My Story

This is your sponsored child Mareli and it is a blessing for me to greet you through this update. I hope you are doing well. My family and I attend a Christian Church on Saturdays and Sundays. Thankfully, none of us has gotten sick so far. My father, Mario Ruiz, is 44 years old. He works as a mason and farmer to support our family. My mother, Maria Gutierrez, is 43 years old. She is a housewife and does her best to help my father with the expenses. He also grows corn, beans, and pumpkins for our consumption. She sells homemade snacks and bags of sliced fresh fruits at school. Besides that, she raises and sells hens to get extra income in case of need. They work hard daily to get ahead with our family, but sometimes their resources are not abundant enough to cover all we need at home, such as groceries, especially corn. Fortunately, we praise the Lord for the feeding program. It is a crucial project in our community that helps many children like me who need food.

As for me, I want you to know that I am fourteen years old. Unfortunately, our economic resources are limited and because of that, my parents could not enroll me at school this year. They told me they are going to make an effort to do it the next year. Therefore, I would love to count on your prayers for my parents and me. At the moment, I help my mother with the household chores. I also try to help my parents financially with my income at home by selling bags of sliced fresh fruit with my cousin at La Plaza in our town. My biggest dream is to become a soldier when I am older. I also would love to speak foreign languages like English and Korean. The rainy season is my favorite because it helps our crops to grow and produce good fruits. I like drinking sodas, but my favorite is Sprite. My birthday was in May. I love celebrating my birthday with my family. They usually prepare a special lunch and buy a delicious birthday cake for me. I like soccer because it is one of the best sports, but I like basketball too. To end this letter, I want you to know that a teacher of LW spoke with me to collect all my news and let you know about it. He also encouraged me to continue trusting in Jesus as my Savior. I say goodbye to you for now, but thank you so much for your kind attention.

With much love,

Mareli Luisana Ruiz Gutierrez

Translated by: Hillary Popol, AAC Secretary / Antigua Guatemala