Child Aid focuses on literacy in Guatemala
Since 2003, your December purchases of Ethical Bean coffee have contributed to supporting children in Guatemala. Since the early days at Ethical Bean we have sponsored children in El Tejar through the Child Aid scholarship program. Thanks to our tremendous growth at Ethical Bean we have been able to increase the number of scholarships to include over 100 children each year and further expand our contribution to include donations to Project Somos, who are building a Children’s Village for orphaned and abandoned children just outside of Tecpán. From our 2011 December sales, $20,000 is being contributed to these two organizations. We thank you, as it is your purchases of Ethical Bean coffee which allow us to partner with both of these fantastic organizations.
Child Aid:
Merlin with two preschool children
Through Child Aid’s scholarship program, now named the Ethical Bean Scholarship Fund (we are incredibly honoured by the name change!), the local community of El Tejar Guatemala is able to run a four year Montessori preschool where young children exit the program able to read and write. As part of the success story of Child Aid’s scholarship program, this year a young woman, Merlin Xicón came to work as a teacher’s aid for the preschool. She is one of the children who has benefited from the scholarship program from preschool through to junior high. Today, she is the first person in her family to go to college and she helps pay for her schooling with her work at the preschool. We are thrilled to have been a part of her personal journey. Read more about Merlin in the Child Aid newsletter here.
The Ethical Bean Scholarship Fund helps children in El Tejar in a variety of ways:
- Four year scholarships for 105 children at the Montessori preschool
- Free nutritious lunches are offered to the children at the preschool (many of the children are malnourished)
- Long-term scholarships are provided for the neediest of children to continue on to elementary school and middle school
- Books and reading programs for the local library
Children at the Montessori preschool eating a healthy snack of watermelon
To find out more about Child Aid or the Ethical Bean Scholarship Fund, please visit http://child-aid.org/.
Project Somos
Project Somos is creating an ecologically sustainable, community integrated Children’s Village, where local foster moms will be matched with seven orphaned and abandoned children. From a passionate idea carefully crafted and nurtured by founders Heather Knox and Greg Kemp in their home in Vancouver, to acquiring land in Guatemala and building the first houses, the project’s recent progress is evident to all who wait with baited breath for the latest updates. As each house takes form, it is exciting to imagine the first seven children that will play and laugh inside.
Here are some of the highlights in pictures over the last year.
Earth bag construction was used to create exterior walls of the homes
The roofs of two homes were constructed
The cistern has been built and rainwater catchment systems have been added to the two houses
Over 6000 eco bricks made of plastic bottles filled with plastic bags were used to create the interior walls of the first houses
Heather and dog Tika take a tour of the newly plastered walls
A meeting space was created around a fire pit built in the memory of Heather's Mom
Find out more about Project Somos here.
We are excited to be continuing our partnership with both of these worthy causes in Guatemala and see first hand the incredible impact they are making in these disadvantaged communities. As we venture into 2012 we encourage you to follow Ethical Bean, Child Aid, and Project Somos as we update you on the progress over the year.
Water bottles filled with plastic bags for interior walls. Very eye opening.