My Nonprofit Reviews

In June of 2018 I went to Guatemala on one of Local Hope/Xela AID's service trips to volunteer as an art teacher and any thing else I could do to contribute. On arrival, our small bus was immediately mobbed by a hundred smiling, waving, shouting, laughing kids. They were aged 5 to 9 and formed small groups to greet, surround, hug and escort each of us coming off the bus into the building, all the while continuing to laugh, smile and shout. It was eerily similar to the scene in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, where Richard Dreyfuss is ushered up the ramp and into the spaceship by a covey of waist-high aliens.

I had made my way to a little village called San Martin Chiquito via a 5 hour drive from Guatemala City. There are countless similar remote villages throughout Guatemala, all lacking infrastructure, decent housing, healthcare, employment, education and water that is safe to drink. Many of the rural poor are descendants of ancient civilizations such as the Mayans, and communicate exclusively in one of the 23 dialects spoken in the country. Once you move outside the capital or tourist locations like Antigua, despite the 18 active political parties, there is little evidence that a government or any other means of public support exists. The folks in these towns have their family, the church and little else.

San Martin Chiquito is a little less desperate than the rest thanks to Leslie and Mel Dinkel who have spent 25 years managing Xela-Aid, a non-profit that has made life better for many of the local families and created a future for their children. Xela-Aid usually runs 6 tours a year that combine 4 days in the village sandwiched between time spent at spots of unparalleled beauty - Antigua and Lake Atitlan. After the initial 2 days in Antigua, whose beauty definitely draws its share of tourists, I boarded a bus and set off for San Martin Chiquito with a group of 20 unsuspecting artists who thought they were in for some plein air painting in a rustic setting. No one was remotely aware of, let alone prepared, for what was to follow.

Successive waves of ecstatic kids maneuvered us into the Xela-Aid facility which is staffed by locals who oversee year-round efforts to provide meals, medical attention, clean water, education and more to needy families in the village. The children were all from families in the village that rely on these services. As the next 4 days unfolded, the desperate living conditions we encountered combined with the precious children became emotionally overwhelming. Many of the group who had simply come to paint and shop responded to the heartbreaking scene with heart warming commitments to sponsor children they became acquainted with.

Sponsorship is merely one of many financial sources that permit Xela-Aid to operate. Sponsors stay in contact with the kids and families they support and many make annual visits. One of the benefits to a sponsored child is to have their education extended beyond age 8, where without a sponsor they would have to drop out of school to begin working in the fields to help support their family. There are many success stories including sponsored kids that have completed school (even college for some) and are now working on the Xela-Aid staff.

During the days spent in San Martine Chiquito I built and delivered chicken coops (including chickens) to the homes of families that had requested them. The chickens present no expense to the family as chickens can scrounge enough to eat on their own during the day when set loose in the yard. The coop helps protect them from dogs and the like at night and most importantly, chances are going a day without food will become a thing of the past. It was the first time I ever held a live chicken in my bare hands - nothing to it.

I also helped with a painting class given to 30 kids. There is no art in their regular school so it went over as a very big deal. After I saw such a positive response from the kids to the painting class, I spent all my free time drawing with kids.