Emergency Relief Needed in Guatemala
After the eruption of Pacaya and the wrath of Tropical Storm Agatha, the country of Guatemala has been devastated, once again, by disaster. There is not a lot of media coverage about this and most media outlets are minimizing the country's distress by focusing only on the relatively low death count (low in comparison to hundreds and thousands sometimes killed in other disasters.)
Make no mistake, regardless of the lack of media coverage, the involvement of other countries and the lack of relief coming from large outside relief organizations, Guatemala has been hit hard by this and is in desperate need of relief.
The village of Pueblo Nuevo is not an exception.
Homes have been lost and severely damaged. Most personal belongings, which is usually only basic necessities, have been ruined by water and mud. Because of the destruction, most families lost what little food they had, have no water and are in need of shelter (or more stable shelter). The risk of mudslides continues. Because every thing has been ruined, families now more than ever lack clothing, shoes, what is needed to care for their children and themselves. They are living in extremely dangerous situations...in homes that were already not stable, but now are even weaker, on the side of a mountain as they watch the ground wash out from beneath them.
As a new organization, we may not have been fully prepared for this, but we knew that it was inevitable. For now we must look outside of our mission of orphan prevention through family outreach (poverty alleviation) and focus on emergency relief.
We cannot ship large boxes of clothing and shoes right now, but we can buy them there. We cannot bring large quantities of food from the U.S. right now, but we can buy it there. I know that you want to see your physical donations being distributed, but it is better for the people of Guatemala that we continue to purchase what we can there ensuring that more maintain their incomes. Please donate today!
Other ways you can help:
Spread the word about the devastation in Guatemala.
Fundraise. Hold a bake sale. Yard sale. Car wash. Anything you can to raise even the smallest amount of money for emergency relief.
Consider joining us on a relief trip in the coming weeks. Email terry@acrossallborders.org for more information.
Pray for the those struggling in Guatemala and those working to provide relief.
