Here in the Northwest we are bedding down all our gardening but not so in Guatemala. The villages where we work are located between 3,500 and 5,000 feet in elevation in the mountains. The climate is temperate not tropical and the seasonal change is more affected by the rainy and dry seasons than our winter- summers temperature fluctuation. December is the start of the dry season and a good time to begin planting. This month we are helping 54 families enter the new growing season by establishing personal garden.

DIEGO"S GARDEN IN NUEVE PUNTOS
34 of the families are from the women’s collective and the other 20 live in Nueve Puntos. This is the third time we have help in Nueve Puntos and when I ask if they wanted to participate again the replied “Por cierto! Cuando nos ayuda comemos rico!” –“For sure when you help us we eat rich!

YOUNG GIRL WITH A BREAKFAST OF BEANS
I know they feed me the best that they have when I visit and often we have festivals but truthfully the diet is very bland. Not only is it low in variety but it is lacking in many important nutrients.

MICHAELS GARDEN IN WASHINGON STATE
I garden a small space next to my house and a family of five could eat their fill from it all through the season. In Guatemala we want to develop a continuous harvest for 9 months out of the year and revolutionize their diet.

So we are organizing a three year program that we hope to offer up to 150 families. It would have classes for instruction in soil fertility, planting time, and harvest procedures. It would also offer seeds and supplies like this women and her son are carrying here.

Last Spring we grew and gave out over 1,000 vegetable starts from a small nursery in Las Flores. This year the village of Nueve Puntos and the women’s committee in Chel both are starting nurseries.

Our Christmas present this year for these women is seeds, starts and more chicken wire so they can increase their garden sizes from 25x15 feet to 25x30 feet. This size of a garden spot is about half the size of the test plot I am farming intensively in Washington State. When soil fertility has been improved and sound gardening practices established we hope to have set such a great example that personal vegetable gardens will become a way of life in this region.

This is a work in progress as step by step we work toward sustainable horticulture that will fill the nutritional gap in their diets. We invite you to join us and sponsor a family’s journey toward better health. $35 supports a family garden for one year with seeds, starts, and fencing.

You can support us buy donating online at http://therippleeffectinc.org/ or mail your check to The Ripple Effect @ 9712 kopachuck Dr NW Gig Harbor Wa 98335. Remember 100% of your tax deductable donation is used in the project. TRE is a direct link to fight poverty family to family.

Enjoy these past photos of our garden poject.

Turning the rocky soil.

Filling bags with dirt for growing starts.

I am always amazed that small gifts can become significant. One small bag and one small seed will become vegtables for more than one meal.

A happy gardener heads home with the tools to help feed her family.

The nursery in Chel.

handing out seed wraped in newspaper.

Jala a Las FLores Part two

This blog is the second half of our entry made in July 2010. This November we have celebrated the completion of two village water systems. This one chronicled here and another in the village of Nueve Puntos. It is a great accomplishment that will better the lives of around 1,000 people for many years to come. Enjoy the photos of the work accomplished and lives changed. The photo above is of the collection tank built at the mountain spring 8,000 feet behind and 400 feet higher than the village.

Our blog chronicles part of the work done to bring this source of clean water down and across the mountain to villagers like this girl. The work, distances and cost have been great but what a reward to see clean water at in front of each home.

Remember over 1,500 100 pound sacks of sand cement and gravel were carried up the hill to build the two tanks

And that over 30,000 feet of piping and ditch were hand dug and laid.

In October Michael visited the two water projects to help bring them to completion and one of the first jobs in Las Flores was to suspend metal piping to cross the small stream of Xesalli. Picture here is our go to assistant Andres at the foot bridge.

Two concrete towers were constructed to suspend cable and 3” galvanized pipe above the water way. Here they are pictured before the forms were removed

A villager is placing the cable on top of one of the towers.

While the work group was stringing the cable and piping Michael lead a group back up to the spring to make some final connections and open the gate valves to clean and test the piping between the spring and crossing. The system has 5 concrete lids like this one which in hind sight could be have been made a little lighter.

After the enormous amount of work done this was the first time the water would travel down the hill. It was exciting for everyone to see the force of the clean water running out of the piping.

We had rain most days during this month. This man makes use of one of the natural umbrellas that are in the jungle around us.

Here we are passing the piping across the stream.

Michael is basically cheap. This quality has good points but at times presents it own challenges. He did not want to spend $120 for two pipe clamps big enough to tighten 3 inch pipe and felt they could make due lashing poles to the pipe. This did not work at all. A large “C” clamp helped but still did not finish the job.

Our solution turned out to be a human pipe clamp! Centered in this photo is Manuel Ramirez our program director.

A project like this is impossible without many hands. Here we are lifting the connected pipes.

And placing them through each tower.

Pictured above is Domingo our mason. He spent 50 days managing the concrete work often from 6 in the morning to 6 at night. The total cost for his labor was a little over $500. Here one of his community volunteer days he is connecting the cable and pipe with rebar hangers.

Manuel Lopez surveys the water flow on the other side of the crossing. He has donated over 70 days on this project and without his help it would not have happen. It takes strong dedicated leaders to be partners with us. In total this crossing is 120 feet long.

