Review of Novembers Trip

. Well it was time once again to visit my friends in Guatemala. We have been looking for some property to start a collective Garden on and I needed to see three parcels that were for sell. I also wanted to review the books to see how we were doing tracking our finances. This year we have not really stopped working but every month there is something happening. I often worry how are things going? Were my goals for a program clear enough for people to follow? Are they keeping track of how the money is being spent well enough? As we turn a corner and start reaching out to supporters in the U.S. I need to be surer that all my ducks are in a row. So here is my visit in review.

Our first program back in 08 was the purchase of 22 cows (see entry "Operacion Benidicion" from May '08}families between July and November. Here is a couple of photos of that first delivery. This sign thanks Higinio and me for this work under the name Operation Blessing


This bull was sold in July for a little over twice what we paid for it in ’07. In total we have sold 8 cows now and are going to wait another two months for the others to finish growing.

Eight new families have received the same opportunity. I have paid $200 for the transportation of this group of cows but all other cost has been covered by the original owner. I want to continue to bring cows in from another area to build up the number of cattle available to the community. Some of the original 8 owners who have sold their cattle have choicen to buy a new cow but others are using the proceeds in other ways.

The other animal program we have going is with the 45 widows who are raising pigs. I was really pleased with the progress of this project. Almost all the pigs have reached maturity. Some widows have bred their sow and already have buyers for the piglets when they are weaned. Others have bought a new piglet with part of the profits. Only one widow has fallen out of the program.

This woman sold her pig a few days later for $75. I paid $15 to $17 for it as a wiener. She wanted to give me $5 of the money as a thank-you.


Juana and Rosa handed out the monthly food. They have keep excellent records. Each time a widow receives food, thread , a pig or grain they mark the ledger with a thumb print. All the purchases are detailed really well listing how many cabbages or tomatoes were bought and for how much. Each month we have distributed food to 23 widows and in July we gave #4,400 of corn to help feed the first cycle of pigs and in August we gave #180 of thread to the widows in the weaving program.

We are continuing our search for land. I visited four pieces of property. This is one parcel that would work well for us but we are working on getting the price lowered. The soil is fertile, there is water and the size would work for 34 -36 widows. I have high hopes for this idea ( see the blog farm dreaming from August '09) and will be excited when we find a home for it.

I also visited Xeselli. When I left in March the ditch and final piping were not finished. It felt good walking into the village and seeing hose bibs with clean water where there was none. It took two weeks for the community to dig the trenches and lay the pipes. The can from USAID is part of a nutrition program that has been in this region for two years. It is helping children under two years of age.
( see Xesalli Water Project in march '09 for more info)

Beautiful gift for beautiful people. We past out some vitamins to 10 families and 60 portraits taken from previous visits.

All in all families are being help

As I visit these communities I am beginning to see the footprints of our work. Water, cows, more pigs in one village, a school in another. coffee nurseries, micro loan that has grown into a store, clothes that I recognize buying for the children. I am grateful to be a part of this work. Will you please consider joining me healing, changing loving these people? We are raising money for 50 more pigs for $20 each, and will buy #180 of thread and bring a deligation of widow out to Chichicastenago,which is the largest open air market in Guatemala, to try and find a better market for there weavings. $275 will provide a widow a plot of land in the garden project we are working on. It wil cost around $300 per family for the water project in Nueve Puntos and Los Encuentros. Al donations are tax deductable. Thank you and adios for now

Tuesday November 16th I finally got to head up to Nueve Puntos and see how our projects were progressing there. The road had not miraculously improved in my absence but after three hours we arrived in Los Encuentros and switched from a 4x4 pick-up to 4x4 horses

I had lightened my load in Chel the week before but still carried 150lbs of gear of mostly books and was grateful for the help.

November is a rainy month here and mud was my constant companion but I was excited to arrive here again. I feel a special closeness to this village.

Seeing these friends who have generously feed me and shared their homes,and seeing the basic needs here reminds me why I do this.

People in need, that are waiting for the opportunity to help their families achieve a more stable existence.


Nicolas(with his wife Magdelane and youngest child) has keep me informed of the needs and progress in this community. I was amassed that with under $1400 invested I could see real change in this village.



We passed by 3 of the 7 café nurseries. I had provided seed plastic bags and twine for thirteen families grow coffee plants

This group has built shelters to shade the plants with poles and leaves from the forest and now has almost 20,000 plants.

After a year and a half they will transplant them into fields that they are beginning to prepare.
In two and a half to three years this is what we will have. About 12 new acres of coffee that will give each family approximately Q 3,000 annually (Q6,000 is an average yearly income). I want to plant another 20,000 next year and we are establishing a direct stateside buyer who will pay even more then fair-trade buyers offer


The other investment was for a school building. Last march the kids did not have a teacher, desk or a school. They had previously met in a barrowed house with different sized logs for desk. Nicolas and the community built this new school. All the lumber is chain sawed from the surrounding forest.



Imagine great Things in Gig Harbor donated a Bell


Which the village leader hung and rang bringing the some of the 30 students in.


I also brought donate maps and books as well as some encyclopedias and children novels that I bought in Guatemala city.

The new teacher and our library. This library has more books than any school I have seen in this region.


