APRIL 30, 2007 NEWS:
Yesterday we dropped into visit the house that the Eagle Scouts had built. Their stove is in , the kitchen is looking big and roomy. We still have to get a bed for the old lady but that will probably happen in this week. But the rooms are big and spacious. The toilet is finished. I thought that the Eagle Scouts would like to see this photo of the toilet, they worked very hard digging the huge hole that the toilet sits on. It is about 12 feet deep. Nobody was home except the disabled daughter who repeatedly thanked us over and over again for her house. Thank goodness that this house was finished before the wet season and this family now has a dry and safe home to live in.
Thank you for everyone who helped make this dream become a reality for this family.
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We had 7 water filters donated to the school in Tierra Linda. Every classroom will be receiving a water filter and the children will now be having clean drinking water available all day at school. These water filters were purchased directly here in Guatemala and will be delivered this week!++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Sharon's night:
It was a crazy night last night. First, I went to have dinner with Stan's group at 5.30p.m. then just as dinner was being served Gloria called me crying hysterically, she was in terrible pain, Julio was at a festival, I had to drop everything and take her to the clinic, Zoe found Julio by phone and he came to the clinic.
Then Juan called, he was looking for medicine for his son who was really sick. Juan has not been able to walk for two weeks properly because of something he did to his leg, so I told him to get himself and the baby to the clinic, so they turned up, Juan turned out to have pulled a tendon. Gloria has a ruptured muscle but also has something else going on in her colon, that will be tested for today.
Then Stan's group turned up at the clinic, I worked out with them about what they were going to do the next day, then after they left, I left with Gloria and Julio.
Julio switched with Juan who was feeling sick after the injections, he came to stay the night as the guardian. At 2.30a.m. Gloria called him and told him there was an intruder on the roof, they have had this problem before, so he woke me up and pedaled off by bicycle to his house, he then called to say that by the time he got home the intruder had gone but they had pulled up one of his laminas - tin roofing. So I told him to stay with Gloria and Xeni who were really freaked out. Then I couldn't get back to sleep. So I think I finally went to sleep about 4.am.
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FAMILIES LIVING WITH HIV - AIDS: At the moment we have only 2 HIV families that we work with. One woman refuses to take the meds because she says that they make her sick. When she was first diagnosed she worked at a place that gave her insurance, now she does not, so even if she chose to take the meds, she would now not be able to afford there. Fortunately, for her, she is in pretty good shape. She gets a lot of skin problems and stomach aches, head aches but I am not sure what is HIV related ( the skin lesions - yes) but the rest of it could just be being a single working mother of five children and trying to survive. Her 2yr old was diagnosed positive but there is a good chance if she was re tested that she may be negative now. She is in good health.
The second woman does get her meds from the hospital, but sometimes the hospital runs out. When that happens then the family has to go into debt to get them or she goes without. Her baby is also positive and looks quite sickly. The first woman has kept her illness a secret and is able to move around the community. The second woman made it public and has been shunned in the community. The small, initial amount of help she received has not been worth the public reaction.
There is a lot of HIV here but because of the attitudes people do not come forward with it. The medicines are very, very expensive. There are some govt. run programs but you have to come forward if you want help from them. I have been to an Aids hospital in Guat. City, a lot of young people, many being abandoned by the family. It is a sad situation for people with Aids here. There is also a home for children with HIV and AIDS outside of Antigua. I have never been there so cannot comment on what it is like. Thanks, Sharon
FUND RAISING JEWELRY KIT:
Dear Jackie, that is wonderful news on your fund raising!! Thank you so much. The money from the jewelry kits we had hoped to have as undesignated. This is because we have so many needs arise and do not have money for them. For example, this week, we have had to send Lubia back to the Dr's. on an emergency basis, she started bleeding again, she was held there for 48 hours and is now home again, we also had to pay for the medical treatment of a 60yr ish old woman who had stopped urinating and defecating for 15 days and was in a very, very serious condition. Her kidneys seem to have shut down, we had to rush her to the clinic here in Panajachel, they did all that they could for her, oxygen, pain killers and then she slipped into a coma, the family have taken her home to die. We had to pay the transportation for the family and the medical treatment for this woman, we have another woman who has had her toe amputated due to diabetes, she now has a large lesion on her foot that is not healing and she now needs medical treatment tomorrow. All of these people also need medicine that they cannot afford to buy. We don't have the funds for these cases.
We also had a young girl that had a skin infection on her face, a 2 and a half year old boy that had not eaten for 24 hours and had cried non stop with the pain in his throat, we sent him for medical attention this evening, a man who had pulled a tendon in his leg two weeks ago and was still unable to walk, we sent him for medical treatment. Every week we have cases like this, some small and some very large but we do not have a designated medical fund and that is probably what we need most. So an undesignated fund gives us the freedom to be able to pay for these people for the immediate attention that they need.
When we get donations they are always designated for construction, school sponsorship, stoves etc. so it does not give us the room to be able to pay for medical treatment. This is something urgent and you cannot turn your back on people when they are really ill. For example, if the people had brought the 60yr old woman to us earlier we could have sent her for dialysis to the city but they could not afford the transportation to the city , so they did nothing and hoped she would get better. It is not because people are uncaring, they just do not have the money to get the medical attention.
We also need money for food, when we have families that literally do not have anything to eat in their house, come to us (Mayan Families Food Bank). It is for these kind of emergencies that arise that we would like to have the funds from the jewelry, undesignated, to be able to help people immediately.
Thank you so much for your help, Sharon
APRIL 29, 2007
More out of the Medrano Box photos, Eagle scouts!
APRIL 22, 2007 (A WEEKS WORTH OF NEWS)
Wednesday this week, I took the group from Connexiones to visit the school in Tierra Linda. While we were there, Fatima, a Doctor from Canada came with me to visit a woman who had been very ill the week beforehand. Fatima, found her to be in very bad shape, she had pneumonia, swelling of the ankles and was having great difficulty breathing. We wanted to take her to the hospital but she refused as there was no family member at home who could accompany her.
