Friday in Guatemala

A young 2nd Grader

For lunch, we had an opportunity to spend a couple of hours in Xela to shop, eat lunch or tour museums. We basically went for lunch at a nice little restaurant that had the best view in town. It overlooks the main square and our seats were on the ledge for the best view. From this perch, we could see the great volcano mountains in the distance.

The school band at Santiago Cooperative School

We had an amazing welcome as the band played and we were escorted to our seats by beautiful young ladies. This was one of the few schools we visited this week that had a focus on music, which I find very important as I am a musician of sorts.

Additionally, they welcomed us with the entrance of the Guatemalan flag, the American flag and the school flag. It is also a rare occasion for the school to sing our national anthem. All of the students sang loudly and proudly the anthem of the United States. We were also treated to the Guatemalan national anthem in their Mayan language.

A kite the students at Santiago Cooperative School made for CoEd

The students of Santiago presented a kite they made in appreciation for the work CoEd has done for them. This school has been a textbook school for 12 years and they also have a computer center and scholarship program. We visited this school for the scholarship program as CoEd has expanded the number of scholarships for this school.

Prof. Juan Jose Caxaj, Principal of the Santiago Cooperative School

The principal of this school is a very powerful speaker who spoke with passion for his school and community. He mentioned that the school was less than 10km from Guatemala City, yet they have never received a textbook or computer from the government. His students have been very involved in the programs this school has and it is a true success story

Music teacher with some of his students

This school has a great music program complete with a band. The music teacher, pictured her playing with some of his students, graduated from this school a few years ago. Now, he is the music teacher.

Dancing the Afternoon Away!!!

Dancing with a lovely young lady is a wonderful way to spend the afternoon. It is amazing how welcoming they are to total strangers. She made me look good on the dance floor.

Three young ladies who approached us on our way out!

Here are three young ladies who were wonderful and posed for a photo. I didn’t realize at the time, but I met her last year when Boyd and I took a couple young sponsorship ladies to lunch. Ingrid is her name and she remembered me, even though I did not remember her. I will admit she looked familiar.

If you are looking for a way to make a huge difference in a young person’s life, a scholarship sponsorship is the way to go. It is only $500 per year and it means so much to them.