Hello and greetings from Guatemala! We pray that this letter finds you doing well. It is hard to believe we are more than halfway through the month of February. We are busy here in Guatemala putting the finishing touches on our new ministry center. The project has taken longer than we planned and hoped, but we are so excited that we are close to the finish line.
Today, we want to announce our 2023 Sponsorship programs. Each year, we use our Sponsorship programs to fund a few key programs. We are so thankful to all of you who have helped fund these programs over the past several years.
Our Preschool and Feeding Center opened on Monday, February 27. While there are still finishing touches to be done in the center, everyone was ready to host all of the kids in our new building.
Thank you for your partnership and generosity to our family, ministry and those we serve. God Bless!
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2023 Sponsorship Programs
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Our sponsorship programs have always been the key to funding our main projects. 100% of all sponsorship money goes directly to the people we serve. There are no overhead or administrative costs taken out.
Our goal was to provide an opportunity for anyone to invest a small amount of money that will make a difference in the lives of someone in Guatemala. Some of our most loyal partners are student-aged kids that send their own hard-earned money to Guatemala to help impoverished children.
It all started with our $50 School Supply sponsorship program that enabled us to provide school supplies to over 1,000 kids. These are supplies that these kids would not have had without the generosity of many of you. Our Feeding Center has always been funded by generous donors and partners that sponsor a child or family. Sponsors who donated a little over $100 a year have helped us provide over 75,000 plates of food!
This year, we are changing up our Sponsorship programs. This year, we won’t need sponsors for Feeding Center program because of a grant that we received from International Disaster Emergency Services (IDES) out of Noblesville, Indiana. Not only are they covering our Feeding Center budget this year, but our budget will almost double in size and that will allow us to help more families in need!
Here are the Sponsorship programs and Matching Grant that are available for 2023:
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Finish the Build – we are 95% complete with our new Feeding Center and Preschool construction project. We have just a few more items to purchase and install for the building to be ready. The building project has been longer and more expensive than planned and we need your help to cross the finish line.
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Child Sponsorships - in years past, our child sponsorships were for school supplies or our feeding center. This year, it will help fund our preschool, after school tutoring program and wellness checks. We want to leverage our medical clinic to have every child receive a well check. The majority of these children have never been to a doctor. We have already started these wellness checks and identified a handful of children that have serious medical issues.
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Scholarship Sponsorship – many children in rural areas stop studying in 6th grade or before. Our Scholarship Sponsorship program helps students continue their studies in Junior High or High School. Your sponsorship will cover school supplies, backpack, school fees, bus fare, and the use of a laptop. Without these scholarships, these kids would not have the opportunity to fight for a better future for themselves and their families.
- $5K Matching Grant for the Medical Clinic - a generous donor is matching all donations to our medical clinic up to $5,000. All donations will be used to operate our medical clinic.
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We are so excited that construction is finishing up on our new Feeding Center and Preschool. Our opening day is set for Monday, February 27. While most of the building will be done, there are still some items that need to be completed. Most importantly, we are still waiting for the electric company to hook up service, but we won’t let that stop us from moving forward.
We are in great need of a few final touches on our building and supplies for our new kitchen and classrooms. We are seeking sponsors for doors, stove, tables, chairs, kitchen sink, toilets, and bathroom sinks. These are the most important items that we need to purchase, so that we can finish up construction and equip our school and feeding center.
If you would like to partner with us, you may select one or more of these items to donate. Or you can just donate any amount to this Fundraiser. Your generosity and investment in our ministry are what enables us to minister to so many families.
To donate, give online at Donate and select the “Finish the Build” program from the dropdown and note what item(s) you are sponsoring in the Additional Notes section.
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Child Sponsorships (Preschool, Tutoring & Well Checks)
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This year we will have 41 preschool children and 70+ elementary age children in our Feeding Center. Every child that attends our Feeding Center is required to attend our preschool or our afterschool tutoring classes.
