My Story

Zacualpa is a small but busy village in a mountain valley. The village is inhabited by both Quiché Indians and Ladinos (those with mixed European ancestry). The prevalent language is Spanish. Families in this village live in one or two room homes generally constructed of either wood or adobe. Although many of the people are farmers, the village contains several small 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 very high and the children are very needy.

Hello! It is my pleasure to share my information through this. My name is Marcos Anderson Jason Morente De La Cruz. I was born on December 4^th, 2017, in Joyabaj, Quiche, Guatemala. I am 7 years old and I am in good health. I am in the first grade. My hobby is playing ball. My favorite color is red and my favorite animal is the cat. I love eating fried chicken. I have one brother and no sisters. I attend the Zacualpa feeding program and I arrive there in 20 minutes by walking.

My father´s name is Ervin Romeo Morente Garcia. He works as a farmer and contributes to the home expenses. However, he does not live with us. He left about four years ago, but we keep in touch with him. My mother´s name is Ana Lucrecia De La Cruz Gomez. She works as a domestic employee in our village and contributes to the income. She raises hens for our livelihood. Thankfully, my parents are in good health. We live in my great-grandfather's house; my great-grandmother lives there too. There are three rooms. We use two of them and the kitchen is separated. The house is made of blocks with a cement floor. At the moment, our essential needs are groceries and corn. There are running water and electricity services; my family pays for these. We do not attend any church for now. Thank you for reading my information. May God bless you!

Lots of love,

Marcos Anderson Jason Morente De La Cruz

Translated by: Violeta Hernandez, AAC Secretary / Antigua