November 2022

Dear Donors and Friends 

I just returned from my first post-COVID trip to Guatemala- last year COVID precautions were still being observed there. Much about our work there has changed in the last 3 years so I want to update you and encourage your continuing support. 

As you know, on the eve of COVID, in December 2019, we closed our alternative school in San Andres Sajcabaja. With the post-war construction of new public schools, diminished demand and increasing requests by the parish to use our classrooms for other purposes, we decided the school had served its purpose of transitioning from the disruption caused by the civil war to a resurgence of public education in this remote area. 

In January 2020 we expanded our scholarship offerings. We now work with 2 Guatemalan parishes (San Andres Sajcabaja and Fr. Santos in Chinique) and 3 Guatemalan nonprofits to provide junior high, high school, university and graduate school scholarships- 72 of them in 2022 

We launched a program of psycho-pedagogical support for young people with mental and physical disabilities as this is a need that is largely ignored by the public education system. We hired 3 psychologists and 2 teachers, all of whom are young, enthusiastic and idealistic, to offer once weekly in-home supplemental instruction to students, as well as psychological support to students and their families and semi-weekly workshops by a US trained professor of education for our staff and classroom teachers who are motivated to do more for their disabled students. We also created a fund for eyeglasses and other aids. In 2022 the program served 77 students in 5 communities- Santa Cruz, Nebaj, Chinique, Chiche and Chichicastenango. 

We are expanding our Board to include younger members interested in continuing the work. We’ve added two younger members to our Board (38 and 41) and have plans to integrate more younger members who know Guatemala and speak Spanish over the next couple years as their schedules permit. 

We urge your support of these new efforts. Four years ago we received a large, unexpected gift we thought would largely fund us until the current board retired and we concluded operations, but with this influx of board members we plan to keep going beyond what that generous gift can fund. So we encourage you to continue to donate, if you can, and thank you for all you’ve done to get us where we are. 

Have a wonderful holiday season. As always, reach out to any of us with your questions and comments. 

Warm regards,

Bruce Martin