A Gift from the Heart

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These quilts were made with TLC by Pat Adams of Moorings Presbyterian Church. She has made 100s of them over the last 2 years. They are warm with thick padding inside and bright, cheerful colors of fabric on the outside. When Michael Ewens from The Ripple Effect told me that so many families have no blankets, or share one between a whole family… I had to make transporting Pat’s quilts to Guatemala a priority. The smile on this woman’s face is precious reward for our efforts. Thank you Pat, and all the other quilters and knitters who are warming the people living in the mountains with their time and giving  

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Michael Ewens handing out quilted blankets to the children

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Magic Classroom Bringing Education to Rural Villages

 In Guatemala 40% of children do not make it through 1st grade. They start school at age 7 often times not speaking spanish (they speak an indigenous language of their mother) and do not have the preparation of kindergarden.  After failing the first year most children drop out or fail again.

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Photos Above: Blankets, hats, backpacks, and toys were distributed on a previous visit to our schools, who now have Magic Classrooms.

 Retired American, Fred Zambroski saw this problem and took action by forming the non profit charity Let’s Be Ready. They hire unemployed teachers and provide them with early education training for 4-6 year olds, and established 25 preschool programs in rural villages. Since 2010 Miracles In Action has sponsored 5 LBR preschool programs, with some of the teachers being graduates of our scholarship program. 

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Classroom Facilitators in Training having fun using their radios and tablets.

 In our remotest villages there are no teachers to hire for a LBR preschool. Seeing this problem, Fred developed the Magic Classroom program, where he hires 16-24 year olds and trains them to become preschool classroom facilitators. Pre-recorded music, lessons, and learning activities are played via a computer tablet, magically transforming the classroom into a fun filled place to learn and grow. In February 2015, Miracles In Action supported the first magic classroom programs in our schools located in the Cuchumatanes mountains of Huehuetenango at 9-10,000 feet elevation.

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Cuchumatanes mountain range – easy to see why there are few teachers available for a LBR preschool. Magic Classroom works well here.

 Thank you Fred Zambrowski, and Project Manager Michael Estill for developing this innovative solution to bringing education to the remotest, poverty-stricken villages in Guatemala.

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(Left) Fred Zambroski Founder of Let’s Be Ready with Michael Estill (Right) Project Manager

If you would like more information please read this article on page 72  http://issuu.com/revue/docs/revue_magazine_may_2015?e=0/12696993

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Ben’s Share A Book Project

Our super-supporter, Ben Morales, along with his teacher sponsored the Share a Book Project for his school. Together they raised $400 and 80 books were donated to the children in Guatemala. Ben will be delivering the books and also assisting with the construction of school #49 located in El Salitrillo, Guatemala. He was able to raise the funds for the construction through the School Starter Program. Great Job Ben!

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10 Years of Miracles!

Our super-supporter, Ben Morales, along with his teacher sponsored the Share a Book Project for his school. Together they raised $400 and 80 books were donated to the children in Guatemala. 

Ben will be delivering the books and also assisting with the construction of school #49 located in El Salitrillo, Guatemala. He was able to raise the funds for the construction through the School Starter Program. Great Job Ben!

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Limitless Laptops

10661876_1016522875025800_2146344040528504029_oGreat results from our donation of laptops from LabAnswer to Limitless Horizons computer lab in Chajul. Just check out the smiles on the faces of these young women!

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See the Difference These Youth are Making

While some people may think that youth today are not as focused, responsible, polite, fill-in-your-own-descriptor as previous generations, we have found just the opposite! It is encouraging to be contacted by young people who are working hard to make the world a better place through their actions. Young miracles in action! Here we highlight just a few recent examples.

SchoolStarterPageStory #1 SchoolStarter Project:

Ben Morales, age 15, has a younger sister, Bella, born in Guatemala and adopted by the Morales family. Ben and his family have been supporters of Miracles in Action for many years, and he decided to take on the ambitious challenge of raising $20,000 to build a school, in honor of his sister. Now, that is an ambitious goal! His campaign is structured like a KickStarter campaign, for those who have heard of that. Since KickStarter does not allow charity projects, he has a SchoolStarter page instead. Creative!  We hope you will support this project with a donation of any size.

