My Story

Zacualpa is a small but busy village in a mountain valley. Both Quiche Mayans and Ladinos (those with mixed European ancestry) inhabit the village. The prevalent language is Spanish. Families in this village live in one or two-room homes usually constructed of either wood or adobe. Although many of the people are farmers, the village contains several small and 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 extremely high, and the children are very needy.

My name is Henry Ervin Macario Chingo, and I am excited to tell you a little about my family and me. Before starting, let me tell you that my mom helped me to give all this information to a teacher of the LW evangelism team. I was born on September 8, 2015, so I am 9 years old. Today, I am in first grade and my favorite color is blue. I like domestic animals, but my favorite one is the rabbit. My favorite pastime is playing with my toy cars or soccer with my friends. Now, let me tell you about my family. I have one brother and two sisters. My father is Augusto Macario Saquic, and he works as a farmer and day laborer. He sometimes works as a shoemaker to get extra income. My mother is Juana Chingo Jimon, and she also works to help at home with her income. She is a day laborer, washes clothes for other people and raises hens to sell. She prepares delicious food like my favorite food which is rice and black beans. Thankfully, we are all in good health.

My family and I do not attend any church at the moment. We live in our own house and it is made of adobe with a tin sheet roof and dirt floor. It has one room, a separate kitchen, and electricity. My parents pay for that service monthly. We do not have running water at home. However, we get the vital liquid from a well in one of the nearby ravines. So, we have to carry the water in gallons to our house. We raise chickens at home for our consumption. We are a humble family and most of our needs are groceries and clothes. So, I beg you to pray for us. By the grace of the Lord, I am already part of the feeding program. Our house is far from the project, so my siblings and I sometimes get there on foot, and that takes us one hour. If we have enough resources, we pay for a taxi and get to the feeding program within 15 minutes. I will leave you now, but I would like to hear about your life soon. See you later!

Best wishes,

Henry Ervin Macario Chingo

Translated by: Hillary Popol, AAC Secretary