By Nicola Lawson | UK Manager & Trustee
December 2022 Project Update by Nicola Lawson, UK Manager and Trustee
Life in Poverty
Guatemala continues to experience deep poverty with children, particularly girls, remaining the most vulnerable. Early life in poverty causes chronic malnutrition and stunting and these effects can last girls a lifetime, damaging long term development and productivity. Thanks to you, the Sisters of Mary school in Zona 13, Guatemala City is able to focus on helping these girls.
Each year, the Sisters spend many months in the poorest local communities from throughout the country to reach the girls most in need of their care. With sufficient funding, they welcome as many girls as they can into a place at our school where they will have safe shelter, regular food and an education which will ready them for work and transform their lives.
Throughout August, September and October this year, the Sisters have now travelled thousands of kilometres and visited all 22 regions of Guatemala. They report severe poverty with communities struggling to cope. Your help means they can now offer hope to hundreds of young girls desperate for a route out of poverty and some of these new girls will join us at school in early January 2023.
At our Guatemala Girls school, Zona 13
Safe in our care we currently have 780 girls at school who are growing strong and receiving an accredited academic and technical education. However, it is not just a chance for them to acquire the skills they need to find work when they finish school, it is a chance for them to recover and enjoy a proper childhood, make friends, keep fit, develop personal skills and build confidence so that they will be able to thrive in their lives ahead.
However, for the Sisters, managing the care and everyday health needs of these children is a priority and the provision of fresh water remains a constant concern. The school does not benefit from mains water supply and all water for drinking, cooking, washing and daily sanitation has to be purchased and delivered by lorry to the school. It is a costly and laborious process.
Planning for a more cost effective and environmentally friendly solution was an urgent requirement.
New Project Progress
So, to the great excitement of the children and Sisters, last year we were able to drill and construct a borehole for ground water to supply the school. However, without a pump we cannot get the water into the school and so our new project focuses on the purchase and installation of a submersible pump. The new pump will extract the water and deliver it to point of use in the school. It will complete this sustainable solution for the school and protect and provide for the girls now and into the future.
Thanks to your support, we have made a start on the project and have raised funds which will help towards the pipes and connectors needed for the installation of the pump. In 2023 we look forward to reaching our target and completing the work to support the children.
A reliable supply of fresh water delivered to the school will make an enormous difference to the life of the children. It will ensure the girls have everything they need to remain hydrated, clean and healthy. It will reduce operating costs at the programme and ensure the sustainability of the school far into the future. It will allow our donor funds to go where they are needed most, in providing places for more children in need of our care.
Thank you so much for your support and we do hope we can continue to count on you in our life-saving work.
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