Guatemala

Guatemala is a democratic Central American country bordered by Mexico on the North and West. It is among the 10 poorest countries in Latin America and has a high number of children involved in sex trafficking.

The Facts
• More than half of the population is below the poverty line.

• 17.7% of children under age 5 are underweight.

• 12% of the population lives on less than a dollar a day.

•Net secondary school enrollment rates are 39% for females compared to 41% of males.

What Buckner is Doing
Buckner began working in Guatemala in 2002. In January of 2003, we began hosting volunteer mission trips and became a Guatemalan Foundation in 2005. Buckner has held, and continues to offer, ongoing training in the areas of foster care, preventative health care, child care, residential care and social services.

Buckner ministries in Guatemala include: two foster group homes and two transitional homes that provide a home-like environment for teens who have been victims of abuse or neglect while they pursue educational and vocational goals; an independent living program for motivated young ladies pursuing college degrees; three Community Transformation Centers, foster care and an assessment center.

Humanitarian Aid
Through humanitarian aid support and distribution of new shoes, Buckner is helping to prevent future disease and infection in children. Many diseases enter the body through the feet when a child walks through mud and filth without shoes. The gift of a new pair of shoes not only protects their feet, but keeps their entire body from being subjected to a number of diseases. New shoes also help a child go to school, where wearing shoes is often a requirement. Buckner has sent 99,029 pairs of shoes to Guatemala to date.

Foster Group Homes/Transitional Homes
Buckner sponsors two homes for boys and two for girls who are aging out of orphanage care. Residents are enrolled in an academic, vocational or rehabilitation program. Services include case management, room and board, education, job training, tutoring and mentoring. Assistance with childcare may also be provided for residents' children.

Buckner began its Transitional Home program in Guatemala in 2005 to help prepare children for independent living. These children are victims of abuse and neglect. A home-like environment is provided while the children pursue educational and vocational goals. The children are given the opportunity to heal and recover from an abusive situation, while learning to provide for themselves.

There are currently two foster group homes in Guatemala: the Marta y Maria home for girls ages 12 to 17 and the Leon de Juda home for boys ages 12 to 17. There are two transitional homes: the Genesis home for girls ages 18 to 21, and the Gedeones home for boys ages 18 to 21. Married couples serve as live-in house parents for about eight children in each home.

The educational and vocational training of the students is diverse. Many of the children come to Buckner with little or no education, and are enrolled in Buckner's home school. The school is certified by the Guatemala Educational Board. The older students attend local colleges and technical schools in the area and gain valuable business experience.

In addition to their regular studies, children have the opportunity to participate in music lessons. On the weekends they enjoy baking, cake decorating, and English classes. The classes are fun activities for the children, but also teach them skills that will help them be self-sufficient in the future.

Buckner Guatemala NGO will be responsible to be the liaison for the social work component, which entails an integrated continuum of child welfare through intake work, i.e. the initial investigation; counseling; working with the biological families and placement of the child. The CAC is centrally located to make it easy for families to get there. IJM will have a paralegal social worker to take cases to the criminal justice that need to be prosecuted.

Assessment Center
In the last quarter of 2010, an assessment center in collaboration with International Justice Mission was established. The Assessment Center program is designed to care for girls between the ages of 12 and 18 who cannot live at home because they are at-risk for abuse and human trafficking. The girls remain at the center for 3 to 6 months before they are transitioned into foster care, kinship care, or back to their homes through family intervention programs. In addition to providing emergency shelter, the center assesses the girls' cognitive, psychological, and social functioning, and provides crisis intervention services.

Independent Living Program
The Independent Living Program is dedicated to young ladies graduating from the transitional home programs that need alternative housing and minimal supervision. As they attend university, the girls still receive support such as vocational training, career planning and tutoring. These programs are offered to the students with the same self-sufficiency, independence goals as the transitional home programs.

How You Can Help:
• Pray: Make a commitment to pray for the children and families of Guatemala.

• Give: Make a donation online to support any of the programs listed above or call 214-758-8050 to make a donation by phone.

• Be an Advocate: Share the needs of children in Guatemala with your church, community, family and friends.

• Collect Shoes: Host a shoe drive or give a pair of shoes to help orphans and vulnerable children in Guatemala. Learn more at www.ShoesForOrphanSouls.org.