Bank update

Hello again everyone,
Just a quick note on our fundraising situation.  Angelica and Orlando are currently trying to set up a bank account at a US bank for Kindred Volunteer.  They are working with one of their US-based associates to achieve this goal.  There's a lot of red tape to wade through, but if they manage to acquire the US account, it would help their organization receive volunteers and donations.  Let's all keep our fingers crossed!

In the meantime, we're still awaiting the results of Erin's school's fundraiser in January.  After that, we plan to send all the money we raised to Angelica, who will purchase the library materials for the new school year (in Feb. 2011).  We've set a deadline of Jan. 21st for the money transfer, so that Angelica will have enough time to get everything in order.

We're all very excited about this, and we hope you are too!

Have a wonderful holiday season!

Hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving!

We'll post an update soon -- Orlando visited the US last week!

-ZZ

Angelica's Visit to Pacaja

Hi everyone!

Angelica visited the school a few days ago, and said that Pacaja's current library consists of one shelf of books in a classroom.  The school apparently also owns a large empty shelf that can house the new materials your donations will purchase.  This is great because it means we can devote even more of the money to books (and less to furniture).

We think that it would be nice to eventually move the library out of a classroom, into its own separate space.  Maybe that will be a volunteer project when Kindred Volunteer takes off!

Right now we are waiting for the results of the fundraiser Erin wrote about.  Hopefully we can set up some sort of penpal exchange in the meantime, so that when the Guatemalan kids return to school next year (they are on their year-end vacation) they can start writing to the American kids! 

Once again, thanks for all of your care and support!

This is the school's current library, situated inside a classroom.

Another shot of the classroom.

Empty shelf that will house the new materials we will buy!

4th Grade Fundraiser

Hi everyone!
Two 4th grade classes at P.S. 10 Magnet School of Math, Science, & Technology in Brooklyn, NY decided to raise money for the kids at Escuela Pacaja!
Each year the school participates in a Penny Harvest and each class gets to choose where they would like the funds they raise to go to.  After much deliberation and discussion about different organizations, two classes decided that they would like their fundraisers to go to Escuela Pacaja!  Many of these student are from Guatemala themselves and still have family there, so it has a very special meaning for them.  
Here is a brief description of the Penny Harvest:
During the next four weeks, Penny Harvesters will collect millions of pennies as thousands of them connect with their communities. As they participate in the first of four phases of the Penny Harvest, these students will literally create their own philanthropic bank accounts at each of their schools. One hundred percent of the funds collected will be used to make grants to non-profit organizations of their choice and to fund service-learning projects in their community.


If you would like to learn more about the Penny Harvest you may visit their website: 
http://www.commoncents.org/go/news/19th-annual-penny-harvest-kicks-off


We will have an idea as to how much they have raised in January.  We'll keep you posted!
Thank you to these wonderful children who will make Escuela Pacaja a richer learning environment!

This is the leaf on the school's Tree Of Caring for Escuela Pacaja....
It is so touching that the children in Brooklyn NY really want to make a difference for kids they have never met!

Completing donations phase!

Hi everyone!

We've raised $956 so far, which is more than enough for the new library materials we had originally intended to purchase.  The extra money will go toward new shelves to house all the new books!  This is so great, and we really couldn't have done it without you!

Just think, every time a little kid at Pacaja picks up one of the new books and discovers the joys of reading, it will all be due to YOU.

At this point we're going to stop asking for donations, although Erin will still continue with the 4th grade fundraiser (mentioned in a previous post).  Stephane's sons Alex and Matthieu are interested in organizing exchanges within their middle school as well.  We're also hoping to set up some sort of pen pal program between all of these children and the children at Pacaja, so that each side can learn about life in another country.  We know the kids (in the US and Guatemala) would all benefit from an experience like that!

Once we wrap up the school-based fundraisers, we will work with Angelica to purchase all the awesome new library supplies for the awesome kids!  And of course, we'll keep you updated every step of the way.

Thanks again!!!!

Story time!

Hello everyone!

I thought I'd share a funny anecdote about my time in Guatemala, so let's all gather 'round for story time!

I flew into Guatemala with a Spanish vocabulary of about 10 words, and four of those words had to do with locating a restroom.  Needless to say, I knew that I wouldn't be able to hold insightful conversations on Guatemalan literature.  However, I still felt fairly confident in my Spanish skills, because I had purchased a Spanish-English phrasebook prior to my departure.  After all, how hard could it be to flip through a book and locate what I wanted to say/what others were saying to me?

