Circle of Hope

July 2008

2008-12-15T20:02:00.000-08:00

In the spring of 2008, I really started to feel like it was time for my family to come with me to Aceituno. Scott had been there on the initial trip, but not since. The children had trouble understanding why I was spending time away from them and what the conditions were in Guatemala.
The prospect of paying for the five of us to fly to Guatemala and spend a week there seemed impossible. But, if there is one thing I've learned, it's that money is only pieces of paper. If the Lord wants something to become a reality, the money will come. Little by little, the money came. An unexpected tax refund and generous gifts from friends and family made the difference. When I bought the tickets and clicked "purchase" my hands shook. It was the most money (cash) that I have ever spent at once.
Our kids love to travel, and fear nothing. They enjoyed every minute of the trip. I had laid out some rules for them before we went. Most of the rules were things to protect their health in the village. For example, don't touch the dogs and other animals; don't step in the puddles (they usually aren't water) etc.
When we arrived in Guatemala city, we were picked up from the airport by Luis. He brought Anabelly (his sister) and her two oldest grandchildren Jennifer and Tulio. Jennifer and Tulio are the same ages as my kids Adam and Lora. They also have a younger brother, Jonathan who is the same age as my Hannah. Their mother, Yeya and I have often said that we would like to be inlaws someday. In spite of the language barrier, The six kids hit it off almost immediately. They spent their days in the village together playing soccer (futbol). Eating candy and other treats from the tiendas ( which broke one of mom's rules), and just being kids. By the end of the week, they had broken almost all of mom's rules. They were filthy and ran loose in the village like the other kids. They never got sick or hurt and no one ever bothered them. The people in Aceituno knew they were my kids and I like to think that they looked out for them.
Of course, I had to take the opportunity to work in the village. I squeezed in 4 days of work. Susan and I taught the ladies two new patterns; a short sleeve jacket with a hood and elastic in the waist, and a reversible bag. This was a big step for me because I designed these patterns myself. It was a tremendous amount of work. But, worth every frustrating minute. The end results have been really cute and easy to sell.
We took some time to see the country with our kids. Adam turned 15 that week and we celebrated by swimming in a spring fed cave (cueva) and relaxing on the pacific ocean. It was a lot of fun, but the kids said they enjoyed their time in the village more than anything. They made some lifelong friendships and I think they have a better understanding of they way the rest of the world lives.

Dec-Feb 2007-2008

2008-11-02T14:24:00.000-08:00

Our November 2007 trip seemed a real success. The women were cranking out skirts and dresses quickly while we were there. We had already secured a store in Newton to sell the children's wear, Healthy Baby Boutique. But we started getting a lot of questions from the women in Guatemala during January. They were a little overwhelmed by the new tasks and insecure about their skills. The woman that was coming to instruct them had different ideas about how to make things. So they became confused about which way to hem the garments among other things. I decided to return as soon as I could to reassure them and to put to rest any confusion about how the garment were to be made. I was nervous that the clothes they had made would not be suitable for sale at the Healthy Baby Boutique.
When I arrived, there was a lot of confusion. They had been hemming the garments with a single turn, leaving the zig-zag stitch showing. Most of the skirt hems were not straight and the stripes didn't match up. It was very difficult, but I asked them to remove all the hand hemming and rehem every piece over. It took them 3 days to fix the mistakes. Some of the garments were not salvagable. Since then, the quality of the garments has continued to improve. It was a hard lesson and a difficult thing to ask of them, but they are better for it. I returned with suitcases full of children's clothing to be sold.

Nov. 2007

2008-10-20T18:52:00.000-07:00

After 9 long months of waiting to return to the village of Aceituno, Guatemala, finally, I was there. The women and I had been communicating over the phone and with letters. Others had brought back bracelets they made and some were sold. But, I was finally going to see for myself. Were they happy with this program? Was it making a difference? Or was it just a diversion from the everyday difficult life they were facing. Soon it was clear. The very first faces to greet me outside the airport were women from the village. They rode in the back of a pickup for 1 1/2 ours to be there when we arrived. They carried hand-made posters with the same bible verses I had sent them in my letters. They were more than happy with the program, they were transformed by it. What an awesome moment. It was amazing to realize all that God could do with me, when I became willing.

My friend Susan came along on the trip in Nov. 2007. She was a great help. She spent a day with the women working without a translator. I had to go to the u.s. embassey to acquire a new passport after mine went missing. The trip was a difficult one, a suitcase containing a new serger was also missing. It wasn't until 3 days before we were to return that the airline tracked it down.

We dedicated much of our time in Aceituno to sewing. It was our goal to start a line of children's clothing made from guatemalan fabric. It was frustrating to realize that the woman we had been paying to teach sewing lessions, knew very little herself. By the grace of God, by the end of the trip, the women could make a dress, a skirt and a pair of pants. Thanks to fundraising and some generous donations, we left them with more than 130 yds of fabric to make clothing.

February 2007

2008-10-20T18:36:00.000-07:00

In Feb. 2007 the I returned to Guatemala to teach a group of 12 women bead-weaving. This trip was the beginning of Circle of Hope. With a small amount of start-up cash, tables, stools, beads and other materials were purchased. 6 Sewing machines were donated and brought in suitcases to Aceituno. The women also learned the very basics of the sewing machine. With only 3 days to work, and limited spanish vocabulary, it seemed unlikely that anyone would learn much or continue to work without more instruction. It would be 9 months before I could return.

Circle of Hope

2008-10-17T10:24:00.000-07:00

Circle of Hope is a non profit organization dedicated to helping the people of Aceituno,Guatemala. Our primary focus is helping women by teaching them a trade. Classes in beading and sewing began in February of 2007. The women of Circle of Hope produced have produce over 700 bracelets in the past 18 months. They make children's clothing from brightly colored Guatemalan cottons. All of Circle of Hope's goods are sold in the United States. Circle of Hope pays each women a fair wage for her goods ( more than double market value in Guatemala). Any additional funds or profits are returned to the program to pay for supplies, help with medical expenses and our education fund.