We are now beginning to look for sponsors for the 2010 school year. Help the children of the El Hato School and sponsor a child in the elementary school. There will be roughly 225 kids starting school in January and they all need help!
Sponsors pay $45 for the entire year and this pays for all of the child's school supplies plus pays for them to go on a field trip to the movies. Sponsors receive an emailed photo of their child, plus updates on school happenings throughout the year.
In 2009 we were able to get all the kids sponsored and take them on a field trip to the Guatemala City Zoo and this trip was a HUGE success and it was an amazing experience for the village kids. We hope to be able to sponsor all the children in 2010.
There are many ways to make your donation:
1) You can send a paypal donation to elhatoschool@yahoo.com
2) You can deposit or wire money into either our US (Citbank) or Canadian (TD Canada) bank accounts (please email first for account numbers and information)
3) You can deposit or wire money directly in the school account at Banco Internacional in Antigua (please email for more information)
3) For those in the US, you can send a check to the NGO Las Manos de Christine. This NGO is partnering with the Earth Lodge in helping the El Hato School and you can donate and receive a tax deductible receipt!! 100% of your donation goes directly to the El Hato School, there are no overhead costs.
If you wish to donate this way, please make out your check or money order to Las Manos de Christine at 824 Cantebury Arch, Las Cruces N.M. 88005. Please include a note saying that the donation is for the El Hato School sponsorship program and if you can also send an email to elhatoschool@yahoo.com to let us know that a check was sent so we can follow up. We also need to receive this email so we can have your email address on file in order to send the child's photo.
Thanks to all for their continued support over the past 3 years. The El Hato School is growing and improving every year, and more kids are now attending school than ever before. This is largely due to the efforts and donations of the sponsors!
If you have any questions, please email Briana at elhatoschool@yahoo.com.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
End of the school year Party!!
Coming up soon at the end of October is the end of the school year party at the El Hato School. We have completely run out of donation money, so if we are going to give the kids a party this year, we need to raise more money!!
For the past 2 years, we have hired trampolines, a bouncy castle, bought pinatas for each grade and bought the food for the lunch. The cost of this party is about $700 US, so any help you can give is highly appreciated; if we don't raise the money, then there unfortunately will be no party this year!!
Please contact Briana at elhatoschool@yahoo.com if you can donate. There are many ways to give...either via paypal, in our US or Canadian bank accounts, in our Guatemalan bank account that we use just for school donations, or you can send a check to Los Manos de Christine to get a US tax write off. All of the appropriate information can be given to you when you contact us.
Thanks again to all for their continuing support.
Here are some photos from previous parties!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Tree Planting and Garbage Pick up!
On Aug. 18th, the children at the El Hato school planted 120 Gravilea trees. Earth Lodge bought these trees from the organization "As Green as it Gets" and we thank them for giving us such a great price!
The day started with a presentation of the importance and benefits of planting trees. The children explained that trees give water and oxygen as well as supplying firewood, fruit, paper and furniture. After the presentation, the children paired up and planted their trees!
The idea is that the each child is responsible for the tree that they planted, making sure it has water and picking the weeds around it. The children also picked up any garbage they found whilst planting the trees and put the rubbish in the garbage hole that was dug last year at the school.
Thanks to those that donated for this reforestation program!
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Traveling School Video
In February, Earth Lodge hosted a group of 12 high school girls for 12 days. They were one of the best groups we've ever had, and they took a day to go up to the El Hato School to visit with the children. The founder of the school, Gennifre, made a great video that you can see on YouTube. Follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFqsoBup2I8
A new Partnership and A new way to Donate
Earth Lodge will be partnering with the NGO Las Manos de Christine for the 2010 school. Las Manos will be providing English classes for the kids in the El Hato School.
Because Las Manos is a US registered NGO, now you can donate and receive a tax deductible receipt!!
Please make out your check or money order to Las Manos de Christine. Send your donation to 824 Cantebury Arch, Las Cruces N.M. 88005. Please include a note saying that the donation is for the El Hato School and if you have a specific request for what the money is to be used for (i.e. sponsorship of a child, reforestation program, food for the breakfasts, or misc. supplies). * Please include your address so that we can send you your tax deductible receipt.
For more information on Las Manos go to: sites.google.com/site/lasmanosdechristine/
Because Las Manos is a US registered NGO, now you can donate and receive a tax deductible receipt!!
Please make out your check or money order to Las Manos de Christine. Send your donation to 824 Cantebury Arch, Las Cruces N.M. 88005. Please include a note saying that the donation is for the El Hato School and if you have a specific request for what the money is to be used for (i.e. sponsorship of a child, reforestation program, food for the breakfasts, or misc. supplies). * Please include your address so that we can send you your tax deductible receipt.
For more information on Las Manos go to: sites.google.com/site/lasmanosdechristine/
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Reforestation project at the School!
We are now raising money to buy trees to plant at the school. For Q15 ($2 US) we can buy a fast growing Gravilea tree. The trees will be planted by the children in June and July. We will be promoting environmental awareness and education, and discussing with the children the value of reforesting. We are hoping to buy at least 100 trees for this year, please help if you can.
Contact Briana at elhatoschool@yahoo.com.
Thanks!
Contact Briana at elhatoschool@yahoo.com.
Thanks!
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Mother's Day and Misc
The school celebrated Mother's Day on May 7th. Each class performed a skit or dance for the moms and then a meal was served to all of the mothers. We had volunteers from the Lodge do face painting for the kids.