The night before my introduction to Pacaja, I quickly memorized some phrases that I thought would be helpful for interacting with children.  "Let's draw a bear!" was one of those phrases ...  for some reason I was certain that I could use that one in the schoolyard.

When we volunteers arrived for our first day at Pacaja, we were approached by a cheerful 11-yr old boy while we painted desks.  I clumsily said to him "Hola!  Como te llamas," and I was so happy when he actually understood and responded!  In fact, it was very easy to hold a conversation with him, and I felt on top of the world!  Then I realized that we were actually speaking English --  I was awkwardly dispersing my limited Spanish vocab into English sentences, and he was responding to me in very good English.  I felt a little embarrassed that an 11-yr old could show me up with his bilingual skills, but it was great talking to Michael anyway.

A few hours later it was recess time for the students at Pacaja, and scores of children ran out into the schoolyard.  "Dibujar un Oso, dibujar un Oso" I repeated to myself, and then I was surrounded by a group of curious 6th-grade girls.  One of them spoke to me in rapid-fire Spanish, and in my mind I hastily translated her questions as "Where are you from?  How old are you?"  Aha!  Those were easy questions that even I could answer!  With overwhelming confidence, I replied with what I thought was "I'm from the United States and I'm 24 years old."

Unfortunately, one of my fellow volunteers started giggling as soon as the words left my mouth.  The little girl hadn't asked my age at all, and instead was wondering how long I would be in Guatemala.  And, to compound my embarrassment, not only had I NOT answered her inquiry correctly, I had also messed up my Spanish numbers! What I accidentally said in Spanish was "I'm from the United States and I'm 45 years old."

Fortunately, at that time the group of girls noticed one of Stephane's boys, and they made a beeline for the 13-year old hunk =)  I've save that story for Stephane to tell.

Anyway, I'll end this story on a semi-corny but completely true note.  The Spanish-English language barrier really didn't separate me from the children at Pacaja.  They were so patient and eager to teach, and we all had lots of fun laughing at my mistakes.  We also had great times playing games that didn't require any speaking -- after all, Ring around the Rosie is a universal language.  After just one day at the school, I knew that the happy, innocent, friendly children at Pacaja would always claim a piece of my heart.  I was so sad to leave the kids on my last day, and that's why I teamed up with Stephane, Liz, Erin, Angelica, and Orlando --so that I can  give something back.

-Zhitong

We've surpassed our goal!

Hi everyone!!!!

We're so so so SO SO excited to say that we've surpassed our goal of getting $800 by November!!!  The kids at Pacaja are definitely getting their awesome new library materials for the next school year, let's keep up the momentum and try to get them that new computer lab as well! We went ahead and changed the y-limit on our fundraising graph so that readers can keep track of our progress -- during our next conference call with Angelica we're going to chat about costs for computers and hopefully get a more accurate estimate.

So once again, our heartfelt thanks go out to those who have contributed!  We've seen generosity from so many places, including the personal piggy bank of Liz's 8-yr-old daughter.

Erin is currently coordinating a fundraiser with some 4th graders from NY, so be prepared for some very cute updates about that!

And remember, you can also help out by promoting our blog within your own social media networks!

Thanks again!

You guys are so great!!!!

Many many many thanks for all the contributions so far!  We have received over $700 (*edited on 10/15*), and it's only mid-October!  Hopefully we'll greatly surpass our goal!

A Comprehensive Breakdown of What Your Donations Will Buy:

Below is a list of what your donations will help purchase for La Escuela Pacaja's library. "Q" stands for "queztal," which is the currency of Guatemala (a subunit is called a "centavo"). As of 10/13, the exchange rate to the United States dollar is 0.12320 USD/Quetzal (source).

Package #1 Q.2300.00

- 1 Social Sciences Encyclopedia Set

- 1 Natural Science Encyclopedia Set

- 1 Dictionary                                                                                 

Package #2 Q.2300.00

- 1 Youth Encyclopedia Set

- 1 Universal Atlas

- 1 Poems and Stories Collection

- 1 Multilingual dictionary                                                           

Package #3 Q.1485.00

- 1 Elementary Encyclopedia Set

- 1 Moral Values Collection                                                        

All of the books total Q.6085.00. We had originally aimed for $500, which would purchase Package 1 and Package 2.  However, since the donations have been so generous, we're now aiming to get all three packages! 

Our new goal is $800 by November. In less than a week, we are more than halfway to this figure (we've raised $470.82 so far), but we are not there yet! Please help us reach our goal!!

