Empower Maya Youth in a Post-Genocide Community

Teresa grew up in a single-parent household on the outskirts of Chajul, her father having left the family when she was just a baby. Her mom, Ana, has always fought hard to provide for her 3 daughters, earning an income by collecting firewood to sell and washing clothes for other families, or by traveling outside of Chajul to sell weavings. Earnings from her hard work were meager: only about $27 a month. After Teresa finished primary school, she would have to stop studying because her mom couldn’t afford paying for her education anymore. 

Then Teresa found about Limitless Horizon’s Ixil’s Youth Development Program, which offers scholarships and full wraparound support services to middle and high schoolers in the community, and her two older sisters urged her to apply. Ana was also supportive of her daughter pursuing her education, even if she couldn’t afford it herself. 

Teresa joined the Youth Development Program in 2016, and we are proud to report that she is one of our most enthusiastic scholars. She has especially loved attending computer classes, where she has learned how to use the internet and write stories.

In the future, Teresa sees herself studying psychology at university and becoming a teacher, inspired by the teachers who have helped her make it this far in her studies. And at just 14 years old, she is already certain that she wants to be capable of earning her own living, not needing to depend on a husband to provide for her. Ana couldn’t be any prouder of her daughter, and told us that her dream for Teresa is that “she get a university education, that she have a career.” At Limitless Horizons Ixil, we are so excited to support Teresa in her endeavors -- especially her leadership goals. She is currently running for class representative, and whether or not she wins this election, we know that she will be a powerful leader in her community! 

It is our privilege to support ambitious young change-makers like Teresa on their academic journeys, and we couldn’t do it without you! Thank you for helping us empower the youth of Chajul with the knowledge, experience, and educational opportunities they need to lead their families and community to a stronger, healthier future.

Egídia has always loved learning. By the age of 4, her favorite game was pretending to read and write in her older siblings' schoolbooks, and she often tried to sneak out of the house to follow them to school. She even convinced her mom to let her start kindergarten a year early!

One day, her neighbor told her about the Limitless Horizons Ixil Saber Sin Límites (Limitless Knowledge) Community Library. After her first visit to the library, Egídia was hooked. She made friends, saw her grades improve, and, for the first time ever, introduced books into her family's home.

While Egidia's parents admired her passion for books and school, they were struggling to support their 7 children on a combined income of just $35 a month. When Egídia was nearing the end of elementary school, her mom was forced to break the news: they couldn't afford to keep supporting Egídia's studies. She would have to drop out of school.

Egídia jumped into action to find a solution. After sharing her situation with Head Librarian David, he encouraged her to apply for Limitless Horizons Ixil's Youth Development Program to receive a scholarship for middle school and full wraparound support services. She was thrilled to be accepted! Now 13, Egídia is fluent in Spanish (her second language – Ixil is the primary language spoken in Chajul), an avid reader and writer (the first in her family!), and has dreams of continuing on to university.

She loves sharing what she's learning with her family, often reading aloud to them in the evenings. She is also teaching her younger nephew to read, even giving him pretend "homework" assignments that she grades.

With your support, Limitless Horizons Ixil is able to provide 72 middle and high schoolers like Egídia with the opportunity to go to school, access important educational services through our community library, and share their joy of learning with their families and their entire community. Thank you for empowering Chajul’s youth of today to become the educated leaders of tomorrow.