Madisen in Guatemala

Stories

2011-02-20T15:38:00.001-08:00

Daniel

As I begin to face the fact that I will be leaving Guatemala in May, I ask myself the question what has been changed by my time here? Students at the pre-school and Salud y Paz staff members have surely been impacted by my being here, right? The tasks that I have carried out for the school have made some impact on the program I am sure. Relationships built with people around me will leave behind something, right? But what about I will be different? What changes will I make in my lifestyle and the way that I look at the world? How will I continue to strive to love others more than myself? Answering these questions will be a continuous challenge for me, but right now I have one idea of something that needs to be done. I need to tell the stories of people I have been lucky enough to meet along the way. Brave, courageous people who are struggling to survive in a world where the cards are stacked against them. Their stories deserve to be heard, even though their voices are far away and removed from the reality that we in “developed” countries know and believe in; maybe even more so because of that. Their stories need to be told, and then it is up to each listener to decide if they will allow themselves to be affected and changed by it. I can only tell a small part of their stories because I have known them and their country for such a small fraction of time, and cannot presume to understand anything, but will only attempt to tell a small bit of their story objectively.
One day after school a young mother came to pick up her son, and asked to speak with “la directora”. She wore traje, no shoes, and was lacking several teeth. Janet and I both went together to talk with her, and quickly discovered that she could speak very little Spanish. So she waited patiently as I ran to get Paulina, a teacher, to translate from K’iche to Spanish so that we would be able to communicate. Paulina discovered that this young mother did not actually speak K’iche, but another Mayan language called Kaqchikel. The two languages are similar enough though, that she and Paulina were able to understand each other. Shyly the mother greeted us formally and made some small talk, eventually she arrived at her question and asked us if we had any job openings within Project Salud y Paz. She had no work, and hadn’t for a very long time. Unfortunately, there were none, especially for someone who did not have a trade, so we regretfully told her “no” we couldn’t offer any jobs at this time. She said “utz” which means ok, and quietly left with her 6 year old son, Daniel. As we watched her walk away with Daniel, I remembered when an older man had come in to sign up 4 children for school last October. He is Daniel and the other 3 children’s grandfather. He had learned about our school, and wanted his grandchildren to have the chance to attend. He said plainly, about Daniel and his mother, they have nothing. His father has never been involved, and his mother has no job and a mental handicap. Her older child has never been to school, and now the schools don’t want to accept her since she will be older than other first graders. The grandfather asked, is there anything you can do for the older child? We said probably not, but we’ll ask around and see what we can find out. We enrolled the 4 younger children, waiving inscription fees for 2 of them. I remembered all of these things that he had told us, and wished there was a way for her to have a job at Salud y Paz. Later in that same week, after school one day, I was entering information from each child’s application into a spread sheet. I opened Daniel’s file and automatically entered his information into the computer without really thinking. Then I came across a number that jerked me into consciousness, his mother’s birth date: 23rd of July 1987. She is almost exactly 1 year older than I am. She already has 3 children. There is no man helping her to support them, and she is bringing in no outside money. Their home has no running water, no electricity, and no latrine. Certainly, she is not the only single mother living in such utter poverty, but our parallel ages made me feel for her situation more emotionally than I normally might have. Since we almost share a birthdate, it is easy to imagine living her life and her living mine…

Community

2010-09-24T14:48:00.000-07:00

Fotos...

Evelyn, our student's sister
I turned 22!

Whew! Finally we found 19 pairs of similiar tennis shoes in the right sizes! All of our students received new tennis shoes for Independence Day.

Mariela and Alessandra

Brandon

Oscar

Practicing for the parade

Parents paint Snow White's castle.

Paulina and I found some shade.

Yessica, Evelyn and family after the parade.

Ana Yulisa

Elmer is getting a bit tired! (the parade was 3 hrs long)

Our Independence Day princess, Estrellita.

Nancy, proudly waving the flag.

Snow White (Ana Yulisa) with some very tired dwarves after the parade.

Community

The Guatemalan people have such a beautiful sense of community. The way in which they care for each other and work together continually amazes me. I think this is something that I have observed since the beginning of my time here, but recent circumstances have demonstrated it so much more clearly and over and over again. It seems to be something I am meant to take notice of and learn from. The challenge will be carrying what I have learned with me and actually applying it.

Streets have been filled with mud after every heavy rain, but as soon as the rain breaks, the entire neighborhood comes out into the street with shovels and wheel barrels to open the road. People work together. After the mud was continually filling a particular street and the houses along it, a group of men who live there got together and built cement walls (abt 2 feet high) in front of every house to keep the mud from entering.