Our July blog described the beginning of the building of this storage tank positioned half way between the village and spring. It is the biggest tank we have seen in this region. Both the village and TRE are extremely proud of the craftsmanship and design of this system. It will serve the community well for many years.

Michael the mayor and mason inside the tank before our final cleaning. When the water entered the tank it sounded like a jet taking off. We tried to measure the flow and it filled a five gallon bucket in about one and a half seconds!

After the tank was filled we resumed the work of digging trenches and laying pipe.

This time however was different because we were entering the village. The mood often was festive and the goal near.

After travelling 6,000 feet this father digs the final few feet to connect his home to the spring.

This man was forced to patrol for the army during the war when his arm was shattered by a bullet. Now with 13 dependents in his home how will he ever escape poverty?
Michael connecting a faucet, which was one of the very fulfilling parts of his time there. He was touched as he visited the homes, was offered gifts of bananas and free lunches. The effort to see these projects happen seems small in comparison to the level of poverty he saw as he travelled the muddy hillsides.

We purchased and installed 154 new faucets and repaired 30 existing ones.

Water faucets for families not for just numbers in a program.


Michael describes this photo”Here I am passing a letter of completion to the water committee. TRE has spent over $15,000 on this project and the local government has provided the same amount in piping and I ask the question what have we done? The amount of money, the distance of piping and sheer weight of all the loads carried seems impossible. But here we are after many small steps we have made a long jouney. When the water entered the village’s main line and I walk through to the far side of the community everywhere I saw faucets spewing for clean water with great pressure. Fathers, mothers and children all signaling that they had water, smiling, waving and shouting I released we did it, we did it! Las Flores has clean drinking water! Water to families like the one below. We have embraced the poor, shared of our wealth, loved our neighbor. It felt like winning, it felt right.

After one year of work the goal is here. Water to 200 homes like this one.

A journey to Nueve Puntos

One of the young girls in Nueve Puntos who received a new poncho.
I traveled back to Guatemala during the month of October. I am often asked what do I take down with me. Some people even think that the plants we raise for our spring plant sale are transported to Guatemala. The journey is long and costly so I must choose carefully what I bring. All project supplies are brought in Guatemala but I want to collect good shoes to take down each trip. The airlines limit us to two check-in bags and one carry on. This trip I left Gig Harbor with 40 pairs of shoes and 24 pairs of boy jeans, two items that are hard and expensive to buy in Guatemala.

So how did two check-in bags become all of this? Miracles in Actions a nonprofit with a home in Antigua Guatemala blessed us with blankets, sweaters, hats, backpacks, crocs, food water filters and books.

After flying for one full day I spent the night in Antigua. My time was limited and the work before me great so early the next morning I repacked the donated items with help from a local family. Another organization “People for Guatemala” who offered me 100 bottles of children’s vitamins and a pick-up ride to the main highway came by around noon and away we went. Once on the main highway we flagged down a “chicken bus” like the one picture above. In total I had 30 pieces of luggage! I was defiantly not travelling light but this transportation is the most economical around. I had a little excitement at the next bus terminal when my gear was loaded on three different buses! A little shouting and it was reloaded correctly and I was on my way again.

Travel day three- Manuel Ramirez rode out with a hired driver from Chel to met me in Nebaj. We did some banking and purchased some metal water pipes and a gunny sack of connections in the morning.

I must admit I felt a little proud to have successfully moved all this gear to Chajul. Yet I realize that I am only the delivery boy and without help all along the way both in Guatemala and in the states I would not be able to do this.

After mounting two new tires and tying down our load we were ready to head to Chel.

Although the local government receives $5000 a month to maintain this road there is little evidence they use any of it. Buses and large trucks have stopped using it and now only 4x4 trucks make the trip. Our top speed is only second gear and it was well after dark when we arrived in Chel. The week after we arrived the road washed out and was not passable again until three days before I left.
Although the local goverment receives $5000 a month to mainten this road there is little evidence they use any of it. The week after we arrived in Chel the road washed out and was not passable again until three days before I left.



Travel Day 4- I still had a another day of travel to arrive in Nueve Puntos. I separated my cargo leaving piping in Las Flores and other supplies for the women in Chel and traveled to Nueve Puntos with many gifts. Here we are switching forms of transportation again as we prepared to make the final leg of this long journey.

I would not want to be a mule in Nueve Puntos. At times they are loaded down with up to 200 pound of cargo.

I also would have a hard time carrying my share of the load if I lived here. Chico who weights around 100 pound is carrying 100 pounds.

Everyone in the family helps in moving supplies.

After a few thousand miles and various forms of transportation we are nearing our destination.

What did we bring? 75 bottles of children vitamins that will be distributed into 10 communities. Each bottle contains a three month supply for one child.

Shoes and pants.

Knitted hats, gloves and blankets.

The following photos are some of the happy recipients. These gifts would be small to many of us but here they are huge and greatly appreciated.


I am asked and sometimes ask myself why I do this. It is not easy or convient. The answer is at least twofold. The first reason is that the needs here are real and they exist everyday of the year.

The second reason is the gratetude that I see makes these some of the best days of my life. I have beed told that I am viewed as a kind of village father who when he returns from a trip always brings small gifts home to his children and creates a mini fiesta. That is not a bad job discription.

From all of us Thank you for being a part of this ripple that brings hope and change to the forgotten poor in this region.