After the pandemic, most Guatemalan schools didn't return to the classroom until last year. In the village of El Sitio, it was October before they returned to full-time classes.
We have seen first-hand how far behind these children are. There are fourth graders who can't do simple addition and fifth graders who can't read. Our two teachers will provide tutoring services throughout the week to all of these kids.
In addition to the tutoring, we want all children to take advantage of our new medical clinic. All children will receive a well check from one of our doctors. If any follow-up care or medicines are needed, we will take care of that.
A few kids already have sponsors, so we have started the well checks. The doctors have already identified two children that have serious medical issues that will need further care.
So, would you please consider helping us provide much-needed educational and medical services to 70+ elementary students? For just $100, a child will receive educational support plus a wellness check. This small investment will have a huge impact on these kids.
To donate, give online at Donate and select the “Sponsorship 2023” program from the dropdown and note "Child Sponsorships" in the Additional Notes section.
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Scholarship Partnership (Jr. High, High School, College)
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Each year, we provide students in our ministry the opportunity to continue their studies in Jr. High and High School. Because of the costs associated with studying at this level, most children in rural areas don’t have this opportunity.
I would like to share a quick story about our newest scholarship student, Ilsi. She didn’t study last year because her father wouldn’t help pay for any of her schooling. Her mother is the one that is fighting and working to provide Ilsi the opportunity.
Ilsi’s mother came to us a few months back and asked if we could help Ilsi with some of her school expenses. We reviewed her grades from two years ago and she is a straight A student. Ilsi explained to us she just wants the opportunity to continue her studies so that she will have an opportunity to have a better life in the future.
There are so many more girls like Ilsi that just want the opportunity to have a better life, but they don’t have the chance. Our scholarship program is about giving teenagers the opportunity to further their education and improve the future for themselves, their families, and this community.
To donate, give online at Donate and select the “Sponsorship 2023” program from the dropdown and note "Scholarship" and the name of the student in the Additional Notes section.
Below are six of our Scholarship students that need sponsors.
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Erendira $1200
1st year of University
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Karla $1,300
Last year of High School
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Yaneira $1,200
Last year of high school
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Gladys $1,300
Third year of High School
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Ilsi $1,200
2nd year of high school
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Emilsa $ 1,300
Second year of High School
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Our new medical clinic opened in February of this year. One of the first patients we met was Mary, a 26-year old single mom.
She came to our clinic because her vision has deteriorated very rapidly. The first time we measured Mary's blood sugar it wouldn't register on the glucometer because it was so high.
Mary is in very bad shape and we want to help her and her daughter. Unfortunately, there are many more Mary's out there. Some with diabetes, some who are malnourished, and some who are experiencing seizures on a daily basis.
We are very blessed to have two great Guatemalan doctors staffing our clinic. But we also need to hire a nurse, purchase medicines, help pay the costs of labs, and send people to specialists. We can only do this if the clinic has the funds to cover these expenses. With this matching grant, we will be able to fund our clinic into late summer.
All proceeds from this matching grant will go to cover medical expenses of Mary and many others like her.
To donate, give online at Donate and select the “$5K Matching Grant” program from the dropdown.
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We are so looking forward to all that God has planned this year. While our building project has been more painful and longer than we had hoped, we know that it gives us the opportunity to reach more people. We are grateful to each and every one of you who has invested in our family, our ministry and those whom we serve. You are blessing to us and so many more!
Love,
The Harrold Family
Doug, Holly, Wilson, Maya, Cooper & Sarahn
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Prayer Requests:
- Maya as she prepares for her freshman year of college in the US. She plans to major in nursing. And for Doug & Holly as they prepare their hearts for this major milestone.
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Cooper and his best friend Ben. Ben was recently diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. We are praying for a miraculous healing for Ben. We are also praying for comfort and peace for Ben's family.
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Holly's health and specifically that her platelet counts will normalize. She is on a new medicine that regulates her platelets, but recently those counts have began to fluctuate. She is working with her doctor to find the proper dosage.
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