I told her that I would be back the next day and if she wanted to, then I would take her to the hospital.
Fortunately, on Thursday, the group "Traveling Angels" brought a beautiful bus to Tierra Linda, they were giving out balls, toys and school supplies to the school, I was most surprised that this woman and her husband agreed to go the hospital. It takes a lot of courage for people to go to the hospital, they often think that they will not come back and just die there. So I knew this little old lady must be feeling very ill.
When we got her to the clinic, the Doctor was very doubtful as to whether she would survive or not. But we are very happy to report that she did respond well to the medication, she has been in the hospital now since Thursday, and she has had the first two good night's sleep in ages, she has not been able to sleep for weeks because of her ragged breathing.
She is being released today and we are sending her back home in a car, she is still to weak to be able to take public transport, and the long walk from the public transport to Tierra Linda.
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This family from Nahuala has been living under terrible conditions.
The family does not have enough food. Not all the children have been able to go to school and the two that the mother managed to get into school, do not have their school supplies, uniforms or their tennis shoes/gym outfits. They are too embarrassed to go to school on the days that there are gym classes.
The father abandoned this family just before the mother gave birth to the two year old. He has gone to live with another woman. He has not supported the family in anyway. He is trying to get them to move off the land and out of the house that he owns but the Guatemalan Law says that the wife and children have a right to the property.
Just before the father abandoned the family, the three year old girl died from a week's illness of diarrhea and vomiting. The family did not have the money to take her to the doctors clinic.
Because the mother had no money for school supplies she went to the dump and found old books that had been thrown away, tore out the pages that had not been used and put them in a notebook for her children to be able to use. Some really poor families do this.
We are sponsoring the two children to go to school and we are trying to get the others into school for the rest of the school year. This is not easy, the schools usually resist children joining classes during the year but we are hopeful that in this case, we are sending the parish minister to ask on their behalf, that the school may let them join up still.
This family needs help with food and finishing to construct their house. The house was under construction when the father left and it is still in its half finished state.
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This week we delivered a mattress to these two women, a mother, widowed and her daughter, never married. They live alone and have to make ends meet by themselves . They do not have any assistance from their family. The mother has two other daughters who are married but they have children and barely have enough to feed their children. They cannot help their mother and sister. They live in a house that have dirt floors which were already very muddy and the rainy season hasn't even started yet. They have an open area where they cook and collect rain water in buckets and pots. This is their drinking water and it is not very clean. When the rain starts it is going to be impossible for them to cook, they need a new roof to cover the cooking area, also the rain is going to pour inside their house making the dirt floors just a mud pool.
This family was very short of food, the aunt had been begging tortillas from the neighbors a few days earlier. The group Connexiones supplied them with some food to help them through the next two weeks. We are looking for help for this family with the cost of a roof and hopefully, to put in a cement floor.
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SUSTAINABLE BUILDING AND MATERIALS:
Our first house made with bamboo is almost finished. It is a beautiful house and Dave, wearing blue bandana, explains to a group of interested people his ideas and hopes for building more houses made out of a sustainable product. Everyone was very impressed with how beautiful the house is, and the family is very excited about moving into this lovely room.
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The parade to honor the opening of the fiesta for San Jorge was held on Thursday. It was a great day. The children were all resplendent in their outfits and were very happy!!
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The U.S. group. Sharon Carlson and the Traveling Angels came to town and spread a lot of joy, they gave out book bags with school supplies in a new school that has opened in Panajachel. This school has 95 students and they have hardly any supplies. So the children and the teachers were so happy to receive these supplies. They also gave the children a stuffed animal, played games and blew bubbles. They got a lot of smiles and hugs!!
The boys at Tierra Linda school were very happy to show off their embroidery work. They were so happy to get tennis balls and gifts from the Traveling Angels group!
The Traveling Angels spread a lot of joy with the book bags, the kids could not wait to see what was inside. The bubbles were a big hit, the group also tossed lots of tennis balls to children as we drove through the countryside, this left a lot of happy, excited children in their wake!
Happy Kids in Tierra Linda: The kids were very happy to receive toys and balls from the Traveling Angels.
NEW KITCHEN NEEDED IN SAN JORGE:
This old lady lost her kitchen during the Hurricane Stan in Oct-2005. She is left with just two posts sticking up where her roof used to be. She is a widow and has very little help from her family. They are also very poor and cannot afford to help her build this kitchen. She is cooking outside over an open fire. With the wet season coming this will be miserable.
This woman is approx. she thinks around 76 years old. She lives on a very steep mountainside and the path is very dangerous, it is steep and slippery, she has to go down this path to bring her water back every day. She carries it on her head . She says that her legs hurt a lot and she has a lot of pain in her back and neck. She has no medication for these pains and has not been able to see a doctor.
She is very lucky that the Traveling Angels group were with me on the visit to her house, they immediately said that they would start fundraising to build her a kitchen and they also want to be able to put steps into her house on the mountainside. We all walked up and down this path and it is very dangerous, there is a huge drop . The old lady says that in the wet season she can not walk down the path, it is too dangerous. After walking on it, I can only imagine how terrifying it must be in the wet season. We are looking forward to being able to help this woman and we thank the "Traveling Angels" for being willing to help her.
APRIL 19, 2007 Rodolfo Update:
Dear Bonnie, Well,
what happened is that he took a turn for the worst, had to be hospitalized
in the city, they wanted to cut off his leg, we could never get a price
about how much it would cost, we could never get to talk to a dr. , they
said that he had gangrene and I wanted to go ahead and get his leg amputated
there rather than wait, but with no help /information or attendance by the
Dr.'s there, the family decided to take him home and wait for the clinic
that we have coming who will do his operation for free. In the meantime a
wonderful woman called Tricia has raised almost a $1,000 dollars for him, so
this will cover the x-ray and cost of
transportation and a few extras. We have a problem with communication with
him as we have to go back and forth between several other people. He has no
phone and no way to get to the phone. I have been trying to get his wife to
call me and will continue on that path. Hopefully, we will have him seen on
the 22nd.
