Today we started our first day in the village of Chukumuk. We met with 12 moms and their babies. All the babies are from one to 6 months old. Each mom received 3 breathable, waterproof, adjustable baby diaper covers and 12 inner liners made from flannel, These diapers were made by volunteers in Nanoose and Qualicum. In the future the diapers will be made by our sewing lady in Guatemala. However as this is a new design we wanted to first try them out on a small group of babies to see how they worked.
She only had pants on…no diaper at all. All the baby clothes are purchased at a second hand clothing market.
Aldea Maya tries NOT to give families freebees. Therefore each mom is giving Aldea Maya a beaded keychain, that they made, as payment for the diapers.
We showed each mom how to put on the diapers. Every baby was completely soaked with urine as they only had a small piece of thin cloth wraped around them and then some clothes over top. All the moms were very excited to receive these diapers.
These diapers were paid for with the sale of our Mother’s day cards. If you are interested in buying these awesome diapers for a new mom email Aldea Maya at js0922@telus.net and we will arrange it.
This smiley baby stole my husband, Jim’s heart!!!!
We then walked back to the school. On the way we met up with some of the second year Basico students. The Basico (middle School) is presently totally paid for by Aldea Maya. As it is the second year of the school we have only 2 grades. These students are the first generation to continue past grade 6. Every student receives backpack, school supplies and their fees. The students with a sponsor receive more items like gym shoes and gym clothing.
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The students take 15 subjects. One is art. The Second year Basico students were carrying their art project to school to continue working on.
We also organized for the students to make bead work bracelets and key chains. As we are only in the village for 5 days they do not have much time to make them. The families need the money badly, this year, as the coffee plantations failed to produce coffee beans as the plant all got a virus. These families that were already poor became even poorer. Aldea Maya pays a very good price for the bead work we buy. Check out where we’re selling these items on the webpage, in upcoming events section, if you would like to purchase this beadwork.
We also met Teresa’s daughter. She has completed Basico and dreams of studying to be a Physical Education teacher. Her mom is a single mom of 4 who works 2 full time jobs across the lake in Panajachel. She has been doing this for over 20 years. Teresa works so incredibly hard to ensure her children an education. Her oldest daughter Wendy completed Carrera ( high school) and is now working as a primary school teacher. The next child is Angel. He completed sciences in Carrera and now is studying nursing in University. This is a huge expense for the family as the nursing school is very far away and the students have to get up at 4 in the morning to travel their. It cost $100 a month just for the transportation. Aldea Maya is helping to cover half of Angel’s transportation costs. He dreams of becoming a doctor one day. The youngest child is in elementary school.
Unfortunately all the families money is now going to cover Angel’s costs and nothing is left for Diana Letona to study Physical Education. There is a shortage of P.E. teachers in this area…probably because it is so very expensive to pay for the travel on top of the education costs. If we can help this young Mayan lady to continue to study we can basically guarantee that she will get a job. To teach in this area of Guatemala you have to speak Tzutujil. Only 60,000 people speak this language and they all live in this area. If you would like to help her meet her dreams please contact us at js0922@telus.net .
The teachers and students at the Basico that Aldea Maya started were really excited to show us their projects and accomplishments. Here is some art work made from recycled products. As well as a lamp which is one of the wood working projects.
This is only the second year for the Basico in Chukumuk. So you can imagine how proud the students were to have competed in a P.E. tournament with 15 other Basicos and to have place first in Boys soccer, second in boys volleyball and second in girls 5 a side soccer. When you know the school does not even own a volleyball net, it is really impressive.
We also visited the room we are using for Home Economics. This program is going great considering they only have one small stove and one propane hotplate and 2 sewing machines. The home economics teacher, Sandra, is very dedicated. She came in for 6 Saturday to make sure the students were getting to cover the curriculum. When you are trying to cook cakes and pies with one tiny stove and 30 students it can take a lot of time. Supposedly some nights the students did not get home until 10!!!!!
So you can imagine what was on the wish list for the teachers. 2 large stoves, small fridge, volleyball net, volley balls, glass slides for science. We have 2 microscopes donated by Vancouver Island University but the science teacher would definitely like more. We really want to push science and mathematics in our Basico as their definitely is a shortage of Engineers, Doctors, Dentists, Nutritionists and Nurses in Guatemala
