The Sician Chuc Family

There are stories of happiness and stories of triumph. Then, there is the story of Lorinda Cataju (40) and Juan Sician Chuc (40), a couple who confronted adversity with courage, dignity, and utmost determination.

It began three years ago, when their family fell on difficult times. As farmers, they depended heavily on their crop for sustenance. However, this particular season, the crop failed, going with it, their primary income. Soon, Lorinda and Juan’s savings dried up, and they lost their house. All of a sudden, they found themselves, and their five young children, Andy, Josue, Isabella, Luis, and Mateo, with no place to go.

With their most important asset gone, and little options, Lorinda and Juan had to make an enormous decision.

“We couldn’t give food to our kids,” Lorinda says, her voice wobbling. “What do you do when you can’t provide food to your children?”

In the end, they sent all five to an orphanage forty-five minutes away.  “Once a month, we went to go see them,” Juan explains. “But it just wasn’t the same.”

Lorinda and Juan felt that they had hit rock bottom. Their living conditions were by no means adequate. “We were in a shack, covered in a nylon tarp. It didn’t have a roof, or sturdy walls. For three years, we were there. There was nothing for us there. No kitchen, no bathroom, no children.” Lorinda sighs, deeply unhappy at the recollection. “It was very difficult to live like this.”

However, she was determined to reunite their family once more. “I spoke with my husband,” recounts Lorinda. “I told him that we were going to save a little bit of money. Then, we were going to go to Habitat. And then, we were going to get our children back.”

They did just that. For the next three years, Lorinda and Juan saved. And saved. And saved. Although it took a whole year to process the paperwork, they were soon approved for their new home.

Flash forward to today. Resting upon a small, grassy hill is the family home, filled with five, giggling children and two happy parents. On the day we visit, the youngest, Mateo, is eager to give a tour of the house, pointing to the beds where he and his brothers sleep.

Lorinda beams at the sight. “It feels better to have a house at last, because at last, we have filled it with our children. Again, they can be with us.”

Juan adds, “We have a bit more time to ourselves. We can be secure. We have privacy. We have family.”

Healthy Home Kits, One Year Later: Juana Tobar and Maria Candelaria

Juana_Tobar_corn

Juana Tobar

Juana Tobar’s yard is a rainbow. Corncobs fresh from the harvest are stacked one on top of another in shades of pale and deep yellows. Bright, green grass blankets the property and leads out to a freshly sown field, where the next season’s crops grow. Neighboring trees have begun to bloom brilliant red and purple flowers. Amidst the foliage, Juana shows us her wooden latrine, which stands quietly in the shade. “Our Habitat latrine is cleaner and steady,” she mentions to us. “Before, our old latrine was small and wobbly. There was no privacy, and it was made of a mix of bamboo pools and mud, which made it unsteady.”

JuanaTobar_letrina_WPversion

Juana is meticulous when it comes to upkeep. One year after receiving a Healthy Home Kit, her smokeless stove, latrine, and water filter are in impeccable shape. Juana’s nine-year-old daughter, Soraya, drinks a glass of water from the filter tap while we speak. “The new filter works well,” Juana comments. “There was so much water to boil before, and now, it’s not a problem.”

Other tasks in her life have also become easier. Cooking tortillas is a nearly effortless process, and Juana can make twice as many as she could before on her old stove, which was dangerous and unreliable. “The grill was twisted, and we couldn’t cook with it effectively. The base was made of unsteady blocks,” she remembers. She also faced challenges with the smoke that it produced. “We had many health problems; we were always coughing. The smoke also would hurt my eyes a lot.”

JuanaTobar

She is pleased with the smokeless stove’s economic impact, too. “The new stove works well. It uses less wood, which saves us more time.” She laughs. “My husband and I have a deal now that, once a week, he will put on his gloves and go look for wood if I keep the stove clean.”