Thank you so much for caring about Rodolfo. His situation really is
terrible. I wish that we had found out about him earlier. Sharon
APRIL 18,2007
These are nearly all the girls who are in first to 6th grade in San Jorge that we sponsor to go to school. There were two missing from this photo. The younger children did not receive these uniforms. They have pants and jacket. We were thrilled through the school sponsorship to be able to buy new Corte ( traditional skirt) new Blusa ( blouse) embroidered woven belt and new shoes for each of them to wear in the parade. The parade is on Thursday, April 19th. We just finished sewing up the outfits this afternoon, the girls came with their families, tried them on and we took this beautiful photo of them all. They were all so happy to have new clothes and to be able to participate in the parade.
If you do not have the uniform you cannot participate in the parade and you then lose some points off your report card. This makes it very difficult for the parents as these outfits are not cheap. The boys we sponsor received pants and shirts, belts and new shoes. The had to pick their outfits up at a different location so we only got a photo of a few of them with their shoes.
Update: These are all the girls from
San Jorge - 1st -6th grade that are sponsored by Mayan Families. The
school decided that they wanted these clothes for the school uniform and
also it coincided with the big parade yesterday to start the festivities for
the San Jorge Festival. We were so happy to be able to supply this
traditional outfit for the school uniforms, I wish all schools would do
this. Plus the children now have another outfit to wear! Yesterday we
were in San Jorge to watch the parade. They were all so excited and looked
terrific! Just to clarify- this money to buy the Corte/Guipil/
Yesterday and today, with the help of a Canadian group called Connexiones, we delivered the mattresses that Alison Squires/ Tammy's Eagle Scout group donated to people who had been sleeping on bare boards. These people were all so excited and happy to be able to sleep on a real bed. One woman has been very ill and is spending a lot of time in bed, on bare boards soshe was very happy to get a mattress.
The Eagle Scouts raised the money for these beds and chose the families that would receive them. Good work Eagle Scouts!!
APRIL 17, 2007 ERNESTO'S UPDATE
Hi, Ernesto's main needs are for land and a house. Of course, after that there is a decent bed, a stove, a water filter, a pila, furniture, what they presently own is two single beds not in very good shape and one set of drawers that holds their clothing. They also have a very old TV that we helped him buy recently. He recently wanted a pair of shoes and we got him a pair of sandals so that when he had visitors he could sit outside in his chair. He felt embarrassed about having socks on all the time. We also recently bought him his supplies to be able to repair shoes. We got him leather, glue, etc. He has people periodically bringing him shoes to repair. He did this before he had the accident.
The wife needs new
clothes, she wears traditional clothes and they are very old and faded, the
kids also wear traditional clothes and they need new Cortes and Guipils. I
imagine that the needs new shoes. We have given the children shoes.
Thankfully, with the help they have been receiving, the family is managing
to eat a lot better. He also needs a decent wheelchair. Thank
you so much for caring about Ernesto and his family, Sharon
APRIL 16, 2007
Hi everyone, I am sorry that I have not been able to respond to emails yesterday, our internet connection was out all day.
I don't have much time, we have a big volunteer construction crew ready to start work this morning, plus a medical clinic happening that I have to take two medical volunteers to, plus we have to arrange to have Cristina released from the hospital.
She is one of the medical emergencies from last week. She is a big woman with bad circulation and she has had problems with her feet periodically becoming ulcerated. Well, last week she really took a turn for the worse, her legs became very swollen and infected, she developed cellulites, she was in terrible pain, high fever and in danger of becoming septic. She has been hospitalized for five days now and her legs have been draining. The Dr. cut a huge hole in her leg to drain and it has to be dressed twice a day. Yesterday , I went to watch her dressing being changed and I became very nauseous and had to leave. It was just awful. My two girls and I also have the flu, (it's a bad one this year) ....like everyone else here!! I'm not feeling good so I'm keeping it short today. Hugs and Health, Sharon
APRIL 13, 2007
Here is another combined Medrano/Squires/Tammy/Eagle scouts donation being given out to a very happy woman who has five children and one on the way, there is another little one on her back.
APRIL 12, 2007
This is Teresa. She is a single mother of five children. 18 months ago in the Hurricane her house was flooded with mud, she lost several extended family members including her sister who were buried under the mudslides. Her house has now been declared in an unsafe area and they can no longer go back there to live.
She works nights in a restaurant and in the days cleans houses. She entered one of these houses to do the washing, she opened the door in the downstairs area, the owners were sleeping upstairs. When she picked up the metal basin with the dirty clothes in it, she probably scraped it across the floor, this caused a huge explosion. Apparently, the gas stove had been left on all night and the room was full of gas. Teresa suffered severe burns to her legs and arms. She has been in hospital now for a week. She is in a lot of pain, but mostly she is worried about her five children. They range in age from 2yrs old to 16yrs old. Her sister is caring for the children but she is also just managing to get by and she cannot afford to feed Teresa's children, the 2yr old is in diapers and needs milk. We already sponsor four of her children to go school but the children have many daily needs that it is impossible for the sister to be able to cope with.
If anyone could help Teresa she would be very, very grateful. The Dr's are very worried about the severity of the burns that Teresa has on her legs. Her legs already had terrible varicose veins before this accident.
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Abel, one of Teresa's children ( see blog ) received his gift from the Eagle Scouts group. ( Alison Squire and Tammy)
APRIL 9, 2007 Student Sponsorships make a real difference!
