My Story

Chuchuca, where your child lives, is an area located high on the side of a mountain in the state of Quiche, Guatemala. Life in this area is very difficult and very isolated from the outside world. It is more than a two hour walk to the nearest market town of Zacualpa. Chuchuca is a farming area where corn and black beans, the staple elements in their diet, are the major corps. The Quiche Mayans who inhabit this area trace their ancestral roots to the ancient Mayan civilization. They normally speak a Mayan dialect called Quiche - however, Spanish is becoming more common. Very little money ever changes hands in this area as they live on a barter system.

Hello! It is a pleasure to share my information with you. I hope you find it engaging. My name is Cesar Daniel Calachij Garcia. I was born on September 12, 2020. Thankfully, I am a healthy boy. I do not attend school because I am young. I am 4 years old. Therefore, I stay home with my mom. I love playing toy cars and ball with my siblings. I have one brother and four sisters. My favorite color is red, I love rabbits, and my favorite food is fried chicken. My father’s name is Adan Calachij Garcia. He traveled to the United States about a year and a half ago. He works in a sawmill operating a machine to make sawdust. He sends us money every three weeks. I kindly ask you to pray for my family. Unfortunately, my father has problems with alcohol and only occasionally communicates with us. Besides that, we have a debt that we are paying little by little with the money that my father sends us every three weeks. However, we have trouble obtaining our needs like food and cleaning supplies. Therefore, my mom raises and sells chickens and pigs to contribute to the expenses. Her name is Rogelia Garcia Garcia. She also keeps busy doing the chores and taking care of my siblings and me.

My family and I attend a Christian Church called Assembly of God. We live with my grandparents at their house. We share the expenses with them. They are my relatives on my mother’s side. My grandparents' house is made of wood with a tin sheet roof and a dirt floor. It has one room and a separate kitchen. There is no electricity or running water at home. However, we use a hose to get water from a nearby stream and use candles to see at night. I am so happy because I am already part of the feeding program. It is about 30 minutes away from where I live. To get there, my oldest sister takes my siblings and me on foot. I will leave you now, but I hope to hear from you soon. Have a lovely day!

Special regards,

Cesar Daniel Calachij Garcia

Translated by: Hillary Popol, AAC Secretary / Antigua Guatemala