Empowering 27 Mayan families to overcome poverty.

GLOBAL GIVING REPORT JANUARY 2025

The last quarter of 2024 produced some real gains, and promise for the beginning of the new year.   Starting in October with a delightful and beneficial event for Creando at Skyland Church near Santa Cruz, (a talk with a chance to meet the members, and a sale of products of the mothers, afterward), two new donors in November (which allows us to support more families)…..and moving  forward to GlobalGiving’s last matching day on December 3, and finally our Christmas celebrations, with a lively Christmas Party, the addition of fruit and cookies to our regular large food basket, and a live chicken for tamales on Nochebuena.   THANKS to so many generous donations in December, we begin the year on a better footing, economically.                               

FOOD DISTRIBUTION:  During these three months, we have distributed to our current 28 families: 1785# corn, 252 flats of eggs, 69 bottles of oil, 138# each of beans and rice, 102# sugar, 150 bags of dishwashing powder, and 114 soaps for washing clothes.    One of the mothers told me this week that what she appreciates the most is receiving this much corn, because although her husband works cultivating corn for someone else, they don’t personally have fields to grow it….so the supply for her tortillas is assured.  This situation – no land of their own – is true of most of our families and one of the things that creates poverty in this previously land-based pueblo.

EDUCATION:   This past school year, 13 kids in grades 1-6 have attended public grammar school with school supplies provided by us; 15 adolescents from grades 7-11 attended high school with 80% of their school supplies and 80% of their inscription and monthly fees provided by you donors.  (We didn’t have anyone in grade 12 this last year.)   At the end of the school year, in December, three of our teenagers graduated to senior high school; and 7 sixth graders graduated to Jr. High.   The real success in this story is that all of the children above grade 6 have achieved more schooling than their parents.   This was confirmed in conversation with the president of our Parent Board, today; she said her husband works in the fields for another landowner, he has no schooling at all, and she has only 6^th grade.  But her son is one of those entering high school this year (grade 10) thanks to our help.

Two of our older kids left class in other ways:  Santiago took our Mentor Technical Training last year and was the most attentive and capable in his group.  Because of the positive feedback he received, he dared to seek out a technical job and now is working in well construction and installation.     16 year old Darlin had the best grades, and became leader of her group of older girls.  Perhaps because of the positive feedback she received from us for her successes, she decided to seek out a residential school with a focus on medicine/nursing, and has just received a scholarship to attend.   Just today I encountered one of our long-time students who left the program to go to work on Saturdays when her mom had a new baby.   She said that she graduated a year ago and is now doing “practica” to be a psychologist!   I was so delighted to her this.   This is particularly remarkable, again, because in all three cases the parents have never attended school at all.   This definitely would not have been possible without our support, both financial and emotional.                                                                                   Santiago             Darlin

PRACTICAL LEARNING:  One non-numerical way I measure success in the program is that this Parent Board began the year with only one person who could use their phone calculator, and no one knew how to manage the summation of participation points gained, or the food needed to fill 28 baskets.  Now 5 of the 7 members can do all of those things.  (The remaining two can’t read or calculate well, but they have other responsibilities…and I believe they WILL LEARN.)  For me this is a huge personal success for them! And important for their futures.                

IN SUMMARY, in 2024 we have accomplished many things – including having surmounted the changeover from NGO Doroteia Pathways to GlobalGiving, and adjusted many things within the program to become legally registered as a Community Association here in San Pedro.  And  in the last three months see more participation in the Mothers’ Artisan Group,                                                                                                            and gains by both mothers and children because of their participation in our program.         

WE CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD THANKS TO ALL OF YOU.

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