JuanaTobar_Soraya_Letrina_WPversion

Juana has a special message for the group that came to help build with her one year ago: “I am very grateful for the work that you have done and the opportunities that you have provided us. May God bless you.”

Maria Candelaria

Maria Candelaria, her husband, Alberto, and their three children, Wilfred, Glendy, and Cesar, live in the clouds. To reach their house from the town of Godinez, three steep hills, two farms, and a narrow, winding footpath stand in the way, proving daunting to new visitors. “Are you okay?” she jokes as we climb the final steps to her house, nearly out of breath. Seven-year-old, Wilfred and his younger sister, Glendy, giggle in unison at our red faces. “Did you know that the team who built our stove hauled the block machine all the way up here?” Maria laughs. “They were so strong!”

MariaCandelaria_Stove_Filter

Despite her warm humor, Maria is serious when she describes why she needed a Healthy Home Kit for her family. She recognizes that living in a remote area has several disadvantages. Alberto is a construction worker who helps with major road projects and must leave his family for days at a time, leaving Maria to take care of the kids. She explains that every task in her daily routine, from bringing goods to and from the market to obtaining water can be a challenge. Especially while carrying her toddler, Cesar, on her back. She stresses that before she had a filter, there simply was no time to obtain clean water.

MariaCandelaria_Cesar_closeup

“We used to drink water directly from the stream, which is all the way down the hill,” Maria says. “It caused us so many stomach pains. We knew we were supposed to boil it, but it was hard, because we live so far away.” One year later, Maria is pleased with how much the new water filter has positively impacted her family’s life. “Now, if we want water, we can just get it from the tap. Although we have to go down to the stream once in awhile and take it up the hill, we can let it set on its own.”

Maria also speaks of how the wooden latrine has changed her routine.“Our old latrine had no roof,” she explains. “The booth part was made with bamboo poles and mud.” Not only is the new latrine closer to their house, but it is cleaner and offers privacy that was unavailable before. Glendy and Wilfred are also always excited to show it off to new visitors.

MariaCandelaria_letrina

Lastly, when asked what her old stove was like, Maria shakes her head in disbelief. She describes the large quantities of smoke that used to leak out of the cracks from the blocks. “The chimney was in bad shape, and the grill was a mess. The children and I used to get a lot of headaches because the smoke was so strong.” She says that, after one year of use, her new stove has no structural problems. And the headaches have disappeared.

Maria and her children fondly remember the group that helped build the stove and latrine. Her message for them? “Thank you for giving us support. We don’t have very much, but what we have, we will save for you. We are so grateful to you for what you have done to help our family.”

MariaCandelaria_kids_filter

Healthy Home Kits: Feliza Sulwi Chopen and Matilda Tobar

FelizaSulwiChopenStove

Feliza Sulwi Chopen

Outside the bustling town of San Lucas Tolimán lies a smaller, quieter community. Home to 500 families, this place, named Xejuyu (pronounced “Shay-Who-You”), is inhabited by people who speak a kaleidoscopic mixture of the Maya indigenous language, Kaqchiquel, and Spanish. Here, neighbors easily recognize one another and take care of one another’s children as if they were their own.

Feliza Sulwi Chopen, mother of two students and proud owner of a Healthy Home Kit, has lived in this community her entire life. She cares for her house while her husband, Benjamin, is away working at a major farm down the road. Since she was a girl, Feliza has used a stove to support her family. “Here in Guatemala, the stove is life,” she explains.

However, like most women in Guatemala, Feliza has used an ineffective and dangerous stove for decades. When asked about her previous device, she recalls the many issues with its construction. “Our old stove was crooked, and because of that, a lot of smoke would come out and flood the house. The smoke would also stay in the house, and it was impossible to air out our rooms when that happened.” Access to clean air was also out of the question. “The stove always affected our health; we couldn’t breathe at all inside our house.”