Where I am living, we have been having some trouble with the water pump. Now we know to keep a bucket filled at all times, in case the water goes out, but when this first started happening we were totally unprepared. Three times we had to go next door and ask our neighbor Doña Martina if we could fill our bucket. Martina and her family have only city water, which means that it flows only for about 2 hours most mornings. During those 2 hours, they fill their pila with water, and then that is all they will have for the day. However, each time we asked Martina graciously allowed us to fill a bucket, and told us that we were welcome to do this anytime. Even though she and her family only had a limited amount they were willing to share that with us not just once but without conditions. People are willing to depend upon one another here.

At the Susana Wesley Preschool, we have been preparing for the Independence Day parade and celebrations for about a month before the actual day. The first meeting we had with the parents about this event, they said why don't we break into committees to work on all of this and so they did. They found a generator for us to use with the sound system and made all of the decorations. People just split up the jobs and got them done, there was no bickering just support and work until everything was finished.

A final example I wanted to share today shows a different side of this strong community and solidarity that exists in Guatemala. In San Andres last weekend a man attempted to kidnap a school official and hold him for ransom. The man was caught by the people and then the people collectively burnt him. The police were never involved, the people just took care of it in this way to send a strong warning to other potential kidnappers and protect their community. Perhaps people are skeptical about the effectiveness of the government and police in solving these crimes, and therefore work together to stop them.

Despedidas y Bienvenidas

2010-07-13T16:10:00.000-07:00

Welcome new preschool director, Janet!

Brandon and Diego celebrating July birthdays.

Waterfall we pass everyday on the way to Camanchaj.

Mariela and Lucia

Allessandra, enjoying a cookie she decorated on Carey's last day.

Singing good-bye to Directora Carey and Jay.

Found this New Smyrna native in Pana, what a coincidence!

Paulina's students give her an abrazo fuerte on Teacher's Day.

Celebrating our excellent teachers with a nice lunch in Chichicastenango.

Thanks Seño Mary and Happy Teacher's Day!

Fotos

2010-06-19T12:21:00.001-07:00

Here we go again...

2010-06-19T11:45:00.000-07:00

It is so wonderful to be back in Guatemala. Settling back in and becoming reacquainted with the culture has been a bit hectic, but I am so thankful for this opportunity to return and continue serving Salud y Paz. As many of you already know, Guatemala was recently affected by Tropical Storm Agatha. The storm caused significant damages to many homes, roads, and businesses, however the people are resilient and life is quickly returning to its'equilibrium. Panajachel, the town in which I am living, lost all but one of its bridges and many houses along the banks to the river, which simply swept them away into the lake. Included in this post are some pictures of the recovery efforts sponsered by the city and national governments. Camanchaj lost its water supply due to damages caused by the storm for nearly 3 weeks. During that time period, the town's inhabitants were forced to walk to the nearest river (25 minutes away) to draw water for washing, cooking, and bathing. Fortunately, Tuesday of this past week the water system was fixed and people celebrated by setting of firecrackers all day!
In my opinion, our students at the Susana Wesley Preschool are growing and learning by leaps and bounds. Next week we will give the second round (out of 3) of a developmental assessment, and hopefully then have the hard facts to prove just how much they are learning! This week we weighed our students to chart their physical growth, and thankfully all have either maintained their weight from the beginning of the year or gained weight. In fact, a student named Nery gained 9 pounds! I think that the 2 meals, snack, and multi-vitamin that the children receive each day at school are making postive impacts on their overall health.
The Preschool Parent Handbook is ready to be distributed, but we decided to wait and give it to the parents when our new director, Janet, arrives in July.
We are continueing to work on the health and educational survey. It will be given to 200 mothers of school-aged children living in Camanchaj. Currently, the research proposal is being reviewed by the IRB at the University of Texas, which is the university at which Carey's co-investigator teaches and works.
Thank you so much for your continuing love and support!
In Salud y Paz (Health and Peace),
Madisen

2010-04-17T14:48:00.000-07:00

Ruins of a convent in Antigua.

Semana Santa

Processional during Semana Santa in Antigua.

Traditional traje for different areas around Guatemala.

Students from the Mayan Families preschool in Panajachel. I have been able to volunteer with this program a few times, and have learned a lot from Senora Luqui about the public school system in Gua.

Baby girl who received cleft lip repair surgery in the SyP clinic.

"I've got you (Guatemala) under my skin..."

2010-04-17T11:55:00.000-07:00

When Frank Sinatra sang these words, the "you" probably didn't refer to an entire country, but I think our (Mr. Sinatra and my) emotions are quite similiar :). As many of you already know, I have decided to continue living and volunteering in Guatemala at least until Christmas time and possibly until next summer! This is a big leap for me, and the simplest way I can explain myself is to say that Guatemala has gotten under my skin. This place and its people have become wrapped up in who I am and its simply not time to leave yet. I feel that I still have lessons to learn and grow from, people to meet, and contributions to make to Salud y Paz. This decision means that the original plan has changed, however I do hope to attend a speech and lang path masters program next fall (probably at USF as they allowed my acceptance to be deferred). Your prayers and thoughts have been a huge part of sustaining me thus far, and I hope that you will be willing to continue being a part of my emotional support as I remain here. I will be home, in NSB, for the month of May and hope to spend time with you!