-Liz & Zhitong

Who we are!

Hello again everyone!
We thought it'd be nice to post an entry about who we are and why we care, so that we're no longer random people asking for donations over the internet =)

Erin is a Special Education teacher in New York.  She went to Guatemala because she wanted to be immersed in a culture while giving back to the community.  The children at Escuela Pacaja have touched her heart in so many ways, it proved to be an amazing and life-changing experience.  Erin enjoyed  getting to know the kids so much that she had to continue to help the school once she got home.  She also served as the unofficial Spanish-English translator in Guatemala, since she lived in Spain for a few months during college.

Liz is a graduate student and an underwriter who lives in Philadelphia. Giving back to Pacaja is important to Liz because it not only benefits the school, it also supports the progress of Guatemala.  You can tell she had an amazing time with the kids in this picture.  Liz is also an award-winning photographer -- she won a photo contest sponsored by our volunteer program!

Stephane is a marketing analyst who lives in Washington state, by way of Paris, France.  He brought two of his very quiet and shy* children, Matthieu and Alex, along with him to Guatemala.  The three of them had a wonderful time, and it was amazing how many friends the two boys made over the short week!  After seeing the conditions at Pacaja, and reading about the depressing education statistics in Guatemala, Stephane knew that he had to give more to the school and its children.

*Not at all shy or quiet =)

Zhitong is a financial analyst in Baltimore.  Volunteering at Pacaja was one of the most rewarding experiences of her life, and she absolutely fell in love with the adorable students.  Zhitong would wake up at the crack of dawn every day during her week in Pacaja because she was so excited to see the children -- that's quite an accomplishment for a person who thinks 11am is "early."  She really hopes that she'll be able to make a difference in the lives of Pacaja's students!

Angelica was the wonderful director of the international volunteering program in which Erin, Liz, Stephane, and Zhitong participated.  She is such a warm and caring woman, and anyone can tell that she loves organizing projects to help her native Guatemala.  Angelica was the principal of a Guatemalan high school before she became involved in international volunteer exchanges.  Prior to the directing the Xela program we enrolled in, Angelica served as a coordinator for AFS Intercultural Programs and worked with a local organization to help at-risk children.  Angelica recently started her own volunteer organization, Kindred Volunteer.  If you are interested in visiting the beautiful Mayan city of Quetzaltenango while helping the local community, please visit her website!

Orlando was an administrator in our volunteer program, and recently joined Angelica to work on Kindred Volunteer.  He knows so much about Guatemalan history and culture, and really enjoys sharing stories about his country.  Orlando was a very knowledgeable tour guide whenever we went on trips around Xela, and everyone benefited from his information!

So that's us in a nutshell!  Hopefully we are now more than just anonymous bots behind your computer screen.  Also, thank you so much for your contributions!  We have raised over $400 in just a few days!

We're making great progress!!!

To everyone who has donated, thank you so much for your generosity!  We are making great progress, especially considering we've just started fundraising a few days ago!

We're already well over halfway there to new library supplies, and I definitely think that we can get the funds necessary for that new computer lab!  Right now the school has 9 computers for 600 children, let's try to double that number (at least) and connect the students to the rest of the world.

Thanks again, and we'll keep with the progress reports as more donations roll in!











The kids at Pacaja thank you too!!!!  Look at those silly little boys =)

Small Addendum

Hi again everyone!

We just had a conference call with our wonderful KindredVolunteer contact Angelica, and she gave us more details on the types of materials that your donations will help purchase for this first project!

Angelica is looking into buying story books, maps, and atlases for the library at La Escuela Pacaja.  Most of the children at the school have never left their city, much less Guatemala, so bringing maps to the library will open their eyes to so many possibilities!  Hopefully the kids will be inspired to finish their educations and see the world.

When I volunteered at Pacaja, I brought along a Spanish-English guide with maps of different Latin American countries.  I remember the little children being so excited to point at all the places!

So please give what you can today to help us get these materials to the children!  Once again, no amount is too little!

Thanks for reading!

-Z

Please Donate Today!

Hello Friends, and welcome back to our blog!   After talking with our KindredVolunteer contact and the principal of Pacaja, we are in agreement that the the first step for La Escuela Pacaja should be materials for the library and classrooms. Though this, all of the children will benefit from your contributions. 


The Guatemala school year runs from February though October. Since the school year is ending shortly, your donation will be given to school in the first days of February 2011. 


We have set up a Paypal account; the link is below. We also have a Facebook page that links to the account. Should you have any questions regarding the administrators of the account, feel free to contact us.


