My name is Rosa, but people call me Rosy. I was born in rural Guatemala, the youngest of six children.
At the age of seven, I was sponsored through ChildFund. It was at this time that I started attending primary school.
When I was 16, I was supposed to start going to secondary school. But it was a really hard time because my father did not allow me to study – he said that girls have to stay at home doing chores and have to get married to serve their husbands.
Transportation was also a problem. There were no buses, and school was so far away from my home, so the only option to continue studying was to move to another state. Too much for my overprotective parents!
I thought my education was over.
But ChildFund stepped in. I was offered a scholarship and staff from ChildFund Guatemala helped me convince my parents to let me study. After long talks, my parents agreed and I went to live with one of my relatives who offered me a bedroom and enough food.
I was able to finish college. I became the first girl to graduate as a teacher in my community.
A few years later, ChildFund Guatemala’s local partner in my community asked if I would be interested in working with them – I jumped at the chance. It was like a dream!
I have now been working here for 17 years. Currently I am working as a technician on ChildFund`s project ‘Let Me Tell You’, which is helping to improve children’s literacy, self-expression and research skills.
ChildFund has been working for 75 years in the world, and working here means a lot to me. Serving the new generation is awesome!
When I was sponsored, I received so much love, and it changed my attitude. Now I am returning all of these gifts to my children in the communities. I like to see how children are changing their attitudes and aspirations, by reminding them that dreams can come true with perseverance and effort.
I am now 41, and I have two children – Andrea Isabel and Julio Fernando, 5 and 12 years old (pictured above).
My two children are my inspiration, and I love and am really proud of my parents. I have a family that always supported me and a job that I love! What else could I ask for?
My name is Ingrid and I am now 29 years old. About 22 years ago, a magic story started. I say ‘magic’ because I never thought that a person would change my life! My story took place in a rural, poor, indigenous community in Guatemala, I was just 7 years old when my life started changing.
When I turned 7, my mum told me that I had a new friend who lived very far away from my home. I remember the first letter I received. It had some stickers on it and a photo from my sponsor and her two children. She wrote to me about her life, her family, where they live, what they like to eat, how they celebrate holidays like Christmas. That was all new to me and I learned a lot from her.
My sponsor was always really sweet, she taught me how important it was to share with my family, how important it was for me to have an education and to have a career when I grew up.
It was a really good experience, two families knowing each other, even though my sponsor´s family was in another country. But the communication was always constant. The best thing I got from my sponsor is her friendship, and I have kept all her letters and photos in a special place.
If I had my sponsor in front of me, I would like to say, “Thank you so much for sharing your time; thank you for all your support; thank you for your letters and pictures. Thank you, because now I am different and I have a bright future.”
Now I am a teacher, and I have a special commitment to work for my community, especially with girls and youths. I am a technician in the ChildFund Guatemala project ‘I Love Myself, I Take Care of Myself` and work with ChildFund`s local partner organisation. This project specifically works to help youth improve their self-esteem, build healthy relationships with their families, peers and communities and provide guidance on health.
My intention, now that I am working with children, is to teach them how to change their lives and how to have a better life and future. From my own experience, I have confidence in the great potential of the youth in my community.
My plans are to continue working with children. I also want to finish my studies in college to become an environmental engineer and find a place where I can both work with children and contribute to creating a better planet.