I have to share this wonderful news. Bonnie sponsors a 15yr old girl, Vilma to go to school. She has never been to school before. She has stayed at home and has cared for her younger brothers and sisters ( as they all went off to school) and she has been the primary caretaker for her father, Lucas, who is a paraplegic. But this year, thanks to Bonnie and her family, Vilma started week end school. It is a private school for children like Vilma who have never been to school and do not know how to read or write. Well, yesterday Vilma came to visit me and she was just beaming when she told me that she can now "read - a little"! This is a girl that would have spent her whole life not knowing how to read or write. The difference in Vilma's personality since she started school is very dramatic. Before she was rather sullen and very shy. Now she smiles, she has a little more confidence and she really loves going to school. I am so happy for her!!! Thank you Bonnie for giving her this opportunity. Sharon
Water Filter Project!
Give a “Fountain for Life” Gravity Water Filter
Purchase One Water Filter and get Three Free!
The Florence Rotary Club is initiating a large water filter project to assist the families in Guatemala. Normally, one water filter costs $50 US, but if you make a donation of $50 US for one water filter, the Florence Rotary Club's District 5110 will match your donation, making it become $100. This $100 will be substantially matched again by the Rotary Foundation and become almost $200. Minimum Donation is $50 please. It will be used to purchase 4 water filters!
This is a fantastic opportunity to be able to help these families so that they will not only be able to have clean drinking water but be able to significantly decrease the amount of parasite diseases that children and adults suffer constantly from having to drink dirty water.
If you would like to help four families have clean drinking water you can send your donation to the President of the Florence Rotary Club at the following address:
George Lewis
5043 Kelsie Court
Florence, OR 97439
Please make check payable to the "Florence Rotary Club." On the note section it should say
FBO The Rotary Foundation. The Foundation is a 501c.3.Organization so the donation would be tax deductible and will grow almost four times.
We need your help! The minimum Donation is $50 Please.
These water filters will make such a difference in the lives of the families in Guatemala!
Yes, I want to participate. Enclosed is my check for $_________ to sponsor ____ Water Filter(s) x $ 50 = $ ______________.
Name: ___________________________________________
Address: __________________________________________
The gift of a Gravity Water Filter will add years to the lives of those who receive its benefit.
Thank You for your Support!!!!!
Please visit http://www.mayanfamilies.org for information on other worthwhile projects.
Buy one Water Filter get three free
directions.
The Florence Rotary Club is initiating a large water filter project to
assist the families here in Guatemala. Normally, one water filter costs $50
US. but if you make a donation of $50 US for one water filter, the Florence
Rotary Club's District 5110 will match your donation, making it become $100.
This $100 will be substantially matched again by the Rotary Foundation and
become almost $200. Minimum Donation is $50. please, and will be used to
purchase 4 water filters!
This is a fantastic opportunity to be able to help these families so that
they will not only be able to have clean drinking water but be able to
significantly decrease the amount of parasite diseases that children and
adults suffer here constantly from having to drink dirty water.
If you would like to help four families have clean drinking water you can
send your donation to the following address:
Make a check payable to the "Florence Rotary Club." On the note section it
should say FBO The Rotary Foundation. The Foundation is a 501c.3.
organization so the donation would be tax deductible and will grow almost
four times.
We need your help, Minimum Donation is $50. please.
You can send the donations to:
George Lewis
5043 Kelsie Court
Florence, Or. 97439
He is President of the Florence Rotary Club.
These water filters will make such a difference in the lives of the
families here.
The Florence Rotary Club's District 5110 will match your donation, making it
become $100. This $100 will be substantially matched again by the Rotary
Foundation and become almost $200. Minimum Donation is $50. please.
APRIL 7, 2007 Eagle Scout Section
BLOG FOR THE WEEK ENDING Saturday, April 07, 2007
EAGLE SCOUT BUILDING PROJECT.
This has been a busy week with a group of Boy scouts here with their families working on their Eagle Scout Project. The boys had decided to finish constructing a house for an elderly woman, her daughter who is in her 50’s and blind and her other daughter who is in her 40’s and is mentally disabled. They lost their house 18 months ago in Hurricane Stan. The roadway above their house was collapsed onto their little mud brick house below and it was completely demolished. They managed through some assistance to be able to partially build a house but then their money ran out. So the half finished house sat there for nearly a year. In the meantime, the family lived in a tin shed with a dirt floor. This is particularly miserable in the wet season when all the dirt turns to mud.
This is the family that the Boy Scouts, doing their Eagle Scout Project, are building the house for.
With the help of these wonderful young men this family now will have their house finished. They raised the funds to build the house and have helped dig a 14 ft latrine , laid blocks and were able to get the roof put on. There is still more work to be done but the boys have raised the funds to have the work completed.
They also made it part of their project to collect shoes. They washed these shoes, put new laces and when they got here, fitted numerous children and adults with new shoes.
During the week we also visited the many children that their extended family sponsors to go to school. They brought many gifts that were excitedly received, they bought 6 beds for people who did not have beds to sleep on, they purchased water filters, aluminum sheets for a roof for the upcoming rainy season, they purchased for Odilla, wood and a “plancha” so that she could make tortillas to sell.
They gave out lots of clothes and brought a huge amount of school supplies and other wonderful things for us to distribute through the year.
They also purchased food for several families that they could see really needed some nourishment.
It was such a pleasure to have them all here.
MEDICAL HELP NEEDED FOR THIS MAN.
Rodolfo Ramirez is 32 yrs old. He is a married man with three children, a boy 13 and 2 daughters, 12 and 8yrs old. Three years ago he had a motorcycle accident. He badly damaged his knee and had a lot of fluid accumulate. He had that drained but it was never cured. Eleven months ago, the hospital in Guatemala city told him that he needed to have his leg amputated above the knee. The operation cost $400 US. but the family could not afford it.
Since then he has been confined to the bed, he has what appears to be a tumor growing on his knee, it is very large, painful and it prohibits him from moving very much.
