Doña Isabel (67) lives with her husband Santiago (65) and Isabel’s mother in  the community of Sacchim, San Sebastian, Department of Huehuetenango. Don Pablo works in the fields, while Isabel stays home and weaves traditional clothes.

With the support of Home for a Home and Habitat Guatemala, the Gregorio family received an extra room, a smokeless stove and a sanitary latrine. This helps them improve their living conditions by giving them more room to sleep, an adequate access to proper sanitation and a smokeless free environment. When the family found out about this project, they knew it was a great opportunity to improve their family’s quality of life.

Before receiving their housing solutions the family occupied one room that was used to sleep and cook using an open fire pit. The construction was made from adobe bricks, a dirt floor and metal corrugated sheets as the roof. “We feel better with our new room because it is warmer. We no longer suffer from the cold.»

Regarding their old stove, Isabel shares: “The old stove was in poor conditions, making my eyes red. The new stove is working fine! We no longer use much wood and the smoke goes outside.”  The family reported an improvement with their new latrine too as their old one was in poor condition and had been in use for over 15 years.

Isabel finishes by sharing a message to our donors: “Thank you to everyone who has supported us! Receive our greetings. During these difficult times, there are not many people who are so generous. We appreciate their kind gensture.”

María (43) is a single mother of five children, Marco (16), Magda (17), Modesto (14), Alex (11) and Marisol (2) living in the community of Chelam, San Sebastian, Department of Huehuetenango.

With the support of Home for a Home and Habitat Guatemala, the Gregorio family received an extra room, a smokeless stove, and a sanitary latrine. This helps them improve their living conditions by giving them a sleeping quarter,  proper sanitation and a smokeless free environment.

Before receiving their housing solutions, the family lived in a small room made from adobe brick walls, a dirt floor and metal corrugated sheet roofing. Next to the room they built a kitchen from nylon and cooked on open fire. «Our living conditions are much different now. My children and I no longer feel cold and the rain does not leak in our new room.»

Regarding their old stove, María shares: “I used to cook over an open flame. We consumed a lot of wood and the smoke made me feel sick. The new one is different as it uses less wood. We are able to cook all our meals at the same time and there is no more smoke inside!» Doña María explains that their old latrine was in poor conditions. “Now that we have a new latrine, we feel content and safe!”

María says to the donors: “Greetings to you all. We are thankful for your support.”

Marcos (38) lives with his wife María (36) and their five children Ermelinda (16), Ana (14), Ingrid (12), Eduardo (8), and Mynor (6) in the community of Sacchim, San Sebastian, Departament of Huehuetenango. The entire family dedicates themselves to sewing traditional clothing.

With the support of Home for a Home and Habitat for Humanity Guatemala, Teresa’s family was provided with concrete flooring in the kitchen . When the family found out about this project, they were happy to participate as they found it was a great opportunity to improve their quality of life.

In regards to their previous floor Marcos reports, «We had been living with dirt flooring for over 16 years. It was very difficult the house became very dusty and muddy when it rained.» When asked how he feels about their new concrete floor, Marcos answers: «We are happy! It is better now for our health!»

Marcos finishes by sharing a message to the donors: “Greetings to all of you. Thank you for supporting us with our new concrete floor. We are very happy with it. Thank you!»