Most recently, I have been working on the educational and health survey that we are planning to give to the community of Camanchaj. The purpose of this survey will be to investigate people's attitudes towards education to determine the factors that lead to success in primary school or drop-out. We also want to learn about the community's perception of the Susana Wesley preschool. The health portion will hopefully assess the needs of the community and the clinic's effectiveness in meeting them. This past Friday, we had a meeting with the doctors Fredy and Luis to get their opinions and with Pastor Juan Ixton, who is the leader of the women's group called Amigas de Salud y Paz. Pastor Juan Ixton created a croquis, or map, of Camanchaj which showed where each dwelling is located. He did an incredible job on it! We will be able to use it to choose a random yet representative selection of houses to visit and give the survey to its residents.

In other preschool news, we now have a team of 3 "almost" dentists with us. I say "almost" because they are dental students about 1 month away from graduation, at which time they will officially be Doctors of Dentistry! These 3 wonderful individuals are serving exclusively our preschool students. They are pulling teeth, putting in fillings, giving flouride treatments, and talking with each child's parents about how to care for their child's teeth. What an incredible blessing!

We have sponsers for all of our 20 students!

The preschool handbook is complete, finalmente! Now I am working on creating an English version to be shown at the SyP board meeting this Friday.

Thank you so very much for your continuing support!

In Salud y Paz,
Madisen

Sponsers

2010-03-20T16:02:00.000-07:00

Nery Fernando
Nelly Rafaela

Brandon Enrique

Juan Sebastian

Below is a letter from Carey, the Susana Wesley Preschool director, about sponsering a preschool student. Currently we need only 4 more sponsers. I wanted to spread the information in case any of you may be interested :) If you have questions feel free to email Carey at her address listed below or me at mkt06@fsu.edu!

March, 2010

Dear Friends:

My name is Carey Cooper, and I am the director of the Susanna Wesley Preschool in Camanchaj, Guatemala. Our school is part of Salud y Paz, a nonprofit organization serving Mayan families since 2001 (www.saludypaz.org). We have just begun our second school year and have several beautiful Mayan children in need of sponsors!

Let me tell you a little about our preschool program. The primary goals of our program are to increase children’s chances for success in the public school system with high quality, culturally sensitive preschool curriculum and to promote healthy development by providing nutritious meals (breakfast, snack, and lunch five days a week), teaching healthy habits (such as hand washing and teeth brushing), and offering medical and dental care. The children attend classes Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m, and each child receives a backpack, school hoodie, and all necessary school materials. We currently have 21 students between the ages of 4 and 6, two local teachers who speak Spanish and K’iche, the local Mayan language, a kitchen staff of local Mayan women, a volunteer school nurse, and a volunteer school director (me!).

Ten children are currently in need of sponsors, and we need your help. The cost to sponsor a child is $45/month. Although the children are in school for nine months only, we ask for a 12-month commitment, which helps cover the cost of snacks and meals, school supplies, medical and dental care, and staff salaries (teachers and cooks). As a sponsor, you will receive photos of your child via our preschool blog, which is updated every few months with information about school activities and student photos, and at least two cards/drawings from your child during the year.

Thanks again so much for your interest in the Susanna Wesley Preschool, and please let me know if I can answer any questions. If you decide to sponsor a child, I will send information about how to make a one time or monthly donation online.

Sincerely,
Carey Cooper
(cecooper@princeton.edu)

Project Salud y Paz
(http://www.saludypaz.org/)

Across the lake

2010-03-01T16:26:00.000-08:00

Heather and I in a swanky tuk-tuk with zebra print.

A pueblo across the lake: San Juan. We visited on Sat. It is less tourist-y than Pana

Part of an awesome mural

Coffee plantation. We met a man who gave us a spontaneous tour!

Woman weaving in the cinta style.

She told us it takes 2 days to complete something like a table runner.

