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 corps. 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, I am so excited to introduce myself and I hope you find it interesting! My name is Sulma Lucy Mechen Ruiz. My birth date is January 28, 2016, and I am a 9-year-old girl. I am a third-grade student this year. My hobby is to play with my dolls. I love the color pink, and I like ducks. The meal I love the most is eggs with smashed tomato sauce. I live with my mother one brother and one sister; thanks to God, we are in good health. My father´s name is Hector Mechen Gomez. Unfortunately, he abandoned us two years ago and we know nothing about him. Thankfully, I have a hard-working mother and she provides for our home needs. She does the household chores, and she goes to wash clothes and make tortillas for other people. She also raises hens to sell and help herself economically. Her name is Irma Petrona Ruiz Gomez.

We are members of the Church of Christ. The house in which we live belongs to my grandfather, and we share the house with my great-grandfather. There are three adobe rooms with a tile roof and a cement floor. We use two of the rooms and the kitchen is separate. We have electricity, and my mother pays for it every month. We do not have running water, but fortunately, one uncle provides it to us, and we do not pay for it. Our greatest needs are groceries, corn and clothes. I am so thankful for the opportunity to be enrolled in the feeding program, and I walk 30 minutes to arrive. Thank you so much for your beautiful heart for the people in Guatemala like me. Every blessing for you!

A bunch of hugs,

Sulma Lucy Mechen Ruiz

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