After receiving materials to build a new stove this past May, Feliza’s family has already witnessed several positive economic and health changes. She gives us a quick financial breakdown of how the stove has impacted her life: “Since building the stove, we have cut back a lot on paying for wood. Now, we only need a little to heat up the entire grill and to cook our food. We can put three or four pots on top and cook for the entire family. For every two pieces of wood, that’s four pots of food for a whole family.” Mostly importantly, she says, “Saving money on firewood means one more piece of bread for our children.”

Feliza also notes that the water filter and latrine have contributed to a change in routine. Rather than boiling her water, she can readily access the supply in her filter and doesn’t have to worry about falling ill from waterborne diseases. She is also pleased with her family’s latrine, which is made of stone blocks and wooden beams. “Since building the latrine, we feel happier and cleaner. The air is pure, and we have a private space where there wasn’t one before.”

FelizaSulwiChopen

Matilida Tobar

Matilda Tobar lives one house down from Feliza. While her husband works in the countryside, she is in charge of caring for her seven-year-old daughter, Paola, and the newest addition to the family, baby Brenaly. Like Feliza, she spends most of the day using a stovetop to prepare tortillas and meals for her family. Matilda is overjoyed that her new stove, which was built last May by a group of volunteers, is nothing like her old one. When remembering how the previous stove functioned, she shakes her head in disbelief.

MatildaTobar_filter

“Our old stove was tiny! You couldn’t cook anything on it. The old kind, which almost everyone uses,

produces so much smoke and burns women and kids all the time. If you ask any of the women in this community, they can show you their scars from the burns.” In addition to the exterior risks, Matilda notes the stove’s negative impact on her family’s health. “My kids were always sick; my baby had a very bad cough for a long time, and we were always at the doctor, trying to get her help. She concludes: “Bad stoves are dangerous for everyone.”

MatildaTobar_filtro_estufa

The new stove has helped her family in many more ways than she realized. “We save a little money from not having to buy so much wood. Whatever we save, we give to our kids for school. We can buy them books, uniforms, whatever they need. Everything we do is always for our children.”

The Panjo Gomez Family

BrendaGomezPanjo_family

Answering the door is little Rony’s favorite task. When we go to visit his current house in San Lucas Tolimán,  he is nothing short of a beam of energy and elation. He hops from one foot to another and asks repeatedly if we would like to see his little toy truck. Rony’s one and half year-old brother, Carlos, looks on quizzically at his older sibling zooms around the room with a painted wooden truck in hand.

Brenda, Rony and Carlos’s mother, giggles at the sight of the two brothers’ interactions. On this sunny morning, she offers to show us her new house, which was built by Habitat for Humanity Guatemala volunteers, on the outskirts of San Lucas. Together, we board a tuk tuk, or motorcycle taxi, and pass through busy streets that turn into large expanses of farmland that are filled with flowers and trees. A white house emerges from the foliage, signifying hope and a new life.

BrendaGomezPanjo_housefront2

Rony, Carlos, their older sister, Lilibeth, their mother, Brenda, their father, Rony Sr., and their grandmother, Aida, are set to move into their new house in February, and they could not be more excited about the transition.  When she was asked about her previous living conditions, Brenda discloses that their current house in the narrow quarters of inner San Lucas is far from an ideal place to live.  “For years, we have been renting, which is expensive for us.” Also, the space has not provided shelter. “Water enters through the roof and has destroyed a lot of our possessions, like clothes and food. There isn’t enough room for the six of us.  After six long years of being here, we know that we have to move.”

BrendaGomezPanjo_Roni

As they searched other options, Brenda’s brother-in-law suggested Habitat for Humanity. “He said that there were many benefits and that they offer alternatives to families who are interested in building their own house. The monthly payments would be like rent, but instead of paying forever and forever, we would be getting our own house at the end.”

She looks around the property, her face glowing. “My brother-in-law has done so much; he bought us this land because he knew that we needed it.”