The English classes with the kids are going well, volunteers from the lodge oftentimes go to help the English teacher, Luis, with the classes. We also used the last bit of our school sponsorship money to buy geography books for the whole school. The last photo is of some of the kids holding up these books.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Help the Children at the El Hato School!
The village of El Hato is located about 7km outside of Antigua, Guatemala which is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country. El Hato has a population of about 800 people, most of them under the age of 18. It is not uncommon for a family to have 6 or 8 children and some families have as many as 12 children.
The public school in El Hato has 217 children from kindergarten up to 6th grade. Families pay about $2 US to sign their child up for the school year and then have to purchase school supplies in Antigua that range from $20-$30 depending on what grade their child is in. The average income for each working family member is about $200 per month, with most families having only one income. Therefore the cost of buying school supplies can be quite a burden especially if there are several children attending school. Some families send their children to school without the supplies needed and the teachers try to solicit funds from businesses in Antigua or from the government.
Many parents opt to keep their children at home to help with the cooking, collecting of firewood, cleaning and caring of younger siblings. Some children are kept at home while both of their parents go to work in Antigua. Some families send their children to school only until they are able to read, write and do basic math which are skills that will help them find work in the future.
The government of Guatemala provides funds for each child to have breakfast before they begin school. Breakfast is prepared by mothers of students and is prepared in the kitchen on school property. The amount of money supplied to the school for each student is a meager 12 cents per child per day. The money is paid every 3 months and by the end of that time, there is usually little or no funds left. A typical breakfast could be corn flakes with milk or rice & beans or atol, which is a local drink made up of corn & sugar. We have concentrated many of our funds on buying fruits, vegetables and other staples to give the children a better breakfast. The children also take a multi-vitamin with every breakfast.
For the 2009 school year, we got ALL of the kids sponsored!! We bought all of the school supplies for these children, plus we took all of the kids that finished the 2008 school year on a field trip the Guatemala City Zoo and Kid’s Museum. The children had an amazing day and we hope to be able to take them again next year. English classes are continuing twice a week and we are continuing to buy vegetables for the children’s breakfasts.
This year we also found donations to send 7 kids to middle school in Antigua. This is a private school and it costs about $1000 per year per child. This includes their uniforms, books, supplies, and transportation to and from school. This is the first time that children from El Hato have gone to private school and due to the small class size, they are doing very well.
OUR GOALS FOR THE FUTURE
The school is looking for more 2nd hand computers for the lab. We have some funds to build a better fence around the school, but the project has turned out to be bigger than we thought so more funds are needed for that. We always are trying to raise money to buy vegetables & other food staples for the schools’ breakfasts and also for additional school supplies needed throughout the year.
We also hope to start raising funds to send more kids to Antigua next year for middle school.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Any monetary donation is much appreciated and will be used towards kitchen, school or construction supplies. Many people who travel from North America or Europe to Guatemala bring school supplies with them which is something that is always needed. Please contact Briana Havey via email at earthlodge@gmail.com to find out more information on how to help the children of El Hato.
The public school in El Hato has 217 children from kindergarten up to 6th grade. Families pay about $2 US to sign their child up for the school year and then have to purchase school supplies in Antigua that range from $20-$30 depending on what grade their child is in. The average income for each working family member is about $200 per month, with most families having only one income. Therefore the cost of buying school supplies can be quite a burden especially if there are several children attending school. Some families send their children to school without the supplies needed and the teachers try to solicit funds from businesses in Antigua or from the government.
Many parents opt to keep their children at home to help with the cooking, collecting of firewood, cleaning and caring of younger siblings. Some children are kept at home while both of their parents go to work in Antigua. Some families send their children to school only until they are able to read, write and do basic math which are skills that will help them find work in the future.
The government of Guatemala provides funds for each child to have breakfast before they begin school. Breakfast is prepared by mothers of students and is prepared in the kitchen on school property. The amount of money supplied to the school for each student is a meager 12 cents per child per day. The money is paid every 3 months and by the end of that time, there is usually little or no funds left. A typical breakfast could be corn flakes with milk or rice & beans or atol, which is a local drink made up of corn & sugar. We have concentrated many of our funds on buying fruits, vegetables and other staples to give the children a better breakfast. The children also take a multi-vitamin with every breakfast.
For the 2009 school year, we got ALL of the kids sponsored!! We bought all of the school supplies for these children, plus we took all of the kids that finished the 2008 school year on a field trip the Guatemala City Zoo and Kid’s Museum. The children had an amazing day and we hope to be able to take them again next year. English classes are continuing twice a week and we are continuing to buy vegetables for the children’s breakfasts.
This year we also found donations to send 7 kids to middle school in Antigua. This is a private school and it costs about $1000 per year per child. This includes their uniforms, books, supplies, and transportation to and from school. This is the first time that children from El Hato have gone to private school and due to the small class size, they are doing very well.
OUR GOALS FOR THE FUTURE
The school is looking for more 2nd hand computers for the lab. We have some funds to build a better fence around the school, but the project has turned out to be bigger than we thought so more funds are needed for that. We always are trying to raise money to buy vegetables & other food staples for the schools’ breakfasts and also for additional school supplies needed throughout the year.
We also hope to start raising funds to send more kids to Antigua next year for middle school.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Any monetary donation is much appreciated and will be used towards kitchen, school or construction supplies. Many people who travel from North America or Europe to Guatemala bring school supplies with them which is something that is always needed. Please contact Briana Havey via email at earthlodge@gmail.com to find out more information on how to help the children of El Hato.
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