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 Quiche 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! This is Nelson Dario de la Cruz Mendez, and I want to share with you a little about my family and me. I am in good health, and I am 6 years old; I was born on November 2, 2017. I am already attending school, and I am in 1^st grade this year. I play soccer in my free time. My favorite dish is fried chicken. I like cats, and I love blue. I have three brothers, and two of them are registered at the feeding program too. My father’s name is Victor de la Cruz Morente, and he works as a farmer or day laborer; he also goes to work in the sugar and coffee plantations at the coast in different times of the year. My mother’s name is Marta Mendez Riz, and she works as a maid and looks after her hens. My parents are in good health.

We live in our own house, and we share it with my maternal grandmother Gregoria Riz. Our house has one room and one kitchen, and it is made of adobe with a tile roof and dirt floor. We have electricity service, and we pay this bill every month. We do not have running water, so we bring it with a hose from a stream to home. We have hens as domestic animals. My family and I attend Full Gospel Church. I would like to ask for your prayers for us so that we always have groceries and corn at home. I tell you that I walk for more than one hour to arrive at the feeding program. My mother helped me to give my information to the Evangelism team, and I hope you find my letter interesting. May God bless you!

With much love

Nelson Dario de la Cruz Mendez

Translated by: Loyda de Osorio, AAC Secretary-Antigua Guatemala