Maria Carolina 

Maria Carolina and her family live near Tecpán in the department of Chimaltenango. She, her husband Martin, and seven of their children live in a sunny house on a quiet dirt road. They own a piece of land that Martin farms, and the children attend school. Maria spends her time weaving and taking care of the home and children–her youngest baby is 11 months old.

Like many rural Guatemalan families, Maria’s family gathers their own wood for cooking. She notes that since their new smokeless stove was finished in June 2017, they only have to gather about half of the amount of wood they did before. She shares that the old stove was 15 years old, had some broken parts, and emitted a great deal of smoke. There was also less space to prepare food and she and her family were at a higher risk of getting burned.

This isn’t an issue with the new smokeless stove: it has a safe area for preparing food, such as the tortillas and tamales that are staple food items. She also uses the stove to cook for her community, such as making beans for her children’s´school.

Maria and her family loved having the volunteers visit them and assist them in building the stove. She remembers that her kids loved playing with them and she sends them a hello from Guatemala!

Aurora Sajic Xon

Aurora Sajic Xon, her husband Optico, and their seven children live in the same area as Maria Carolina Carlel: in a village called Caserio Xetonox, located outside the city of Tecpan in the department of Chimaltenango. Like many Guatemalans, Aurora speaks primarily Kaqchikel, an indigenous language spoken by approximately 5.5% of people in Guatemala. Her relative, Marisol, serves as a translator for Aurora, as she shares how having a smokeless stove has improved the daily life of her family.

Before building the smokeless stove with Habitat for Humanity Guatemala in June 2017, Aurora prepared food for her family on the floor of her home. The smoke from the fire would fill the house with smoke, making it difficult for her young children to breathe. Now, she has a safe space to prepare food and doesn’t have to worry about her children getting burned. Another benefit of the new stove is that it uses much less wood, a scarce resource for Guatemalans.

Aurora fondly remembers the HHK School Group volunteers that worked with her family and sends her thanks from Guatemala!

Dalilia Escobar´s Quetzaltenango home is painted a beautiful blue that matches her happiness and that of her children. She and her family moved into their new home in November, in time to celebrate Christmas, and they are happy to be settled and stable.

Dalilia’s home is located on the same property as her parents´ house, which was also built through partnering with Habitat for Humanity Guatemala twenty-two years ago. By building her house on the same piece of land, the family members are able to see each other easily. Dalia, a stay-at-home mother, is also the primary caregiver for her 97 year old father, so being right next door gives her the space and privacy she needs while also being able to attend to him.Six people total live in the house and while not all of them were home, those that were spoke enthusiastically about the volunteers that spent eight days helping them build their home. Dalia appreciates that the volunteers traveled from so far away to help her family, and she enjoyed chatting with them and sharing time with them.

Anayanci, Dalia’s daughter who loves cooking and would like to be a chef one day, spent the most time with the Thrivent volunteers and has a message she would like to share: “Thanks to you, our house was finished a little bit faster, and it didn’t take as long because you came help. Many thanks for giving us your support!”