Ezequiel lives with his parents in his new Habitat home, in the department of Sololá, Guatemala. His mother, Bonifacia welcomed us in to their home.

Ezequiel works as a blacksmith. He found out about Habitat through a relative who is a Habitat homeowner, and soon after he started the process to build a house of his own. “We feel really happy with the new house, we even painted it already,” says Bonifacia.

She has really happy memories with the volunteers that came to help them build the house, “they worked really hard, we are very grateful with them because of the great help they gave us. I pray everyday for them,” she continues, “thank you all, may God bless you and your family and repay you for all you have done for us.”

Sonia Morales and her family live in a small village called Canoas Altas in the department of Sololá, Guatemala. Sonia lives with her children, Dina (25), Sara (23), Gladis (21), and Edwin (16). Her husband died approximately 10 years ago. Sonia sells flowers and corn, and weaves textiles with her daughters, while Edwin works in the fields.

The family learned about Habitat Guatemala from a relative who is a Habitat homeowner. Before, the Morales lived in a crowded wooden house that had a dirt floor and a leaky roof. They were able to build their new home on the same piece of land as their old home, which made the entire process much easier.

Now that they are settled, they feel safe and happy in their new space. They even have a room where they can create their weaving textiles and spend time together.

They are appreciative of the volunteers who came and supported them in their journey of building a new home. “Thank you for the great work you did here,” says Sonia, “we had a lot of fun, they shared their food and laughs with us. May you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, God bless you!”

Margarita Joj lives with her husband Juan, and their three children,  José (22), Ezequías (20) and Balam (15, pictured), in the department of Sololá, Guatemala. Juan works in agriculture while Margarita takes care of her home and family.

Juan explains how partnering with Habitat for Humanity Guatemala to implement a Healthy Home Kit has improved different aspects of his family’s daily life: “The stove we had before was very old and was not working well anymore. There was a lot of smoke, but our new smokeless stove doesn’t have this problem, it is working excellent! We do not have to buy a lot of wood, just a small piece lasts long,» he says.

«We feel very happy with the water filter! It works really well for me because I fill my water bottle and take it to the fields while I work. It tastes really good and fresh,“ says Juan about the water filter. About the latrine he continues: «We had an old latrine that was not useful anymore, we feel comfortable using this new one.»

Juan finishes by sharing a message to the volunteers: “It was such a help, such a support. Thank you all for your tremendous help, because you got to our house even though it was really far away. I wish you all a Merry Christmas!»