After contacting several medical groups, Helps has responded that they will be bringing a medical team at the end of the month who will be able to help him without charge.
But in the meantime, they want an x-ray of his knee so that when they get here, they know what they are dealing with. They are hopeful that his leg may not have to be amputated but if so they are ready to do that. They also have a specialist in prosthesis and he would be able to be fitted for that at the same time.
Our problem is that he lives on the coast and we have to arrange transport for him to a larger city where he can get an x-ray. We have to have funds to pay for the x-ray and then we have to have funds to transport him to the clinic which will be outside of Xela and get him back home again.
We are asking for help to be able to meet these costs. The transportation to Xela and back for his x-ray will be approx. $200 U.S. The cost of the x-ray will be approx. $27.00 US and the cost of the transport to the clinic and back will be approx. another $200 US. We have to hire a private van to pick him up and take him back.
His children were not able to attend school this year because the family had no money to enroll them and pay for the school supplies. They are often short of food. Rodolfo’s wife washes clothes by hand and makes $2.00 US a day when she has work. They are now living with Rodolfo’s mother who helps take care of him and the children when the wife goes out to work.
Any help would be appreciated for him.
SEMANA SANTA
SEMANA SANTA
Easter is being celebrated in Guatemala with lots of processions , beautiful “carpets” made of flowers, pine needles, fruit and vegetables. These are made so that the procession carrying the statue of Jesus will be able to walk along these beautiful arrangements.
It is also celebrated with lots of fragrant sweet bread which is sold only at this time of year. Some of these breads have elaborate designs. People exchange bread with family and friends.
We have given out bread to people who we knew could not afford to buy it.
Medical Update on Odillia:
Odillia is a widow. Her husband died just over two years ago. She has three children to support. She rents a house that takes up a good part of her income. She came to my house about a month ago now, so sick that she could not stand up and she could not get food to pass her throat. She had also lost her job that day for collapsing over the tub where she was hand washing clothes.
Her children had not eaten all day and she was desperate.
Thanks to some generous donations we were able to get her medical treatment, the Dr. found that she had a very large, severe ulcer in her stomach. That her esophagus was burnt from the acid and was having muscle contractions and that was why she could not pass food.
She has since been receiving treatment for the ulcer and is doing much better. She can now get a small amount of food down.
We have paid her rent, she was two months behind in the house rent and we have paid her electricity bill. She was just about to have it cut off.
We have also arranged that her daughters have sponsorships to go to school. Her medical treatment will be on going but thankfully she will be able to get her health back. At the moment she is still too weak to work and we have been supporting her with weekly food supplies. The boy scouts who were here on their Eagle project brought clothes and shoes that we were able to give the family. They also gave Odillia enough money to buy some firewood and buy a Plancha so that she can now start to make tortillas to sell.
He eldest daughter who is 12yrs old, has been selling woven wristbands on the beach to the tourists for the Easter break. She is working from 9.am. to 7pm. and making $2. US a day if she makes enough sales.
It is wonderful to see Odillia looking so much better. Behind her in this photo is the big sack of food to get her and her family through the next week.
APRIL 6, 2007: Traditional Mayan Outfits - Clothing.
A Corte (skirt) is sold in several different lengths. Here they are called barros - which is approx. 34" long.
The amount of fabric bought depends on the age of the child. Mostly the Cortes are sold in 5 or 8 barros. If they are small children - we can do what we did with Alison and Tammy's kids. We bought one Corte and it was large enough to make for two children. So the sister also got a Corte. The Guipils ( blouses ) are less expensive and they bought one for the child they sponsored and for the sister. If we buy an 8 barro Corte - it can often do for three children.
But if the child is a teenager then she will need 5 barros. The Cortés vary in prices depending the amount of work that has gone into them and the quality of the thread. The Corte that we bought for Alison and Tammy's kids, one cost approx. $60 - but that then divided for two children. The Guipils cost approx. $15. But if they come from San Jorge or Tierra Linda and you want to do the Corte from that area - it is a little more expensive. The traditional Guipil would be approx. $30 and the Corte would be approx. $70 and would only do one child. Then if you want to, you can purchase the "Faja" for them, this is a woven belt. Approx. $6, If you want to buy an apron for a woman - then it is approx. $30 for an adult woman. These are very much part of the traditional dress. Some women will not leave home without their apron, they have a going out one and then one to wear at home. They also have a zippered pocket for them to keep their money etc. They are very decorative and beautiful.
These Cortés and Guipils last several years. So while the initial cost is expensive, they are worth it. Plus they can always buy new Guipils to use with the Cortes.
I am very pleased that this year, San Jorge is not asking for uniforms but asking that for the parade all the girls have new Cortes and Guipils. They have to be black design Cortes and light blue Guipils. So we have placed a special order for the fabric for the Guipils and Alberto, the sewing teacher, will start sewing 50 of them on Monday.
The Cortes and Guipils are very special here, it denotes your standing in the community by what kind of Corte and Guipil you wear. These women know exactly how much another woman's outfit cost. It used to denote which village you came from but now people like to buy an outfit from another village. Not so much in San Jorge and definitely not in Tierra Linda. For example, Gloria has a beautiful outfit from Santiago Atitlan that she wears.
Women and girls, if they can afford it, like to get a new outfit for Easter, Christmas and one when their village has their festival. Of course, most people cannot afford this but they try to get one at least for Christmas or the festival day.
This is project that I am very passionate about because I see that the people cannot afford to buy Guipils and Cortes for their children that the tradition of wearing these clothing is definitely being replaced by second hand western clothes.
Once the children get out of the habit of wearing these clothes, they never seem to go back to it.
SharonAPRIL 2, 2007: BREAKING THE CYCLE OF POVERTY:
MARCH 30, 2007
$3,000 will definitely complete a very simple house. We usually try to do it around $2,500 but all the building materials are going up and it would be much better to allow that extra amount for the extra costs or you can also make it a better home.