Up-date

2010-03-01T15:44:00.000-08:00

Buenas Tardes a Todos!
Hope all is well and this up-date finds you all healthy and happy.
For me, it is difficult to put my experience here into words. There is just so much happening and so many emocions and thoughts to absorb. But I am going to try my best to give you some high lights!
One of our pre-school students named Nery received an operation to correct 2 wandering eyes a few weeks ago. Today was his first day back at school, and it was so wonderful to see him be able to look straight ahead. He has healed beautifully. Nery received the operation at the Salud y Paz clinic in Camanchaj, and it was performed by a team of surgeons from Texas. Praise the Lord!
Last Friday we celebrated the birthdays' of students from January and February AND both Mari and Paulina's (the teachers) birthdays. We had a pinata, cake and brownies, and the students all made cards for the teachers. What a fiesta! When we were preparing to sing the birthday song, Carey asked the students what we should sing and one answered, "La Granja". I think members of the CCUMC mission team who were here in the end of January will especially appreciate that the infamous "La Granja" lives on :)
I have begun working on the parent handbook or Libreta de Informacion. Mari and Paulina made a list of what they think should be included, and now I am working closely with Mari to complete it. Also, we have an abundance of donated books. So many that we are able to send some home with each student. What a blessing! It is important for a child to have access to books and print so that they can begin to develop literacy skills. I am trying to sort the books so they can be sent home equally in quality and quantity with students. Sabrina and I are also assisting in the classrooms during art, centers, and writing practice times.
Recently, one of our students has been pulling on my heart more so than the others. Brandon is a really neat kid. I think he's dealing with some difficult things in his home life though which are resulting in some educational and behavioral difficulties. Prayers specifically for Brandon would be greatly appreciated!
As always, thank you all for your support.
In Amor Salud y Paz,
Madisen

2010-02-18T16:59:00.000-08:00

Mariela and Estrellita, such a sweet name-means little star
Oscar

Mariela, Estrellita, and Garby

Naydelin, Lucia, and Brandon

Inside our casita.

2010-02-08T19:04:00.000-08:00

Lago Atitlan

Our casita!

Rain in the Dry season?!?

2010-02-08T18:32:00.000-08:00

Here we are smack in the middle of the dry season, yet rain and thunder started rolling in as the sun set. And now 3 hours later, we are still in the middle of a down pour. At first I was puzzled by this rain that started steadily falling as I was walking home with a bag full of groceries, but then I remembered this is Guatemala. Nothing is certain here. There is little point to making plans because they are bound to change at least 20 times before they are actually carried out. Its better to just go with a loose guideline and see where the day takes you. Now it has been a difficult lesson, for this American girl, that I have been learning time and time again since I arrived here in Guatemala. For instance, this morning Sabrina and I planned to go to the preschool in Camanchaj. We woke up at a certain time, walked to where the car was parked, opened the gate and discovered- no car! Another Salud y Paz member had already taken it to another location. It was a simple miscommunication, but by that time it was too late to catch the chicken bus or a ride with any one else. We were frustrated and had no choice except to remain in Pana for the day. Nothing is certain here, we truly must live by faith and not by sight. I think that me being less in control of what happens daily, is teaching me that God is the one in control and living without an agenda or schedule is giving Him more space to move in my life and me the clarity to realize what He is doing. A beautiful thing.
However in all this rain lets hope the roof of our casita doesn't leak too much. The landlord wasn't prepared for rain in the dry season.
Salud y Paz :)

2010-02-02T18:50:00.000-08:00

Estoy aqui!!!

2010-02-01T18:34:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

Sorry I've been lax in posting. The last week has been very busy with volunteering at the school and settling in at Panajachel. In fact, I am still a nomad searching for a home! At the moment I am living with another volunteer from Salud y Paz, and we are looking for a more permanent place. Apartment hunting in Guatemala is quite different that any apartment hunting I have ever done before in the states! However with any luck we should be moving in this Wednesday.

Today was the first day of preschool! Already it has been such a interesting experience for me. Last Friday, all the students and their parents came in for a meeting with the teachers. We had 100% of parents in attendance, which demonstrates to me how much they value their childrens' education and wish for them to have a happier life. The parents all arrived in their traditional Mayan clothing, and the meeting was held primarily in K'iche. K'iche is such a neat language! It sounds entirely different than Spanish and I learned that they have 2 words used to say "bye". The one used depends upon whether you are the person leaving or staying. I am helping in Mari's class of 5 and 6 year olds, and today we had 12 eager and excited students. The students are all so wonderful. One aspect that really stuck in my mind from today was how different the day was in comparision with a day of preschool in the states. Many of you know that I worked at a preschool in Port Orange last summer, and the issues we dealt with at that school are entirely different but in some ways similar to issues we experienced today. For example at the preschool in Port Orange during lunch time we would worry about picky-eaters and kids talking too much and eating too little. Here in Camanchaj no children even spoke during lunch or much less complained about not liking what was served. Our students quickly and quietly cleaned their plates. A group of Mayan women called the "Amigas de Salud y Paz" cook breakfast, snack, and lunch for our students which is so important for their growth and development. Accidents occasionally happened at thw school in Port Orange, but it was no problem because each student had an extra set of clothes conveniently located in their cubby. Today a student had an accident. But he had no change of clothes and we didn't have any donated pants that would fit him so he was stuck wearing the wet pants for the remainder of the day.

OK, I've rambled enough for one night! Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers. Salud y Paz :)