How it all started.

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Back in 2015 when I became a ‘lady of leisure’ I always hoped I would be able to undertake some type of voluntary work. I chatted to various friends about different opportunities … some wondered why I couldn’t just work in a local charity shop while others were keen to explore more adventurous options with me. It was early in 2019 while Jan and I were chatting with our friend Shaz that the seed of working in Guatemala was sown. Shaz has a friend, Michelle, who is Chair of the Board of Trustees for ‘Education for the Children’ an international NGO that works in partnership with disadvantaged families, children and young adults at La Escuela de Esperanza (The School of Hope) in Jocotenango, near Antigua, Guatemala. The idea immediately appealed to me having had many rewarding experiences, during the last 15 years of my career, working with disadvantaged young people in Sheffield.

Shaz arranged for us to meet with Michelle and after a couple of hours listening to her stories, looking at her photographs and sharing her experiences of working in Jocotenango both Jan and I knew we had to go. We came home full of enthusiasm and after chatting to Karen she decided that she too would like to join us. A further meeting with Michelle and Boo at the EFTC UK Headquarters in West Bridgford and any concerns we had were put to bed and dates were firmed up.

Initially not everyone was quite as positive as us … “Isn’t Guatemala dangerous?”, “Are you really going to make a difference? ” My response to this first question is “Yes Guatemala can be dangerous but so too can London and many other parts of the UK”. In 2019 there were 79 fatal stabbings in London. Almost 60 percent of the deaths in the capital were due to knife crime. Eleven people were shot dead in London in 2019. Four were run over, three were burned alive, five were strangled and 25 died of head injuries either in a fight or having been attacked. So ‘yes’ Guatemala may be dangerous in parts, but hopefully not where we are going, and ‘yes’ we are aware that we need to be vigilant in certain places but we need to put things into perspective and remind ourselves what is happening on our own doorstep.

I have been fortunate enough to travel to some amazing places across the world including Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Mexico and The Caribbean but the only time I have had any problems with theft is much closer to home, and all in Spain. Twice here I have had money stolen and twice had to fend off potential pick pockets. We often think of all these places, in far flung lands, being unsafe but again we need to look at countries which are only a couple of hours flying time away from the UK. Fortunately I have two travelling companions who are extremely prudent and cautious and who will, I am sure, reign in my sometimes ‘cavalier’ outlook. We have all purchased body wallets that we can keep our money, cards and phones in – these are worn underneath your clothes and cannot be seen. https://go.travel/uk/security/money-holders/body-pocket

Secondly “Are we really going to make a difference? ” My response to that is overwhelmingly “yes”. Obviously in 3 weeks we appreciate that we will not ‘change the world’ and as short term volunteers we will not actually be teaching the children but acting as classroom assistants, mostly in English lessons. Hopefully we will be able to sit with individuals/small groups and help them with writing/speaking English words. IT is more or less a ‘universal language’ so I am hoping we can add value in IT lessons as well. Michelle tells us that without English and IT skills the children of Jocotenango will probably end up selling tortillas on the street. The city of Antigua holds some of the biggest tourist attractions in Guatemala with lots of job opportunities in leisure and tourism for those who can speak English and who have computer skills. If we only help one child learn a few new words that will one day lead to gameful employment then our trip will have been worthwhile.

Please follow this link to learn more about how volunteers get involved at “The School of Hope” https://www.eftc.org.uk/en/get-involved/volunteer-in-guatemala

So now here I am on Sunday night with only 2 days left to shop, pack, have my hair done and a million other things still to cross off my list. The messages from Karen and Jan are coming at regular intervals reminding one another of things we may have forgotten… Jan was horrified I had missed off TCP and Karen, as ever the ‘sensible one’ (sometimes), added head torches to the list. At the moment I am feeling both apprehensive and excited – but am I glad I am embarking on this adventure? “You bet I am”.