Promoting Education and A Compassionate Impact

By: Ileana Coronado

It was with great hope that we prepared for this project in August 2014. As with the previous trips, we contacted two elementary schools where we could provide school supples and service. 200 children were to benefit from this trip. In addition, we joined with a Catholic charity that works to provide a nutritious meal once a month for the elderly of the town. Most of the attendees are very poor, homeless, or have been abandoned because of illness. We also worked to find some families that could directly benefit from monetary donations. Seven U.S. volunteers planned to come along; we were so excited and grateful. 

I. The Plan

Our objectives included:

1. To encourage K-6 children to attend school regularly

2. To encourage older children (Grades 4-6) to remain in school and make plans to continue in their education.

3. To help some families that were on the brink of homelessness and other misfortunes to stay afloat for the next 6 month

4. To provide a free nutritious lunch for the elderly in need

Young men and women from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Clovis, CA prepared a donation of school bags. The donation included backpacks with school supplies such as pencils, pens, markers, erasers, sharpeners, crayons, a pencil pouch, a toothpaste, and a toothbrush. 

The monetary donations received were used to buy food, clothing, and home appliances for the families in need, as well as to serve lunch for the group of elderly that attend this Catholic shelter once a month for a hot meal. Because of the donations, they were able to receive two meals that month. 

II. The Outcome

The children were ecstatic! Their little faces lit up with surprise and unbelief. Teachers had told us that most absences happen because they lack the school supplies they need to continue attending. Most children were amazed to have six pencils to call their own. Others contemplated the Crayola variety with tears in their eyes. Those who knew how to write wrote Thank You notes for their new friends in the U.S.

At mid-morning, the children had recess and we were able to observe breakfast. The parents association provides the funds to feed the children a small cup of porridge every day. Some took out small tortillas or other kinds of food brought from home. It was heartbreaking to see that most of them did not have shoes or proper school clothing. However they were all very grateful to be in school even if it meant to walk barefoot for miles to make it there. On that day, 200 children and some teachers returned home with a happy smile on their faces. 

On Saturday, we went to the local market to buy groceries for the families we were going to help and for the lunch for the elderly. These latter, whose brave souls showed the impact of hard work and long-suffering, came from different villages; some leaning on the arm of a grandson or a neighbor, others with the help of canes or crutches. A well-balanced meal was served. It included a main entrée, fruits, drinks, and dessert. Unbelievably, all of them ate only half or less and took the rest home; either to share or to have something to eat the following week. 

We were able to provide food, pay rent for four families in need. One family was in need of a stove to start and business, and the with the help of the donations provided were able to help them purchase it. The clothes and shoes that were donated were given among the children in these homes. We listened to their stories and cried with them. We tried to give hope and express love. 

For the sake of brevity, I do not express in detail every experience we had during this trip. However, I hope that more opportunities are given to the Miguel Vargas Association, so that members and volunteers can continue this labor of service and love to our fellow men. 

Trip Número Dos

Three years after the first trip, in August of 2011, we embarked on our second trip to Guatemala. The success of that first initiative moved us to perform the same service. Once again, we prepared by gathering dental and school supplies and putting together kits for children. This time around, we presented formal proposals of our project objectives to dental offices and various acquaintances. We named the project the "Happy Smiles Initiative." 

We made a contact at Colgate in Guatemala, who happily supplied us with extra dental supplies and a Dental Hygiene Video. We planned to use this interactive video to help kids learn about oral care in a fun way. 

With the supplies that were donated, we were able to reach out and present to a pre-K school, an elementary school, and a high school. 

The presentations were pretty basic. We demonstrated the proper oral hygiene technique and encouraged all the students to reach their potential by staying in school.

One of the volunteers that came with us this time plays the violin. We thought it would be awesome for the children to see and hear some fun music, and our friend was more than willing to play for such a willing audience. The children loved hearing her play classical songs, and even Disney songs. 

Another one of our volunteers that came on that trip has a passion for soccer. He shared with the students his experiences playing for a team in the U.S. and mentioned how, despite his love for soccer, he acknowledged the fact that an education is of the utmost importance. After our presentation at the high school, he engaged with some fellow soccer lovers in a scrimmage. 

The joy seen in the children and teenagers' faces as we handed out school/dental hygiene supplies was astonishing. Once again, we were privileged to see smiles in reaction to items that are so basic here in the U.S. 

This trip contributed to our eagerness to formally organize. The success of two consecutive trips, as well as the response in help with materials and donations that we received as a result of presenting formal proposals, strengthened our desire of making a long-lasting commitment to initiatives like these. 

First Trip

Our first humanitarian trip to Guatemala was in the summer of 2008. 

It started out as a small idea: educate children in the village of Santa María Cahabón about oral care. Cahabón is in the east part of the township of Alta Verapaz (east of Cobán), which is about 10 hours by car from Guatemala City.

Cahabón is beautiful and rich in culture. Its economy is sustained by agriculture, like most of Guatemala, and the city has steadily grown over the past few years. However, the lack of paved roads make it slightly isolated, and this inaccessibility has lead to limited opportunities that reinforce a poverty cycle among the people. 

The knowledge of these circumstances, along with our passion for public health and education helped us to craft the idea for our first trip. 

We decided to reach out to our family in the area, and they helped us get in contact with local leaders. With the help of these key members, we decided that the purpose of the project would be threefold.  

1. To provide public health education

2. To encourage education to break the poverty cycle

3. To provide emergency oral care

The first two objectives were scheduled as part of presentations in public schools. We reached out to local teachers that were kind and welcoming. With the help of local dentists from Fresno, CA, we put together oral health kits that included toothbrushes, tooth paste, and dental floss. After giving a small presentation on oral care and the importance of education, each child received an oral care kit. 

To accomplish our third objective, Dr. Hugo Coronado, DDS, offered emergency dental care in one of the town buildings. Care was limited to extractions, but it offered more insight into the types of help that we could provide in the future. 

This trip was short, but that is how our story began.