Visit the SchoolStarter page to learn more and watch the 1.5 minute video he made about the project.

Story #2 From Sea Shells to Car Wash. What Next?:

Penny received a card recently from Madeleine Mauer, granddaughter of School of Miracles #12 donor Ann Fron Pravato. Several years ago Madeleine and her sister, Kirsten (then 3 and 5 years old) collected seashells on Marco Island and sold them to raise money for Miracles in Action. Penny was given a ziploc bag filled with coins from their sale – how cute! Now they are older and did a car wash, raising $200. I can only imagine what is next! Gracias, Madeleine and Kirsten, and we also thank Ann, for being an inspiration to teach her grandchildren about giving and helping others.

Pictured below: Ann Fron Pravato, with students in front of the school she sponsored in 2007 in Guatemala; Madeleine’s recent note.

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ASHA-ClubStory #3 Hope makes a difference:

The ASHA student group at Raymond J. Grey Junior High School in Massachusetts recently sent a check to support student  scholarships and water filters in Guatemala. This club was started in 2010 by two high school students whose vision was to bring education to impoverished children around the world. In 2012 a club was started with junior high students, which currently has 10 7th and 8th grade members. This year they reached a new milestone in their fundraising by raising $1200! The word “Asha” means “hope” in Hindi, and this group certainly is giving hope to the Guatemalan students they are helping!

We are so encouraged by these stories and salute these and all the other young philanthropists and fundraisers who support our work!

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Seeing the Highs and Lows of Guatemala

Debbie Effler is a professional writer who volunteers with Miracles in Action. We asked her to share her impressions of her recent trip to Guatemala.

Last month I had the chance to visit Guatemala and see firsthand some of the joys of helping people in this country, and also some of the heartaches.

Or, as Geoff and Rita Doppenberg say, the highs and lows.

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Rita Doppenberg is a favorite of the local kids in Salitrillo. That evening they brought her a bouquet of flowers.

The Doppenbergs are a Canadian family who moved to Guatemala permanently last year with their sons Zach, Luke and Gabe. Their organization, The DIG (Doppenbergs In Guatemala), has been working in Salitrillo, a village of roughly 140 people, to install a water system, teach sustainable agriculture, provide health care and offer vocational training. 

Our Thursday Salitrillo highs: Watching healthy kids play soccer, when not long ago some of them were being sent to the malnutrition hospital nearby. Lows: Hearing that someone vandalized the new water line and many residents got sick from drinking dirty water. 

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This tin shack served as the school in El Silencio. It had a dirt floor and was completely open on some walls..

We spent Friday putting the finishing touches on a new primary school built by The DIG in El Silencio . On the drive in, we stopped at the current school, a crumbling, corrugated tin shack with dirt floor. Those of us with children tried to picture our own kids learning here. That had to be the low point of the day.

On the drive home, we visited the Pediatric Malnutrition Rehabilitation Center, another program supported by The DIG. We saw many children, some playing, some sitting quietly in little chairs. Many lit up when the Doppenberg boys come in to play with them.

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One of the patients at the pediatric malnutrition hospital.

One girl had just arrived. Her head was shaved and she was crawling on arms so thin I couldn’t believe they held her up. We guessed she was about five years old, but later learned she is 11. The low: Rita said it was doubtful the girl would survive. The high: Last year there were 56 kids in this center and now there are only 23.

On Saturday we celebrated El Silencio’s school dedication (Miracles Schoool #45) and met the 22 kids who’ll now be more likely to finish their elementary education. (What a high!) For lunch we were served a meal of soup, tortillas, chicken and rice that was likely enough food to feed several families for a month. The people of the village didn’t join us, as there wasn’t enough food for all of them. We couldn’t turn it down, as that would have been a great insult. I have never felt so bad about filling my plate, and found every bite humbling.

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Celebrating with El Silencio at the school dedication. Each student received a backpack with school supplies.

