A group of five volunteers from Fayetteville Academy traveled to our project site in rural Guatemala in June to support our partners at Impact Global Health Alliance-Guatemala. After a long journey to arrive, the volunteers got straight to work at a community event to weigh and measure all the children under five in Calhuitz. Volunteers spent four hours weighing and measuring over 75 kids!

On day two, volunteers helped Impact Global Health Alliance-Guatemala distribute vital medicine to combat stomach parasites to thousands of children across the department of Huehuetenango. On their trip, Fayetteville Academy students visited schools in 4 communities and distributed de-worming medicine to 162 kids!

Days three and four were spent helping Community Health Workers conduct home visits to update the census. The census is a central part of our unique CBIO methodology and helps us identify our target population and ensure services reach every beneficiary in our project area.

Every afternoon, the volunteers worked with Pedro to support the community garden program. As part of a program to improve nutrition, Pedro has been working with women from the community to teach them how to grow their own vegetables. Now that the women are savvy gardeners, it’s time for them to start their own gardens. Volunteers helped clear land and plant household gardens for three families in Calhuitz!

Although the volunteers worked hard throughout their stay in Calhuitz, there was plenty of time for fun! This group spent every evening learning the local language, visited the baker to learn how to make traditional Guatemalan bread, and played with every kid in sight!

All of the volunteers expressed how wonderful and eye-opening the trip was. One volunteer commented, “While the world is improving, there are still places like Calhuitz which have mud huts, little running water and little healthcare. I learned they need our help. I am blessed beyond measure and I have the capacity to help a great deal. I can bring joy, money, medication, toys, and hope with a small sacrifice. The gains extremely outweigh any cost.”

We are grateful for all our volunteers who give their time and energy to support our lifesaving programs in Latin America and Africa. To learn more about volunteering with Impact Global Health Alliance Global, email us at [email protected].

To hear from the Fayetteville Academy students, visit their blog post.

To see all the photos from our trip check out our Facebook album.