My Nonprofit Reviews

Avivara, with only 3 people on their staff, two of whom I think work with little or no monetary pay and their key change agent, a Guatemalan teacher/administrator, are doing more to support education in rural communities here than any other organization in town, including the national/local government. They listen to the needs of the teachers; they respond. They train the teachers, many of whom have never had any form of real staff development. They supply schools with materials, with small, vibrant libraries, with art lessons where Ann models great teaching practices with the local classroom teacher, often with more than 30 in their class and certainly no sink to clean the brushes or their hands. They work tirelessly to empower students via scholarships, counsel, smiles and a more well equipped, responsive classroom than most public school students in rural Guatemala and many urban ones too, will ever know. I love Avivara and I admire the work they do, ever to quietly, humbly and significantly here. I love showing up at their end of year celebrations and hearing the testimonies, the stories and the endless thanks the hundreds of children and their families they are working for and with. This nonprofit is a model of true grassroots empowerment for all of us and "far exceeds expectations"! Thank you, Avivara, for being present in ways that so matter.

Public schools in Guatemala, particularly in remote villages, have few if any resources. The books I have been able to get from Child Aid to share with some of these schools have been received with a kind of heart-felt thanks and wonder that enhances the power of reading and writing in ways hard to believe. Teachers, earning less than $150 a month, and students coming to school with nothing more than a tortilla for lunch, if that, are amazed by these books and so proud to have them in their school "libraries". They have worked hard to raise a small amount to help pay for them and value them beyond measure. Thank you, John and Child Aid, you are making a huge difference on the ground and in the classroom!

More Feedback