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PLANNING ON VISITING US HERE IN GUATEMALA? HERE IS OUR FAQ'S SHEET. I will make a New separate page for this information soon! We will add to it as we go!
MARCH 27, 2007
We have been sending Odillia for medical treatment. The Dr. has found that she has a very severe, very large stomach ulcer, it has caused burning of her esophagus and is causing her esophagus to go into muscle spasm. This is why she cannot pass solid food and why she feels she cannot breathe easily. She is now starting the treatment that she needs. She is already feeling a lot better but she has a long way to go still.
The Dr. told me that she has a lot of muscle problems in her back and arms that cause her a lot of pain. This is probably from years of working washing clothes by hand. She cannot take pain medicine because of her ulcer.
She is still unable to work so we are paying her rent and providing her with food. We have also paid her electricity bill which was two months behind, she would have had it cut off this week. Here she is photographed with her children, receiving a supply of food for the week, clothes and shoes for the children and toys that were donated. They also received more school supplies.
The middle daughter is very anxious about her mother's health and cries most days about her mother. She also is wetting the bed every night. If anyone has any suggestions how to help this problem they would be most welcome.
Thank you for everyone who donated for Odillia to be able to receive this medical treatment and for the food and support for her. Her treatment will be on going and she cannot work for at least a month, she is still too weak, she is unable to keep food down, we have provided her with a big can of milk which will be easier for her to digest.
We have already used up the donations sent for Odillia, If anyone would like to help her and her family, it would be greatly appreciated.
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STUDENT SPONSORSHIP!
MARCH 26, 2007 Families in Crisis.
This woman, Rosa, has seven children. The youngest just turned 1yrs old. A week before he was born the father abandoned the family, telling the wife that he had met "someone prettier". Since then he has not given the family any money. He also refuses to put his name on the birth certificate for the youngest child.
A few weeks ago the husband came to the house, the 9yr old girl asked if he would give her some money to buy bread, he became very angry and started smacking her around the face, the 11yr old girl tried to help her sister and she was also beaten. Both girls had to go to the hospital because of the swelling on their faces. The mother went to the police and then the court but no action so far, has been taken against the father.
She had also applied for him to give her child support through the court system but she did not have enough money to file the papers.
She also did not feel confident talking to the social worker or the court workers.
So we sent Sandra, our secretary, with her to the court. We paid approx. $60.00 US. to file the papers through a group called "Maya Defense" in Solola.
When these papers are filed, the husband will be notified, if he does not appear in the court to arrange child support, an arrest warrant will be issued against him.
We are concerned for the safety of Rosa and her family, once her husband learns that she has filed these papers. But Rosa is determined to carry through with this, she is very concerned that her children do not have enough to eat.
She is washing clothes by hand to make enough for the children but many days she does not earn enough. The day she came here we gave her some food staples to help her get through.
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This woman came to thank us last week. A month ago she had a stroke and could not afford to buy the medicines that she needed. With a donation from Project Gift 2003 we were able to help her buy the medicines that she needed. She is now doing much better. We gave her some food to help her get through the week.
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DONATED SHOES!
Receiving
donated shoes.
MARCH 25,2007
VETERINARY CLINIC:
The operating room being held in the car port.
The veterinary clinic was a great success. Thank you to the people who donated towards the costs of this clinic. The veterinarians from R.A.M. ,( Rural Animal Medicine) a group of seven hardworking Vets. And technicians were able to spay and neuter 81 dogs and cats in two days. They also treated a very large turtle that some child had hacked with a machete, obviously trying to break it’s shell. The turtle now has a very safe, loving home. They also tried really hard to save the life of a young puppy that had been mauled by a pit bull but it was too badly injured to be saved.
They did all these operations outside in a car port, three operating tables, the recovery room was a Patio - Verandah in Selaine and Harold’s house. We had built holding cages for animals and had families sitting in the beautiful gardens, under the shade of trees, waiting for their animals to be operated or to come out of recovery.
All the animals were vaccinated against Parvo virus, distemper and rabies, they also received worming treatment. We sent them home with a 10lb bag of dried dog food for each animal.
We were lucky to have lots of volunteers who helped in so many ways.
We are so thankful for this team to come down and operate. This will help alleviate the problem of so many unwanted puppies suffering in the streets, it will also help alleviate some of the problems of the suffering of the animals here, there were several dogs that had venereal diseases which is something that is not common in most developed countries.
MARCH 18, 2007
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Today many men of the village of Tierra Linda gave up their one day of rest to work on putting the cement roof on the two classrooms of Tierra Linda school. The women cooked and provided lunch for them. It was a real community effort.
MARCH 16, 2007
Yesterday a group from Canada - Connexions - went to visit the children in Tierra Linda. They taught the kids new games, hopscotch, tic tac toe, brought games to leave their such as the chess, sidewalk chalk that the kids had a great time doing designs on the cement. The kids had a real blast doing this! One of the members, a teacher, brought hand puppets that her class had made to give to the children in Tierra Linda. They loved them!
MARCH 14, 2007
MARCH 13, 2007
Just want to let all of you know who have been following Lubia's story. Gloria just called me and said that Lubia has possibly broken her water, she is probably 5-6 months pregnant she thinks, she is having a lot of pain. Julio is on the way to the hospital with her, Gloria is feeding and caring for Lubia's children. For anyone who does not know them, Julio and Gloria are a married couple who work with Mayan Families and go above and beyond their duties every single day. Please keep Lubia in your prayers tonight. Sharon
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Well, the Dr. just called - she is in a
new 24 hour clinic that has just opened in Panajachel. He says that Lubia
has lost a lot of the liquid. That she has an 80% chance of losing the
baby. He wanted to know if we wanted to send her to the public hospital for
treatment. I said no, having just had a death of a pregnant woman inthe
hospital because the Dr. did not come to attend her, I do not want to send
Lubia there. This Dr. said that he is going to give us a discount on
Lubia's treatment because he has heard about Mayan Families and he wants to
help as well. He says that he is not charging us the ultrasound or the
treatment he has given her so far, but that she may have to be in hospital
for five days or more. She has to stay in bed rest. I will bring the
children to stay here with me. Tonight they are with Gloria. As far as I
know the only family she has is in the city .. Will keep you updated.
