My Story

Nueva Esperanza, which means New Hope, is located in a slum area of Guatemala City, Guatemala. An extremely poor area, our program is squeezed in among the shanty dwellings built over an old city dump. Many houses in this area are without toilets or running water and are assembled with scrap wood, sheet metal, and cardboard. Zone 5, where Nueva Esperanza is located, is considered one of the most dangerous areas of Guatemala City. It is controlled by gangs and drug pushers. Robberies and murders are common in this area. Public education is available - however, many cannot afford it. Life in Zone 5 is very difficult.

Hello! I feel so happy to be able to write this letter hoping you are fine. This is Jeremy Ernesto Herrera Garcia. I was born on June 25, 2018. I am 7 years old now. I attend school this year and I am in first grade. The things that I like the most to do in my free time are playing soccer, toy cars and painting. I love the color red and my favorite animal is the cat. A delicious dish for me is eggs and spaghetti with tomato sauce. I live only with my mother Monica Magali Garcia Marroquin and siblings. She struggles to support our family working as a sales promoter, but she only works on weekends. My father is Julio Ernesto Herrera Marroquin, and he works as a car parts salesman. He supports our family even though he does not live with us. Thanks to God, we are healthy. My family attends a Christian Church called “Obreros de la Mies”.

We live in our own house made of adobe, tin sheet roof and concrete floor. There are seven rooms but we only use three of them and a separate kitchen.  We share it and the expenses with my grandmother and aunts. It has running water and electricity. We have a dog and cat at home. Our greatest needs are groceries, shoes and clothes. I walk about 20 minutes to come the feeding program. Thank you so much for reading my letter.

With much love,

Jeremy Ernesto Herrera Garcia

Translated by: Lucia Gravez/AAC Secretary