Once they put the finishing touches on their house, such as installing electricity and running water, four spacious rooms, and a clean bathroom, will soon be all of theirs. Aida has big dreams and wants to plant flowers in between the trees, add a gate and wall, and, of course, play with her grandchildren. “We can make it our own with confidence,” she says.

More than anything, Brenda says that they are happy. “It’s now a place to call ours. We will continue to work harder than ever to make sure it stays that way, so that we can save and support the family.”

The Zello Carrillo Family

ronyfranciscozellolano_house_interior
Across the street from a newly built Habitat for Humanity house is an old garage. Upon opening the door and taking a few steps inside, a bustling one-room bakery reveals itself. Two assistant bakers knead and toss dough on large tables covered with flour. Next to their work stations are high stacks of crates that store cracked egg shells, which signify the 120 eggs that are used each day to make rolls, bread loafs, and desserts.

bakery_ernestina

Not long ago, Rony (45) and Ernestina (43) made a decision that would impact their lives for the better: a career switch. The couple left their office jobs in order to open this very bakery to provide for their Huehuetenango neighborhood. A few years later, thanks to the help of Habitat Guatemala staff and international volunteers, they erected their Habitat house on the same plot of land.

Despite being actively involved with their neighborhood and supplying batches of freshly baked goods each day, Rony and Ernestina acknowledged that they needed something for themselves.  “We had decided four years ago that we wanted a house with Habitat, which had been suggested to us by our neighbor, but there was just never time to sit down and seriously consider it as an option,” Ernestina tells us. “Thankfully, when we came back around to it, the process was quick.”

ronyfranciscozellolano_housefront

Building a new house has benefitted the family in several ways. “The biggest difference is that we can be alone here. Privacy is so important to us,” Ernestina says. “We can decide what we want to do with our own house. Plus, it’s right across the street from the bakery.”

Although they are still working to install electricity and water, and also insulation to keep out the cold Huehuetanango nights, Rony, Ernestina, and their three teenaged children, Bryan (17), Melissa (16), and Madelin (14) will be moving in within the next few months. For now, they reside with Ernestina’s brother. Soon, they will only have to cross a small street to get to work. “We’re very content to have a new home.” Ernestina smiles. Now, the family
can feed their neighborhood with more ease and comfort than ever before.

eggs_angle1

 

The Sauceda Alva Family

johana_kitchen
Family can be the antidote for challenging circumstances. This was the case for Johana Sauceda Alva (30) and her fourteen-year-old daughter, Jacquelyn. Before moving to Huehuetenango, mother and daughter lived in a town called Pasaco, located on the southeastern end of Guatemala. However, two years ago, their lives were turned upside down. “My husband left us for the United States,” reveals Johana. “He hasn’t written since.”

Despite the painful memory, Johana reflects that the event as one that changed her life for the better and allowed her to seek out assistance from her family. “My brother helped and supported us by opening up his home to my daughter and me,” Johana discloses. “It’s not healthy to live in a place with bad energy. For that reason, I packed us up and returned home.”

johana_housefront

Although grateful for the temporary change, Johana also needed a permanent housing solution that would allow her and Jacquelyn to live peacefully. However, Johana’s salary as a cleaning woman would not cover most rental options, as they were extremely expensive. Buying a new house was also out of the question.

However, through her aunt, Johana discovered Habitat for Humanity Guatemala. “She told me that there was a project for people with limited resources, especially with paying back loans.” Johana smiles. “So I went and found the office, which was just down the street from my daughter’s new school, and it seemed like a good fit. I liked the option of being able to opt out if it didn’t work for me. So I applied. It only took two weeks to process the paperwork.”

johana_door

Several months and a volunteer team later, Johana and Jacquelyn have a new home to look forward to. Johana feels blessed to have regained stability and looks forward to the new opportunity that Habitat has afforded her. “I can sleep peacefully knowing that the landlord isn’t going to knock down my door looking for money. It isn’t healthy to feel that load on your shoulders.” She gazes at the kitchen with a tranquil expression etched on her face. “This home is happiness.”

