My Story

Chuchuca, where your child lives, is an area located high on the side of a mountain in the state of Quiché, Guatemala. Life in this area is very difficult and very isolated from the outside world. It is more than a two-hour walk to the nearest market town of Zacualpa. Chuchuca is a farming area where corn and black beans, the staple elements in their diet, are the major crops. The Quiché Indians who inhabit this area trace their ancestral roots to the ancient Mayan civilization. They normally speak an Indian dialect called Quiché - however, Spanish is becoming more common. Very little money ever changes hands in this area as they live on a barter system.

Hello! My name is Estela Pastor Benito. My birthdate is February 4, 2015, which makes me 9 years of age now. This year I am in second grade at school. I love cats and my favorite color is pink. I enjoy playing with dolls in my spare time. What I love to eat are noodles and chicken. Thankfully, my family and I are fairly well. However, my father does not hear well because some time ago he fell from a tree and due to the fall, his hearing is poor. My father´s name is Oscar Anibal Pastor Gomez. He does farm work in our village to supply our home needs. My mother´s name is Antonia Benito Sac. She stays busy with the chores, and she also raises hens and sheep.

We are members of the Catholic Church. Fortunately, my father is the owner of the house in which we live; there is only one room made of adobe, a tin roof and a dirt floor. The kitchen is separate. We get water from a stream and we have a solar panel to get light. As a family, we are in need of groceries and corn to make our tortillas. For me, it is a great blessing to have been admitted in the feeding program; I must walk 40 minutes to get to the feeding program. I appreciate so much that you are reading my information. Every kind of blessing for you!

Lots of love,

Estela Pastor Benito

Translated by: Violeta Hernandez / A-A-C Secretary-Antigua Guatemala