Sharon
MARCH 11, 2007
Hi, I am just rushing out the door to get to the
clinic. It was on yesterday and today. Yesterday the vets. spayed and
neutered 45 animals.!!! It was non stop all day and I think it will be
the same today. They even treated a turtle that had a bad foot!! Thanks
to everyone who sent money to support this project. We are almost covering
costs. Got to dash, Sharon
MARCH 10, 2007
This little one has a heart problem. Dr. Jennifer detected it when we had the clinics in San Jorge la Laguna.
Jorge Pedro is 9 months old. He is the first baby of his parents, Ana and Jorge. Jorge is a Gardner for a private house, he makes $22. US a week. They live with Jorge's parents. The house that they live in is made of wood planks.
Sue Patterson from Wings arranged for this little one to get an appointment at the hospital UNICAR. Project Gift is paying for his much needed lab work. We won't know what treatment little Jorge will need until the results of the tests are in. But we do know that he needs more medical attention and he may need an operation. We have costs for transportation for this family to get them to the city. If anyone can help Jorge's family it would be greatly appreciated.
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Candelaria receiving formula for her grandchild.
Her daughter is a single mother and has to work, leaving the baby with Candelaria. The baby developed a problem and had to have formula. The family could not afford it and we have been supplying the baby with it for the past few months. Yesterday, Candelaria came and thanks to donations for the baby feeding project we were able to supply her with this can.
Thank you to the people who make this possible.
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Chabeli's daughter.
Yesterday, Chabeli's daughter came down from Tierra Linda with her grandmother. Chabeli is recovering after her operation but is still not well enough to work. Without her working there is no food in the house. Gloria and Julio went to visit her on Friday, they took her a new mattress for her bed. When they went there they found that she had no food at all in the house. She had not sent her family because she said that she felt embarrassed to be asking for help all the time.
Gloria said that Chabeli is clutching her stomach the whole time and she is having a lot of pain. I think that she needs to be checked out by a Doctor again.
We gave her a weeks supply of food and hope that she is soon doing a lot better.
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Fransisca Isabel is 18yrs old. She lives in Panajachel on Lake Atitlan. She is a single mother. She lives with her parents and large family. She is one of 6 children. Her father works as a day laborer. He makes $17US. a month. Her mother sells cooked corn from a basket on the street. She makes between $1.50-$2.00 US a day.
Her father is a caretaker of a house and that is where they live. They do not own their own land or house. They all live in one room and have a small kitchen. They have electricity connected but do not have water. They have to get water from a neighbor.
She has a sister who is married, she is 23yrs old, Fransisca is the second child in the family, then there is a sister Aura, 16yrs old, brother Guillermo 13yrs, Juana 11yrs, Angel 1yr 7 month. They have two beds for all of them. They have one closet to store their clothes. Fransisca helps her mother cook and sell the corn.
She has a heart problem. Dr. Jennifer discovered this while she was working in the clinic in San Jorge. Sue Patterson of Wings in Antigua arranged an appt. for her to be seen at the UNICAR hospital in Guatemala. Thanks to this help the Dr. has now agreed to operate on Fransisca on March 19th. without charge. But there are other costs involved. We are having all her blood work and other tests that she needs done on Monday in Panajachel. The costs for these tests are being covered by PROJECT GIFT 2003.
But we still need help for young Fransisca. She needs to have 6 blood donors to go with her to Guatemala City. We need to be able to arrange transportation for them all to go together to the city early in the morning. We will need to rent a mini bus for this. Cost $70 - this will be a round trip. We also need to be able to pay these donors a small amount of money. Many people are scared here to give blood.
Fransisca's extended family will not do it, they are scared that they will not recover if they give blood. Her father wants to do it but the hospital will not let him due to a medical problem that he has to take medication for. We will also need money to cover the cost of her medicines. If you can at all help with a donation to assist this young woman, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thursday a member of the Mayan Families Connection - a yahoo group that is made up of wonderful people who have a passion for helping the Mayan communities here - arrived in town bearing lots of vitamins.
Sue and her sister Janine, brought 6,000 vitamin capsules, Children's chewable Vitamins and pre-natal tablets for pregnant women.
The Women's Committee from San Jorge was so delighted to hear this that they came down that same afternoon and counted them all out into little bags of 30 days supply per person.
Thank you so much Sue, Janine and Yahoo - Mayan Families Connection group members for making this possible!
This family had no food to eat. The girl had eaten only a tortilla all day. The baby was sick with diarrhea and vomiting. We gave them food that we were lucky had been donated just a few days before. The food was donated from an American woman, Sarah, living in Antigua. It was meant to be for one family, but we had so many people in need that we had to divide it.
MARCH 7, 2007 Please Help Me!
M A Y A N F A M I L I E S . O R G
Lake Atitlan, Panajachel, Guatemala
I was born on the streets of Panajachel . At 6 months old , I was pregnant with my first litter. As soon as they’re gone, I expect to be pregnant again. I may look okay to you now, but I can barely feed myself from hand-outs and garbage dumps .
Nursing another litter of puppies will likely kill me, unless Parvo-Virus,
Distemper or Worms get me first.
Your donation will help ensure that dogs like me get a chance at life.
Your donation will help spay, vaccinate and worm me!
