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Judi Lynn

(160,211 posts)
Sun Oct 26, 2014, 11:35 PM Oct 2014

Volunteering in Guatemala: A Life-changing Experience

Volunteering in Guatemala: A Life-changing Experience
Thu, 10/23/2014 - 18:08

I looked down on her. Was there any other way to say it? I’m sure that’s how she saw me. Physically, there was no way around it. The top of her head came to my waist, her height the result of a lifetime of poor nutrition. Economically, I, a teen American, would be given more in life than she ever had. I was finishing high school with excellent grades and a good shot at college. She, like so many other Guatemalans, probably hadn’t made it through third grade, and had likely spent her life cooking over a fire or tending fields. I had comfortable shoes, functional (if not new or stylish) clothes, and a computer back home that gave me access to a wealth of information. She wore well-used plastic sandals and a handwoven wrap. And yet, despite the differences in age, class, and culture, this elderly Guatemalan woman smiled widely and took my hand, never judging me. She led me up the highland path to the small concrete complex that was the school.

The children cheered as we entered, ten or more foreigners, invited here by CoEd Guatemala to witness the inauguration of the new school and support a great charity. Today was a party day, and they knew it. For the first time, their school would have books, pencils and paper, teachers who could actually speak their language.
I walked around the school, marveling. At first, I’d been shocked to hear that 82% of Guatemalan kids don’t make through high school, and that most drop out by third grade. It seemed like a faulty statistic, an exaggeration of fact. But now it was beginning to make sense to me. These children had no materials to learn from. Their teachers used blackboards to jot down the information they knew, but rarely spoke any one of the more than 21 unique Mayan dialects spoken in the highlands of Guatemala. Add to that the fact that their families often couldn’t afford to buy them shoes to go to school, and needed their help working the fields, and I began to wonder how any of them got through at all.

CoEd Guatemala has created an affordable system for Guatemalan families which allows them to “rent” schoolbooks for approximately $1.50 a month. By the end of the year, the schools have saved enough to purchase new materials. The organization sets up sustainable computer, textbook, reading, and scholarship programs throughout Guatemala.

More:
http://www.wanderingeducators.com/best/stories/volunteering-guatemala-life-changing-experience.html

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