Maribel lives with her husband, Francisco and their three children; Katherine (21) Amy (17) and Francisco (9) in their new Habitat home in Sacatepéquez. Francisco is a teacher and Maribel works as an independent seller.

The family rented a house for more than 20 years along with Francisco’s father and brothers. Their primary motivation to build a new home was to have a stable place to live, something to call their own. “We needed our own space, it was about time,” says Maribel.

Maribel explains that after learning about Habitat through a relative and convincing Francisco for a long time with Katherine, they finally decided to stop paying rent and investing in making their dream a reality!

“The construction of our house was really hard! We had to work really hard and carry all the materials, because someone started fixing the road outside our land so the trucks were not able to pass and deliver them.  We received the help of several neighbors and family members too, to finally make it happen!” says Maribel.

When asked about how she feels with her new home, Maribel exclaims, ”I feel happy, anxious to let anyone know! It was a beautiful experience to be a part of the construction. I was the one in charge of helping the masons and carrying the materials. That is why I enjoy my house so much!”

The family is planning to add another room and a fence around the house in the future!  “We enjoy our time together as a family, we share lunch and chat about our days. As a family we have more communication among us, there is more harmony too,” explains Maribel about how their lives have changed in their new home.

When asked about the week of construction with the volunteers, Maribel laughs and shares some memories that they spent together, “It was a great experience! The volunteers were hard workers and fun, it was a good environment.”

Maribel finishes with a message to the volunteers; “thank you very much for coming to help in the construction of our house.  We are very grateful to you all, thank you is not enough, compare to all your support.”

Ruthilia lives with her husband Mardoqueo and their children Edgar (22), Silvia (21), Gloria (18) and Orfa (15), in a small community in the outskirts of el Tejar, Chimaltenango. While Mardoqueo works in agriculture, Ruthilia is a homemaker and weaves traditional clothes too.

She explains how partnering with Habitat for Humanity Guatemala to implement a smokeless stove has improved aspects of her family’s daily life: “I used to cook over an open flame in the floor. My eyes were always hurting” she continues, “the new one is working perfectly, no more smoke!”

Ruthilia shares that the whole family feels content with the stove, and they have saved wood too because it is designed to consume less wood and heat evenly.

She finishes by sharing a message to the volunteers: “I am very grateful to Habitat and the volunteers for their support,” she continues, “we would not have been able to build this stove by our own means, may God bless you.”

Roselia (23) and her husband Mynor (24) live in the community of el Rajón, Chimaltenango. The young couple has recently celebrated their one-year wedding anniversary. While Mynor works in agriculture, Roselia is a homemaker.

Mynor explains how partnering with Habitat for Humanity Guatemala to implement a smokeless stove has improved aspects of their family’s daily life: “Roselia used to cook over an open flame, there was a lot of smoke that caused her throat to ache,” he continues, “With the new one, she feels happy, it heats evenly and saves a lot of wood too.”

Mynor shares that they both feel content with the stove, it has space to sit around and eat freshly made tortillas!

They still treasure the day spent with the volunteers! “Thank you all for your support, may God bless you wherever you are.”