Mayan Families in conjunction with AWARE (Animal Welfare Association—Rescue/Education, Sumpango,
Guatemala) and RAM (Remote Area Medical, a US-based non-profit) is sponsoring a spay-neuter clinic in Panajachel on March 11 and 12. In addition to the surgery, all animals will receive rabies and combo Parvo-virus vaccines, worming medication, a bag of food and fabric for a bed.
The clinic is offered free to indigenous families.
Our goal is to treat 120 dogs and cats from homes and from the street.
A $5 donation to this clinic will ensure that 2 dogs receive a rabies vaccine, combo Parvo-virus vaccine and worming;
$25 covers 1/2 the cost of a spay or neuter, all vaccines and worming; and, $50 covers the entire cost of one spay or neuter, all vaccines and worming.
Donations may be made through Paypal at www.mayanfamilies.org
-or-
Mail your check, made out to
Mayan Families, c/- Dwight Poage, 2609 Hartford St., San Diego. CA 92110For tax deductible receipts for donations $100 and over please send check to World Link Partners c/- Helen Hogan, 411
East 3350 North, Nth. Ogden, UT 84414 or pay by Paypal on their website www.worldlinkpartners.org
For more information about Mayan Families projects, please visit www.mayanfamilies.org
Thank You!!
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This little one is seven months old, so far he has survived his father abandoning him before birth, having roto virus and lactose intolerant. His mother, Marisol, a single mother now with 2 other young boys cannot afford to buy him his formula. He is doing much better since we have been able to buy his formula for him. Thank you to the people who have sent donations enabling us to supply formula to hungry babies.
LUBIA AND HER CHILDREN.
Thank you to everyone who sent us donations to be able to help this family. Since Sunday afternoon we have been able to have them staying in a very clean and comfortable hotel room. It was very fortunate that we moved them that day out of the horrible conditions that they had been living in, an open construction site - because that night the wind was absolutely howling. I can only imagine how awful and scary it would have been for them sleeping there.
Thanks to you, they were able to sleep in warm beds and have food ever since.
We have bought the school supplies for the children, given them many outfits of warm clothing for the night, the days are sunny but the nights are very cold right now and the wind has been wild. The baby has had milk and diapers.
We found out that Lubia has been having a lot of stomach pains, she is five months pregnant, we were able to send her to the doctor and get her the medicine that she needed.
The children are very happy with their new clothes and shoes. They are pictured here in my house having lunch yesterday while waiting for their school supplies.
They are moving into their new house today. We have bought them a bed and we are arranging a stove for them for later today. We have had the electricity turned on and the neighbor is letting them have use of her bathroom until their own bathroom is completed - which will be in a few days.
Lubia is very anxious to find a job. She makes cards and has been busy producing them to sell. She is also trying to find a job making jewelry.
MARCH 6, 2007
HOUSE BUILDING PROJECTS:
You know the other thing that I would like to mention is that we have a lot of families, single mothers who have to pay rent. The biggest drain and worry for them is finding the rent money, sometimes all their money has to go, just paying the rent. They have no hope of being able to buy land on their meager incomes. So it would be wonderful if it was possible to be able to break that cycle for them and get them a small piece of land. Most women I know would love that, they say to me often, that they don't care if they are living under plastic sheeting - just so that they could own a piece of land and not have to worry about paying rent or getting thrown out.
Regarding the cost of a classroom. I would estimate approx. $5,000 - because classrooms are larger. They need a lot more windows to let in light. We need to put on metal doors so that they cannot be broken into easily. All these things cost more. A computer - I will have to check out what the current used prices are. Probably around $300 US., desks/chairs $15, a whiteboard - I will have to find out the costs. We have a school with 60 children right now who do not have desks or chairs.
MARCH 5, 2007
For any Groups thinking of coming down to Guatemala:
MARCH 4, 2007
Another Student in need of a Sponsor, Odilla's 6 year old.
Odilla and her three daughters are in a desperate situation. Odilla is a 32yr old widow. She lives in a rented room, she has no kitchen to cook in. She is very ill, we are not sure what illness she has but she is very weak and cannot swallow food easily.
She has been maintaining her family by washing clothes by hand. On Friday she was feeling very ill and she slumped over the sink. Her employer told her that she could no longer work there.
On Friday when she came to my house, it was 3 in the afternoon and the children had not eaten all day. I gave them all rice and beans with tortillas, Odilla could not eat, she could only eat watermelon. She is feeling very desperate she does not have the money for this months rent and she does not have the money to pay her electricity and it may be cut off shortly.
This family has had very little food to eat, the children have been eating bread for breakfast and tortillas with salt. They are very underweight and thin. These children are in real need of nourishment. This is the other family that we would like to put into the second room of the house along with Lubia and her family in the other room. This way Odilla would have time to hopefully recover from her illness and get back onto her feet.
Odilla needs money to be able to get medical treatment. We are sending her Monday to a Dr. here. We know that she will need several examinations or tests. She has a cyst on her ovaries and she says that she has chronic gastritis but has never been able to afford the medicine or the operation for her cyst. Odilla will need money for her medications and her treatments. She needs money to pay her rent, her elec. bill and to be able to provide food for her family for the next month or two. She is very weak and she really needs to be able to rest and recuperate.
Photographed is Odilla's 6yr old daughter who was not able to enter school this year. We are also looking for sponsorship for her. She has registered her two other children in a free school but she has no money to buy them supplies, backpacks or shoes. Odilla has no family to help her.
MARCH 3, 2007
RECEIVING WATER FILTERS:
This week we received the remainder of the 500 water filters donated through Florence Rotary Club, Oregon U.S.A. and Rotary Club Sur in Guatemala. Everyone was so happy to receive them. There is already a long waiting list for the next water filter project. One woman told me how happy she was to be able to drink clean water.
Before she and her family used to put drops of chlorine in their water and it tasted awful. She said she is so delighted with how good everything tastes now! Another woman told me that before they used to buy drinking water but that they could only afford one bottle a week and that she had to ration her children drinking water. She said that they are all happy that now they can drink water