Buy a Goat for a Family in Guatemala

The words that inspired Elizabeth to imagine a future beyond her family’s limited means and expectations, and empowered her to fulfill her dream of becoming a doctor, were written by her sponsor. Save the Children’s Dr. Elizabeth Bocaletti was once a sponsored child in Guatemala. This is her story.

Elizabeth grew up in a large family of modest means in rural Guatemala. She was a good student, but opportunities were limited, especially for girls. And yet, Elizabeth dreamed of becoming a doctor. In fact, she was determined to do so. Elizabeth attributes her high aspirations to the letters she received from her sponsor.

“These letters said things like, ‘You are a great girl, a good student. You will go far. You will have a bright future,’” Elizabeth remembers, “And I know that these words influenced my life – the way I understood my future. They opened my mind to new possibilities. They gave me a certain determination to make an impact on the world.”

Elizabeth did fulfill her dream, earning her MD in Pediatrics, and then a Master’s degree in Public Health. Today, Elizabeth works for Save the Children as an Advisor on our work helping children survive and thrive throughout Latin America, where she continues to make an impact on the world every day. The dream even lives on in her own children, both of whom are studying to become doctors.

Elizabeth will always treasure her sponsor’s words of inspiration and empowerment – and we thank her for sharing them, and her story, with all of us.

“Never underestimate the power of your words on the life of a child.” – Elizabeth Bocaletti, MD, MPH, Save the Children Advisor, and former sponsored child.

Beyond the goat programs, Save the Children has a long history in Guatemala. Elizabeth's story is just part of that long history of commitment.

Children are more likely to be healthy and educated when their families are not worried about where the next meal will come from. But in many Guatemala and rural parts of the world, families urgently need support to grow or buy a variety of foods for their children to thrive. To effectively fight child hunger and improve children's wellbeing, nutritious food must be made available to families, and families must have the means to buy it.

To help parents provide for their children's basic nutritional needs, Save the Children's hunger and livelihoods programs focus on improving the food supply, farming practices and finances of families in need. In addition to unique projects like the goat project you so generously support, we have robust programs all over the world. Among other things:

• We give families basic food staples following a natural disaster or emergency.
• We teach parents about the importance of providing their child with the right variety of foods to prevent malnutrition.
• We train small-scale farmers on how to prevent the loss of crops or livestock to drought, floods or disease.
• We guide family farmers on how to grow more nutritious foods, in larger quantities to eat or to sell, and how to raise animals for meat, eggs or milk.
• We help families access basic financial products like savings or insurance so they can persevere through challenging times, or start and expand their small businesses.
• And, we give youth the skills to succeed — like building their savings, teaching them how to manage money, and get a job and/or build a business.