The chaya project - Chaya plants for sale

Don and I are very excited because we have decided on a date for our yearly trip to Panajachel, Guatemala, to visit Mayan Families and their projects.  We will leave right after school ends to try to avoid the heavy rains later in the summer.

Our main project is going to be the propagation of the chaya plant.  I am passionate about it!  I have been eating chaya for more than 5 years and I know how beneficial it would be for families to have nutritious and easily grown food.  Last year I gave chaya cuttings to some people and I am hoping they are growing well and I am going to be able to start new plants with some cuttings.  I am hoping to give some other plants to families in Tierra Linda but the main focus is going to be on the chaya plant.  Once established, it produces a lot of food and it can be easily shared with other people.

This little tree is at my sister's home.  I started it 3 years ago and now it can give her many delicious meals for free.

I am selling chaya cuttings in the USA to help me buy more plants in Guatemala.  Please contact me at carmiewest@comcast.net if you would like to buy some cuttings.

Josue and Oswaldo need a new room.

It has been cold in South Florida during these past days and I have been very thankful for my warm bed at night.  I started thinking about all the people in Guatemala who suffer from the cold, wind and rain when the weather gets bad because their homes do not offer enough shelter from the elements. I remembered 2 sweet boys that I met last year in San Antonio Palopo, Guatemala.  They are the older brothers of one of the Mayan Families sponsored students.  The family has one room made of cement blocks and the rest of the house is make of mud, cane, wood and pieces of tin sheeting as walls.  The two boys sleep in the kitchen and the walls are crumbling down.  Right next to the makeshift bed (without a mattress), there are holes on the wall.  The family put thin pieces of plastic to cover the holes but the children still feel the cold and wind when they are sleeping.

 

I need to start fundraising to build these boys a better room to sleep in.  Unfortunately, it is very expensive to build in Guatemala too and I estimate it will cost approximately $4,000 USD to build a room of part cement and part wood with a tin sheeting roof. Thanks to the generosity of a family from Germany and another from South Florida, we have started the fund to build a new kitchen for the family in San Antonio.  I have some items to sale and I will be posting them soon.

 

 

 

 Josue is the oldest boy in the family.  He is a special needs child. Josue and his brother sleep on the piece of wood.  They do not have enough blankets to keep them warm.

 

Carmen with Josue and Oswaldo.

Josue and Oswaldo sleep on a wood board next to this wall full of holes.

TOYS FOR GUATEMALA 2012

We need help to send toys for needy children in Guatemala. These are photos from December 2011. For most of these children, the gift they receive from Mayan Families and their supporters is the only gift they will receive during the holid...

ay season. The children and their families wait for a long time to receive something and they do not care that it might be gently used. MayanFamilies sponsors holiday parties at different towns and the preschools they operate and they need hundreds of toys. We have many toys that were donated but we need money to cover the shipping charges from Florida to Panajachel, Guatemala. $1 will sponsor one toy for one child. Please email me at carmiewest@comcast.net to donate. Any amount helps. We need to ship the toys as soon as possible so they arrive in time for the parties. Thank you!

 

 

 

Fundraiser for people of Agua Escondida

Please help me raise money for the people of Agua Escondida.  They received materials to build homes so they could move into their donated land. They still need Onil stoves, water filters and beds.

Please email me at carmiewest@comcast.net.

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I have one $25 P.F. Chang's Gift Card.  SOLD

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Two Chili's Gift Card for $25 each. May also be used at Romano's Macaroni Grill, On The Border of Maggiano's -SOLD

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One IHOP Restaurant Gift Card for $25 - SOLD

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I am asking for a donation of $50 for these vintage Fisher Price dolls and accessories for a doll house.  The are used. Postage is included via UPS ground.

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I am asking for a donation of $40 for these books.  They are in very good condition. Postage included, via UPS ground

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LEGOS HAVE BEEN SOLD

I have 3 gallon size bags with assorted small Lego pieces. I am asking for a donation of $25 for each bag or $50 for the 3 bags. This includes postage via UPS ground

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With a donation of $100 you will receive a RCA Portable DVD Player with 9" LCD screen, Model DRC99391 Black.

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Yes, it is possible to make a difference

Don and I had the priviledge of visiting Herlinda's new home in Tierra Linda. She was very grateful for this new house and thanked us profusely. We were very happy to see with our own eyes the difference we can make in the life of a family. It is still only a one room but it is made of cement and it has a cement floor too. The important part is that the family is no longer living in fear of having their house fall on top of them.

This is the way the house looked in April

Fundraiser for land and homes

During my last trip to Mayan Families, I visited again the homes of Herlinda (mom of student #1266) and her sister Olga (mom of student #1267) in Tierra Linda.  Both homes are about to fall down and the families need new homes before the raining season starts. 

 This is Olga and her children.

I had enough saved to start construction on Herlinda's one room, cement home but nothing for Olga. I wanted to start construction at the same time since both homes are be side by side but it was not possible.  If anybody would like to help, any amount helps, please send it to Mayan Families www.mayanfamilies.org, and put a note saying it is for construction of home of #1267.

This is Herlinda's home

I cannot wait to see the new house!