Dear Family and Friends,
I hope you are doing well! I want to let you know about an amazing opportunity I have to travel with a team of educators to an impoverished community located in Guatemala City and Chiquimula, Guatemala.
Guatemala’s population of 15 million is one of the poorest in Latin America. Nearly 25% of the country’s population is illiterate, ranking Guatemala 174 out of 194 countries in terms of literacy rate. The average schooling in Guatemala is four years and only three in ten children graduate from sixth grade. It has the highest rate of chronic malnutrition in children under five in all of Latin America. There are approximately two doctors per 16,000 people in the garbage dump community.
Our team will be serving the local families by providing professional development at a community center run by a fantastic organization called the Potter’s House. The Potter’s House has been providing support for over 11,000 children and their families that live on a garbage dump in Guatemala City for over 27 years. Because of their strong ties within the community, we will be visiting homes and learning about the challenges faced on a daily basis. During the week we are there, we will be hosting professional development workshops for community leaders, educators and other professionals.
Each team member has been asked to raise $2400 to cover the expenses for this serving opportunity. I am wondering if you would like to be a part of my support team and help me try to raise these funds? Because this is a volunteer service trip facilitated by the non-profit organization INGAGE Unlimited, all donations are tax deductible and can be made online here. Just select my name from the drop down menu for team members.
I will also be sending out an email update following our trip to share our experiences with you. Please email me if you have any questions, comments, or stories to share about an experience you’ve had with a trip of this nature.
Thank you so much for your consideration!
Much Love,
Ilona