DARE Guatemala

1. DARE Guatemala In partnership with the Casa Jackson Malnutrition Centre

2. A Little Bit About Guatemala Guatemala is in Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize. The official language of Guatemala is Spanish The population of Guatemala is 15,438,384 There are a number of active volcanoes in Guatemala, and the mudflows of volcano eruptions have been responsible for 2 of the three moves of the Guatemalan capital.

3. The Project The main focus of the project this summer will be at the Casa Jackson malnutrition centre which is located on the outskirts of Antigua, Guatemala in the village of San Felipe de Jesús, Guatemala.  The program is based on five elements which work together to create long-lasting success: in house care of acute malnourishment, outpatient rehabilitation, field clinics to determine possible cases of malnutrition, community empowerment to fight malnutrition at its roots and rehabilitated living condition. Casa Jackson centre is designed to accommodate up to 20 in-house cases of severe malnourishment.  These patients consist of children and infants who run a high risk of mortality without immediate intervention. After the triaging process, admitted patients begin the sometimes long road to recovery.  The recovery approach of the centre was designed following the World Health Organization guidelines and implements approaches from different professionals in the field of malnutrition. 

4. What will you be doing? The project will mainly involve working within the CASA Jackson centre, but there may also be the possibility of working in the homeless shelter during the evenings.  The main aspects of work in Casa Jackson are feeding, bathing, and playing with the babies & toddlers. Other work includes cleaning the centre and training new volunteers. It is also possible to accompany social workers to visit some of the children from the school in their homes. Project money will most likely go towards supplies for the malnutrition centre & towards improving the building itself.  There will also be an opportunity to help out at the school, however volunteers would need an intermediate level of Spanish to do this. Casa Jackson, the homeless shelter & the school are all run by the same organisation NuestrosAhijados hence there is opportunity to work in different projects.

5. Where will you be staying? You will stay with a family at a home stay. It costs around £70 per week for accommodation for a week plus three meals a day from Monday to Saturday but this can vary from family to family. It is a great opportunity to practice Spanish and to get to know local people.

6. Brief Cost Overview Personal Travel Insurance Immunisations Flights In country Transport Food and drink Fee towards Accomodation

7. The Benefit of the Project • For the children: • Care of a child involves much more than providing them with a safe environment and sufficient nutrition. Children come into the world ready to absorb their environment.  Without mental stimulation and human affection, their bodies may grow, but their minds will slowly waste away. The volunteers make it possible to give constant love and attention to each and every child. • For Volunteers: • This project will allow volunteers to make a real impact to the lives of children – by helping to improve their wellbeing, and improve their rate of recovery from malnutrition. • Not only will you help others but you will also be immersed in another culture , meet new people and have a life changing experience which give you a new and broadened perspective (and probably make you want to do it again!) • You will also have the opportunity to travel and see more of Guatemala when the project finishes , or on days off so you can se the diversity of the country and all the country has to offer.