Helping With Crafts

One of the Christian ministries here in Chichicastenango, called Health Talents International, led by Kemmel and Lisa Dunham, has several health clinics in the area where they offer medical services at very low cost.  One of their programs is called the ABC Program for Children where the children earn points throughout the year for various activities, like having their teeth cleaned and especially for attending school.  At the end of the year the ministry has a big party for the participating children and their families.  (Most families here have at least 5 or 6 children, and often more!)

This year the girls and I were invited to the party to help translate into Spanish for the craft teachers.  A team of 17 came from a church in Colorado Springs.  They brought costumes and set up different stations where the children learned about the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.  (I thought it was a GREAT idea to teach about why Jesus came while we are celebrating His birth!)  There were so many guests that they split the party into two days with about 500 people each day.

The party started with an assembly where
we sang worship songs in Spanish and K'iche'.

Prizes were awarded to the children with the
highest points: a bike for first place, dressers
for second place, and some smaller gifts for
third place winners.

The children were grouped by age and gender to do crafts while they were waiting to participate in the Resurrection Stations.  I helped translate for Meghan, the teacher of the 11 to 13-year-old girls group, which had about 20 girls each day.  Carrie and Elena helped Mary Jo, the teacher of the 14 to 18-year-old girls group, which had about 35 girls each day.  Andrea stayed home to help babysit Veronica, which was a big help, too.

Elena and Carrie helped hand out supplies, translate
instructions into Spanish, and gather leftover materials. 
The children all speak K'iche' as their primary language,
so even though they interacted with Carrie and Elena
in Spanish, they spoke to each other in K'iche'.

I (Heather/Erica) did the same things with my
group.  Their outfits are always beautiful!

Lunch was served for all the guests,
about 500 each day.  They served chicken,
pasta salad, and tortillas.

They also served kool-aid (made with bottled
water) from a huge pot.  You can see the
huge pots of chicken on the tables.

We enjoyed our time helping the children celebrate their accomplishments.  Thanks Kemmel and Lisa for inviting us!