Family Support Center (formerly La Guarderia/daycare)

The Family Support Center was created to serve single working mothers in Llanos del Pinal, a rural K'iche Maya community situated 20 minutes south of Quetzaltenango in the Guatemalan highlands. Meals, educational support, and extra-curricular activities are provided for the 36 children aged 2-18 who attend the Center at any given time. This institution allows for parents to continue working after school lets out. These extra hours of work enable families to earn enough money to continue sending their children to school.

The Center is staffed by seven full- and time-part employees, including one teacher. The staff cleans, cooks, and maintains the Center. The staff is thought of as family by the children because many children have difficult family lives.

The Family Support Center is supported by volunteers from the Pop Wuj Spanish School, and is regarded by the Foundation Todos Juntos as a priority because it is the only place where children can receive help on their homework, as their parents (or parent) tend to be illiterate and unable to academically assist the education of their children.

The epidemic of malnutrition which plagues Guatemalan children is combated here as well. The Center provides children with healthy meals and vitamins to aid in their natural development along with medicinal lotions to fight off skin diseases. All of the children receive regular check-ups from the staff and volunteers of the Pop Wuj Medical Clinic.

Along with services to the children, the Center provides counseling and social work services to the families who participate in the program. Familial disintegration, alcoholism, and depression are common problems in Llanos del Pinal and the Center offers hope to individuals suffering from such problems by offering them a broader community.

At the Family Support Center a Greenhouse Project was also started as part of our Environmental Program in 2007. Its goal is to provide safe food for the children at the Center and create a source of income for the Center by growing food products that can be sold in the market. The Greenhouse Project also allows the children to learn healthy agricultural and environmental skills and practices. We are planning to plant spinach, radishes, and cilantro in 2012.

The Family Support Center costs approximately $2,000 a month to run. The budget consists of salaries for the seven full- and part-time employees, food, dry goods, cooking fuel, cleaning supplies, utilities, and rent.




Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Mission, Vision, and Development

With the support of Julie and Anssel, our former General Projects and Environmental Projects Interns, the Family Support Center (formerly La Guardería) has been working hard this year to improve the services and atmosphere that we provide.

Family Support Center staff, Carmencita, Amy, and Julie

During our monthly staff meetings and mothers' meetings, we have been focusing on defining and improving the project.  We have worked with the staff, the mothers, and the older children/youth to identify values and create both a mission and a vision statement. Since creating the mission and vision, we have provided professional development and mothers' activity on self-esteem, conflict resolution, and how to live the values that we have identified.  Professional development continues each month during the staff meetings and mothers meetings.

Small group work during the mothers meeting

Mission
Ser un proyecto que gana la confianza de las familias para todos juntos (familia, escuela, y proyecto) dignificar a sus integrantes con valores y amor para su calidad de vida practicando la solidaridad.

Be a project that earns the trust of the families for everyone together (family, school, and project) to dignify its members with values ​​and love for their quality of life by practicing solidarity.

Vision
Forjar para el futuro, jóvenes y adultos capaces de realizar con felicidad su labor para el desarrollo de las comunidades y Guatemala con respeto, solidaridad, honestidad, comunicación, y amor.  

Build for the future, youth and adults able to happily perform their work for the development of communities and Guatemala with respect, solidarity, honesty, communication, and love.