My Story

Cuatro Caminos "four roads", where your child lives, is an area located high on the side of a mountain in the state of Quiché, Guatemala. Life in this area is very difficult and very isolated from the outside world. It is a two-hour walk to the nearest market town of Zacualpa. Cuatro Caminos is a farming area where corn and black beans, the staple elements in their diet, are the major crops. The Quiché Mayans who inhabit this area trace their ancestral roots to the ancient Mayan civilization. They normally speak a Mayan dialect called Quiché - however, Spanish is becoming more common. Very little money ever changes hands in this area as they live on a barter system.

Hello! It is a pleasure to greet you by this means and share with you something about my family and me. My name is Florinda Andrea Calachij Ventura. I am 6 years old, and I was born on October 1^st, 2017. I am in good health. I am in pre-kinder this year, and I like to play with dolls in my free time. My favorite meal is fried chicken, I like the color purple and the animals I like are doves. I want you to know that I was not legally recognized by my biological father since he passed away when I was born due to an illness in his lungs. It is why I only have my mother’s last names. My mother’s name is Cecilia Calachij Ventura; she works so hard to cover my needs. She travels to the coast to work for four months, so I stay under the care of my maternal grandmother Josefa Ventura Ventura; she also contributes to our home expenses by raising and selling the domestic animals that we have at home which are hens and pigs. Besides that, my whole family and I go to the coast at the end of the year where we pick coffee beans. As a family, we are members of Assembly of God Church.

Fortunately, we live in our own house; it is humble and has one room. Its walls are made of wooden boards with tin sheet roof and dirt floor. There is another room made all of wooden boards where we cook. We do not have running water nor electricity, so we use candles, and we carry water from a river for our use. The house belongs to my mother, and we share it with my maternal grandparents and uncles. We are in need of groceries, clothes and corn; we pray and trust that God will help us to go ahead and have everything we need. I feel so blessed to be part of the feeding program. I walk 20 minutes to get there, and I enjoy every time I go. I want you to know that my grandmother provided all this information for my enrollment process. May God bless you; I hope to hear from you soon, and I hope you like my letter.

In Jesus Name,

Florinda Andrea Calachij Ventura

Translated by: Luisa Reyes /A-A-C Secretary/ Guatemala