_dsc1061

Although mother and daughter are still working to install electricity and water in their new home, they are eager to move in within the next few months.  “With the help of God, we were able to move forward.” She says. “We just celebrated living in Huehuetenango for one year, and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the support of my family. And, of course, Habitat.”

 

 

The Velazquez Martínez Family

jesus_phone_brigada

Jesús expresses a genuine warmth that fills the room. When asked about the volunteer group that came to build his house, he beams even brighter. He pulls out his phone and starts scrolling through pictures of smiling faces on a construction site.

“One night, we had a party with a lot of food, and they gave me this,” he says. He rises from the couch and walks around to the kitchen area of his new house to show us the American flag that hangs below the counter. He has also printed a photo of the volunteers giving it to him, which hangs on the opposite wall corner and proudly mentions that he is friends with them on Facebook.

jesus_daniel_housefront

After growing up in his father’s Habitat house, which was built ten years ago, Jesús decided to apply for his own. At twenty-one years old, he is highly independent and enjoys the increased flexibility between his home life and his job as a cashier at a local store down the road. In a way, constructing a house has also represented the next phase in his journey to adulthood. His father, Daniel, agrees and is happy that his son has been able to have had the experience that he had himself a decade before.

Jesús is thrilled to have a home at last.  Since moving in late July, he is happy to have discovered a newfound individuality. “Everything has changed. There’s space, and I can see my friends, as well as my father and brother. It’s more comfortable here, and I have greater freedom to do what I would like with my time.”

jesus_house_interior

As for his long term plans, Jesús hopes to start a family in his new house. “First comes the house, then comes the wife and kids. I want to be able to provide for them, and the house allows for that.”

On a final note, Jesús wants to know that he will never forget them. “I am proud and very fortunate to have met you. I hope that you come visit us again. I’ll be waiting.”

jesus_daniel_kitchen

The Hernandez Rivera Family

mauriciohernandezrivera_closeup

Elvira and Mauricio (24) can start anew in a familiar community with their three children.

About thirty minutes outside Quetzaltenango, a winding road converts from a congested highway into a quiet sanctuary of houses and farms that perch on hillsides. A small road sign peeks out of the ground, indicating this community is “Aldea Talmax” (pronounced Tal-mash), or Talmax Village. It is here where Mauricio and Elvira have spent the past twenty-four years of their lives, first as children and neighbors. Now married, they are excited to see their three young children grow up in the house that was built four months ago by Habitat for Humanity Guatemala staff and volunteers.

“We wanted more children,” Elvira says, shifting their ten-month-old baby, Cristian, on her back. “And we knew that we needed more space to do it.”

Walking through the house, Mauricio  which are scattered with toys and laundry fresh from the line. “There is more space for our children to be free to play. It’s more comfortable for all of us.” As he explains the changes, his seven-year-old son, Roni, ten-year-old daughter, Erika, and their ten-year old cousin, Joel, giggle, immersed in their own private game.

mauriciohernandezrivera_kids

Roni (7), Joel (10), and Erika (10) can all enjoy the extensive play spaces that the new house has provided them.

Space has been a tangible necessity for both Mauricio and Elvira. Before applying for a house with Habitat for Humanity Guatemala, they experienced very different circumstances. Mauricio explains, “We lived with my father, close by in the area. There was a lot of family crammed into one house. I would say about twelve people living in five rooms. There was no privacy, there was no freedom.”

Despite this drawback, Mauricio is happy to have had the experience, as it introduced him to the organization. “My father’s house was a Habitat house from about eighteen to twenty years ago. And we knew that if we applied for a house, it would be of good quality.”

Now, Mauricio, Elvira, and their children can thrive in their new space. “It is beautiful to have a place at last. We seized an unbelievable opportunity that has left us happy and secure enough to grow our family. Habitat has left us with a beautiful house.”

mauriciohernandezrivera_family_bedroom

mauricophernandezrivera_housefront_2