My Story

Zacualpa is a small but busy village in a mountain valley. The village is inhabited by both Quiché Mayans 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.

My name is Pascual Chitic Riz, and everyone calls me Pascualito. I am nine years old, and I was born on May 1, 2013. I am a healthy boy, and I attend the Zacualpa feeding program. I live with my parents, and with my two sisters. My father works as a farmer and as a day laborer; he supplies our needs. My mother is a housewife, and she raises some domestic animals. My family and I attend Living Water Church called Liberty. I am in the third grade at school. In my free time, I like to play football and ride a bicycle. I like the color red, and my favorite animal is the dinosaur. I like to eat fried chicken. We live in my father´s house, and it is made of block walls, tin sheet roof and concrete floor. We have two rooms; we use one room, and we have a kitchen. We have running water and electricity; my father pays for these services. At home, we have chickens. Our necessities are groceries and corn. My mother brings me to the feeding program, and we walk about fifteen minutes to attend the program.

Many blessings,

Pascual Chitic Riz

Translated by: Esther Hernández, AAC Secretary/Antigua