Report cards were handed out and this boy advances another grade

By the beginning of the new school year we will pour a concrete floor and buy two twelve volt lights and four fiberglass panels for the roof to provide light for the students. In front of the school we have a foundation for a room for the teacher. We are asking the local government to help with the floor and should have an answer by the end of the month. Even without help the cost is around $700

This community takes the little I offer and multiplies it with their labor. A couple of good example is that I left a soccer ball in March and now they have a soccer field cleared with two goals. Not one inch of the field is level and there is 8 inches of mud in one corner but the laughter and shouts that come from that small gift warms the soul. This photo is of Pedro with his new saw and sewing machine. He asked for help to repair the carberator of his old saw in March. With the profits of his work he bought this new saw ans a sewing machine. A little can do a lot.

With the return of the rains the surface wells are full. But we still look forward to the day clean potable water comes to this village.

We will transport materials for the first tank in March. I am talking with Rotory Club about this project but definitely need help. All donations go directly to where you designate (100%) and are taxed deductable. We would also like to build a clinic that would be opened three evenings each week. This would cost under $2000.

FARM DREAMING

For my next trip to Guatemala I have two main goals. One is to try and get a small start on the water system for Nueve Puntos and Los Encuentros. That project could cost up to $25,000 so it will probably be done in a few phases. The other project is to start a collective farm for the Widows of Chel.
Purchasing land for a garden is like the long standing proverb ,”give a man a fish and tomorrow he will be hungry teach him how to fish and he can feed hmself”. Each month we have been giving $320 worth of food to 23 widows. It is easy to see their need and know the free food will help but it is so much better to give them the ability to provide for themselves. With access to land they can do just that and more.
HOW THE GARDEN WOULD WORK

Gaspar Santiago is an excellent organic gardener in the village of Chel. . During the summer of 2009 , he and a committee of three other people are looking for a small parcel of good farming land for “The Widows of Chel.” An acre of land would cost between $5000 to $7500 dollars. This is an impossible sum for widows living on $150 annually but it is an opportunity for us.



By providing land and organic gardening instructions we can share a gift that will give daily for years to come. This will benefit the eldest widows, the struggling moms and a new generation of children.



While targeting widows with young children, 25 to 30 widows will be selected. Each will recieve a 30’x30’garden plot to cultivate. With intensive gardening practices and a year round season, they can enjoy three main harvests. This will introduce a variety of nutritious vegetables into their diet that at present are unaffordable.


In combination with the vegetable garden, we would select 2 widows to raise 40 laying hens which would provide a source of fertilizer for the garden and eggs for sale. Another widow would raise a hive of honey bees increasing pollination and producing honey for sell.

In upcoming meetings, we will be working out the details of this project and are hoping to purchase land and get started the after the first of the New Year



The women who will participate in this program will “adopt” an older widow that is in the food subsistence program. Their “land payment will be to share part of each harvest with these older women. Theresa,(photo on right) the widow with the eggs is over 80 years old and weighs under 80lbs. Maria (phot below) is sitting in her kicthen/bedroom/living room. She has no bed and is surrounded by her only possessions. Theresa is too feable to work but Maria could still assist a younger widow gardening. Both women are now in the feeding program and would be assigned to a family with a garden plot.


The sample garden shown above is my personal garden and measures 30’x40’. It produces more then we can use as well as a good amount to give away. Here we are using raised beds, but in Chel we would use a no-path method to maximize space.
Our goal is to offer each of the selected widows a 30'x30' area.

Shown above is our surplus of fresh vegtables and berries beyond what our family can use. This amount is given away twice a week.


Cabbage and brocolli are good cash crops in Guatemala. A cabbage can sell for between .62 and $1.75 each depending on the weight.In comparison these women earn only three dollars for a full day's labor pruning or picking coffee.

This shown above of a 4'x4' bed of bush beans has produced eight gallons of beans so far and is flowering for another round



This "Farm Dream" is a vision on how we can make a sustainable change for these families and help to reduce the worries of the younger mothers who are trying to provide for their children. When basic needs are met, there is then time for education and growth in other areas.

Four of the older women shown above are part of the feeding program. The others are relatives or friends who are helping to carry the food allotment home. The power of community involvement is already evident. Our goal is to provide the vehicle, in this case land, to let them build up their own lives.

Shown above is a typical monthly food allotment for 23 of the most needy widows. By concentrating their garden on vegetables, the participating widows could sell their surplus to buy food and other necessities. A typical garden plot would produce this amount weekly!

(see photo on the right) Imagine these women with baskets full of their own produce instead of a monthly welfare allotment. This is the vision of The Ripple Effect. The land could produce enough for the gardening widow's family,the elder widow and $2 to $5 of income a week. This is a huge opportunity!

By being efficient with a small amount of space and a moderate amount of money we hope to create a huge change. The following is our basic projected budget. If you are interested in helping out with this project please e-mail me so I can keep you informed.This month we have recieved offical recognition as a Washington State Non- Profit. Hurray! President and founder Michael Ewens

Cost of land and fencing $7500
1 bee hive $70
40 hens shed,feed and equipment $500
Total $8o70
Beneficiaries’ 125 people
mewens000@centurytel.net