All these highs and lows, woven together, make up the fabric of life in Guatemala. The great news about the work Miracles in Action is doing is that the highs are starting to outnumber the lows. And looking at the big picture, that’s what really matters.

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Más Pedidos

“Más Pedidos, por favor.” That was the simple refrain from many of the women who make the beautiful and unique handicrafts that we sell at farmer’s markets, craft sales and on our Beyond Beads website. This simple experience brought home to me an important part of our mission statement – helping people to help themselves. “Más pedidos, por favor” translates to “more orders please.” These women were not looking for a hand-out, they were looking for more work!

“From the Field” posts don’t often have my byline, but I’ve been fortunate to spend the past 10 days in Guatemala, working with our team and visiting some of our projects and partners first-hand.

Santiago ArtisansOn Monday we visited Delores and Maria, two sisters who have not ever attended school, speak only their indigenous language of Tz’utujil, and who rely on our orders to help support their family of 8. They were very appreciative for the work we are giving them, but wanted more orders.

We learned that the women who do the bead work in our program enjoy slightly higher wages and on-time payment for their work. But it is still difficult for them to afford even the basics of daily living. In our efforts of going beyond fair trade, we are surveying their needs and will provide a 10-year water filter for those who now must boil their water in order to make it potable. This filter ensures that the entire family stays healthier by not drinking contaminated water. We are also investigating doing nutrition and healthy home workshops and providing other tangible items to improve their quality of life.

Field work is so important because it helps me understand the realities of each situation.

My first reaction to learning that the women could not afford a water filter was that we should simply pay them more. From our North American perspective, that may make sense, but it is not that easy. The local coordinator explained that this would upset the bead-work economy which is built on much more than our orders. Also that paying more might mean people would buy a water filter – or it might mean they would buy more Pepsi and junk food, which seems to find it’s way into even the most remote villages. Being uneducated, many women don’t even know that giving soda to a baby is unhealthy! So our holistic approach of providing support for healthy homes with water filters and nutrition education will be much more beneficial in the long run. And of course this should be coupled with “más pedidos” so they can have financial stability as well.

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“Water is Life”

Tuizican

On Sunday March 9th, we set out for the beautiful department of Huehuetenango to celebrate the inauguration of another successful water system, this time in the community of Tuicicán. Teaming up with partner organization PEILE along with dedicated local government and community leaders, Miracles in Action has helped ensure consistent water access for Tuicicán’s 130 geographically-dispersed families after an arduous six months of planning and construction.

Tuicicán’s struggle for clean and consistent water dates back much further than that however. A particularly tight-knit community, Tuicicán’s local leaders recognized the importance of water long ago, protecting the area’s primary springhead and installing a basic pump over forty years ago. Despite the community’s best efforts to maintain the existing water system over the years, local population growth and increased demand long ago surpassed the original pump’s capacity, leaving families without water for days at a time. With little to no rainfall for six months out of the year and growing consumption, many communities in this arid highland region were finding the search for water more and more challenging each year. 

With families spread out over several peaks and valleys typical of the region, a high-powered pump and improved distribution network was deemed necessary in order to provide a steady water flow to family’s homes. This community’s exceptional unity and willingness to work hard resonated with us during our first visit to Tuicicán, but it was a speech from a local community leader that left the team inspired and committed to making a difference.

Tuizican Water “Water is life, without water we having nothing…” related the elder statesman at the time, urging the entire community  to collaborate in the project and take care of their prized resource for future generations. Leaders from PEILE recall seeing children and grandparents alike lugging construction materials down into the valley, only rarely stopping to take a break. The completed project includes two separate holding tanks complete with filtration equipment, a good-quality diesel pump and high-grade piping to help carry their spring water miles over the hills and into each and every family’s home. After the long wait, life with water access could resume.

Hundreds of people gathered for the dedication and to celebrate the culmination of partnership, persistence and hard work. There were fireworks. There was food. There were smiles. There was music and dancing. But most importantly there was life-giving water again in Tuicicán.

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2013 Year in Review

Spend 2-1/2 minutes viewing this summary of highlights for Miracles in Action’s work in 2013. The slideshow tells it all (or at least a lot!) 

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