My Story

Zacualpa is a small but busy village in a mountain valley. The village is inhabited by both Quiché Mayans and Ladinos (those with mixed European ancestry). The prevalent language is Spanish. Families in this village live in one or two room homes generally constructed of either wood or adobe. Although many of the people are farmers, the village contains several small specialized stores, a body repair shop for buses, mechanics, plumbers and many other small town tradesmen. It also has a large open air market which serves much of the area. Even with all of this, the poverty level is very high and the children are very needy.

I am Axel Alberto Riz Chingo, and I am five years old. I was born on September 23, 2017. I am a healthy boy. I attend the Zacualpa feeding program. I live with my parents and with my two sisters. I am not studying yet due to my age. I like to spend my time playing toy cars, football and hide and seek. I like the color sky-blue, and my favorite animal is the cow. I love to eat fried chicken. My father is covering our needs by working as a famer and as a day laborer. My mother is a seamstress, and she helps with the incomes. My family and I are members of Catholic Church. We live in my father´s house, and we have two rooms and a kitchen. The house is made of block walls, cement roof and concrete floor. We have running water and electricity; we pay the electricity service every month and running water every year. My mother brings my sisters and me to the feeding program, and we walk about thirty minutes to arrive. 

With much love,

Axel Alberto Riz Chingo

Translated by: Esther Hernández, AAC Secretary/Antigua