Friendships: Neighbors in the Journey
Over the years, we have asked a lot of questions, listened to many stories, and made many friends in Guatemala. You've now met Candelaria and Gregorio, Francisco and Carina, Massimo, and many others. Those of us from Canada have met through friends, business contacts, and family, and found ourselves coming back again and again.
Since we call ourselves "Guatemala Conexions", you might understand why we value the intangible "conexions" as much as any project.
Hallmark Retirement Communities in Abbotsford, Canada was the foundation of Guatemala Conexions, and the knitting club at Hallmark continues to churn out handmade blankets for the people we love in Guatemala. You can watch the journey of one such blanket below, from Jean in Canada to Lorenza in Guatemala:
The ladies of the Chukmuk women's cooperative have become dear friends. Francisco and Carina have helped them organize their beadwork production into a team effort, and we purchase and return the items to Canada, where friends can obtain them for a donation. It's a small project, but has a profound impact for the ladies. Grace is a longtime board member and veteran of many trips, and has been the beadwork coordinator for many years
Daniel is our regular boat driver for trips across the lake, and he takes special care for all of us, including our bins of medical supplies for transport, and little life jackets for little people. He's just a dad too, trying to make an honest living.
Miguel, our first scholarship student from 2011, with Barb (married to Ron), enjoying good Guatemalan coffee.
Miguel explaining the process of coffee cultivation and harvesting, in English.
Randy, administrator at Hallmark Retirement Communities, with Juan Antonio, one of our scholarship students. Juan Antonio taught these children on Saturdays, when they come for voluntary extra tutoring in their school subjects, like math, reading, and even English.