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! thank you for taking the time to read my personal information and I hope you are doing well when it reaches you. My name is Melvin Javier Chingo Riz and I was born in Zacualpa, Quiche on September 30, 2017, so I will turn 8 years old soon. I am in 1^st grade at school. I am in good health and my pastime is to play soccer. I love lions and the color red. I like to eat beef broth. I have two brothers and only one sister. My brother and I are part of this project and we arrive at the Feeding Center by a moto-taxi (tuk-tuk) in twenty minutes.

My parents take care of us and support the family financially. My mother`s name is Martina Riz de Leon and she raises hens and pigs to sell. My father, Genaro Chingo Luis, works driving a public bus from our village. We live in my parents’ house and my paternal grandmother lives with us. We have four rooms with one separated kitchen. The walls are made of block, tin sheet roof and cemented floors. We have running water and electricity. My father pays the water service once a year and he pays a monthly bill for the electricity. We have hens and pigs at home, but we would like to have some chicks because we have space in the house for them.  We are a needy family and our frequent needs are groceries, clothing and school supplies. At the moment we are not attending any church. I send you every kind of blessing from our Lord!

A bunch of hugs,

Melvin Javier Chingo Riz

Translated by:  Gladys Chavez / A-A-C Secretary-Antigua