Earthquake Update

The group that traveled with me to San Marcos with Hermano Marco.

Last Saturday, I traveled to San Marcos, Guatemala with five of my friends. This is the area that was badly damaged by the Nov. 7th earthquake. 

This is a house that was badly damaged in a  village 15 minutes outside of San Marcos

 My goal was to find a family that needed our support. With the help of many of you, I had raised $640 to donate to these people who were in need. My idea was to meet people and buy them whatever they needed. We would do this until the money was gone. 

Pictured here is Hermano Marco and a  family that lost their house in the earthquake. The metal behind them is a makeshift room where they are currently sleeping until they find the money to rebuild.

If someone needed a bed, we would buy them a bed, if they needed food, we would buy food. However, there was something grander on the horizon. 

Demoler is the Spanish word for demolish. This was written on so many buildings.

One of my friends had heard there was a pastor that was looking for help so when we arrived, we found him. He explained to us that most of the aid was going to those that were in shelters and there wasn't much help for others. 

Not an uncommon sight in the town of San Marcos.

He spoke of twenty families in his congregation that had been affected. We were able to visit with two of these families. The houses we saw had suffered so much damage that they would need to be rebuilt.

It was incredible to see that along the same road, one building would be completely fine while the next was in shambles. 

 The problem in Guatemala, most people do not have insurance for their homes. These people would be unable to rebuild their house. I asked the pastor how much it would be to rebuild, and I was amazed when he told me that with $500, I could buy enough cement blocks for a house. 

This is a house that had already been 'demuelio'. It belonged to one of the members of Hermano Marco's church. 

We came to San Marcos hoping to make a difference by making a families life more comfortable, we had no idea that with the money YOU donated, a house would be able to be built. 

A view from the inside looking out.

So, now you may ask what will be done? Because this earthquake received little to no international coverage, the foreign aid is not present. The Guatemalan government is there, however, they are just passing out water and food baskets. They are not able to give supplies to rebuild houses. 

Houses and buildings made out of the traditional adobe where the ones that were the most damaged.  These houses will be rebuilt with cement blocks to help this not happen again in the future.

 I still have $140 to donate but I am hoping to raise an additional $360 to add to that amount so that another house can be built.

Even though this building is still standing, it is unsafe to live in. It will be demolished soon.

 If you or anyone you know would be willing to donate to this cause, it would be greatly appreciated. You could be a part of rebuilding these peoples future. Money goes so much farther here than in the states. 

This is the remains of a room of a family that lives outside of San Marcos. The money that you donated purchased block to rebuild this.

If you are interested in helping, you can donate by clicking on the 'donate' button at the top of the page. Make sure you include your email so I can stay in touch with you about how we are using the funds. 

This is the family that you donated to. There are many others that also need our help!

Heidi and her dog, Scooby. 

Regardless of losing so much, these children still had smiles on their faces and greeted us with open arms.

An update from Hermano Marco:

Hna.  Liz :   Que la paz y la gracia  de nuestro  Buen  Dios  esté  con  usted  y las  personas  que  están  a  su  alrededor.    Quiero  compartirle  que  la  primer  ayuda  que  usted  con  todo  su  amor  donó  a  mis  hermanos  que  están  sufriendo la perdida  de  sus  viviendas;  el lunes  compramos  los  primeros  1,000  bloks  y  fueron  entregados  así  :    Primero  al  Hno.  Mardoqueo  Orozco  de  la  aldea  Loma  Linda  donde  tuvimos  que  caminar  u  conocer  su  necesidad,  a  él  le  entregamos  500  blocks.   2,  Segundo  al  Hno.  José  Domingo Escobar  los  otros  500  blocks  es  donde  está  la  ardilla  asustada.   Por  este  medio  queremos  agradecerle  este  primer  donativo  y  los  hermanos  manifiestan  lo  mismo,  están  conmovidos  por la prontitud de la ayuda  recibida,  Dios  les  siga  bendiciendo  ricamente,  Hasta pronto y  Bendiciones.

translated roughly:

 Sister Liz: May the peace and grace of our good Lord be with you and the people around you. I want to share with you what the first aid that you gave with love to my brothers that are suffering the loss of their homes; on Monday, we bought the first 1,000 blocks and they were given as follows: First, brother Mardoqueo Orozco of the village of Loma Linda where we had walked and you saw the need, there we gave 500 blocks. Secondly, to brother Jose Domingo Escobar, we gave the other 500 blocks (they were the ones that had the frightened pet squirrels). I hereby want to thank you for this first donation and those that donated as well. The brothers are moved by the promptness of the aid received, God will continue to bless you richly, soon and Blessings.