them, as well as to the school and community.
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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN GUATEMALA?
You can sponsor a child in Guatemala in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our donation portal, create an account, and search for a child in Guatemala that is available for sponsorship.