Presently, only $500.00 will be enough to give the school a good selection of books and materials!  We are hoping to surpass that figure so that we can work on further projects, like more (much-needed) computers. 

So please give what you can, and remember that no amount is too small.  Note that 100% of your contribution will be going to the school, we have no overhead expenses or fees.


Please give today! Click the link below, and thank you!!!

-Liz

Devastation in Guatemala

CNN reports on Guatemalan mudslides

BBC reports on Guatemalan mudslides

Guatemala has been hit with the horrible effects of torrential rains and mudslides. As many as 37 people have died, and the numbers are expected to rise.

CNN reports that "thousands of homes, in addition to infrastructure and fields of crops, also were damaged by the heavy rains." In Xela, "a family of four died when their home was buried by a mudslide" (BBC World).

Many roads were also destroyed by the mudslides. The children of La Escuela Pacaja will be affected with limited supplies being brought into their already deprived school.

Please keep these images in your mind when we ask for donations towards La Escuela Pacaja. We are very grateful for your thoughts and prayers and we will keep you posted.

- Liz

We can make a difference.

We were a group of 14 volunteers with different background coming from different states, sometime speaking different languages and some of us also came with their children.
We knew we wanted to make a difference, we knew we wanted to help others but one thing we did not know is that the week we all spent together in helping la escuela Pacaja in sanding and painting desks and chairs and sharing some of the life of the students will change so much our lives.

When we came back on August 21st, we knew we could not stop here. So, that same day some of us were already sending emails to the principal but also to someone in Xela who will help us make sure the right investments are made with the donations doing an onsite follow up with the school.
Few hours after landing and several emails later we were a little more organized and we decided to start a fundraiser for la escuela pacaja.

As we are working with the principal and local representatives to better understand what their urgent needs are, so we can fundraise wisely making sure the money we collect is effectively going where the needs are, we share our experience volunteering at the school with you so, like us, you’ll want to make a difference in helping students a la escuela pacaja.

In Guatemala and in that school about 60% of the children won’t go to the end of high school; in Guatemala, literacy is around 70% and only 63% among women. Even if our action is a drop in the ocean, we want to make this world a better place to live for these children with the support we will bring. Shortly we’ll share with you about things that will contribute to improve literacy and the number of students in la escuela pacaja able to finish high school.

if you want to learn more about our recent action a la escuela pacaja, and share the personal experience of one of the volunteers, click here to read the blog posts.

Yes we are passionate, yes we believe in what we do and YES we need your help to make it happen.

Stay tuned!

*******************************

Office of the principal and main entrance of school.

Computer lab for la escuela pacaja (600 students and 9 PC in operation)

Children during recess

  

Small update

Hey everyone!
Things might be a bit slow for the next week or so, because our lovely Guatemala contact is wrapping up some business things before transitioning to her new organization (www.kindredvolunteer.org).  She should be able to visit the school soon and develop a plan to utilize our future donations!

While we wait, allow us to introduce ourselves!  We are a group of people from all over the US that met on a week-long volunteering trip to Guatemala.  Our volunteer project was to fix up classroom furniture for kindergarten classes at La Escuela Pacaja.  At Pacaja, we got to play with the students every day during their hour-long recess. We fell in love instantly with the wonderful children, but were also saddened by how little they had.  Guatemala is a very poor country with depressing statistics (70% literacy rate, $1200 per capita GDP, 60-yr life expectancy for males), and we don't want the children at La Escuela Pacaja to be trapped by these dreary numbers.  That's why this website was created, because every little bit DOES matter, and differences can be made in those innocent lives!

And now ... more lovely pictures!

We brought sidewalk chalk for the kids one day, and they loved it so much that we had to break each small stick into > 5 pieces!  It's so nice that such a small thing could bring so much joy (to them and to us!).

The kids are very creative when it comes to fun.  Fact: we learned 539 new clapping games per day during our stay in Guatemala.

The kids do have a beautiful view of the Santa Maria volcano -- it wouldn't be so bad to go to school under its majestic shadow!

Getting Started!

Hello everyone!
We are currently in the process of starting a fundraiser for the children of La Escuela Pacaja, a public elementary school serving a poor, rural area of Quetzaltenango (Guatemala).

The school would greatly benefit from things that many of us take for granted, such as computers, working toilets, and new books.

Please stay tuned as we learn what items will most improve the educational experience of Pacaja's precious students!  We (and they) will not be able to do it without your help!

In the meantime, enjoy the following pictures ... these are the lives that you will alter!