Category Archives: Rotary Club

Tilapia tank project provides sustainable food source

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Members of the Rotary Club of Lake in the Hills (district 6440) were just down to implement an ambitious food security and sustainability project to benefit the students of Ak’ Tenamit’s Father Tom Moran Education Center and, in the long-term, their communities. They worked alongside students and teachers from the agricultural department to build two 4′ x 24′ tilapia tanks that will not only supplement students’ meals but serve as a practical classroom where students will gain experience maintaining a project that can provide income and food for their communities. In the coming months, students and staff hope to build an additional tank using their new skills and the materials Rotarians provided.

Preparing the area where the tanks were built

Filling the two side-by-side tanks with water

The tanks are a great fit for our students and their communities because tilapia is a nutritious fish, easy to care for, and the tank design is extremely sustainable.  The pumps in the pond filter water from the fish tanks up into a series of gravel beds in which a variety of plants and vegetables will be grown. The waste from the fish serves as a fertilizer for the plants and these plants filter the water before it returns to the fish tank.

Students don't waste time passing gravel

Filling the gravel beds

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Rotary 6440 is at it again

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The deafening sound of hammers, drills and sanders rang out at Ak’ Tenamit’s Nuevo Centro, alerting the students, teachers and staff of the start of this year’s Rotary District 6440 two week long service trip.  The Rotarians worked alongside students to build four bungalows, which will be used as a jungle eco-lodge. The lodge will serve as one of several practical classrooms where students receive hands-on tourism and management training.  In addition to the bungalows, they also sanded and varnished the tables in the school’s dining hall and the walls of the library and dormitories to protect the wood from the wear and tear of the rain forest.

Rotarians and students work side-by-side building bungalows

Some participants helped to sort, label and shelve books in the library while others assisted with the English classes or improvised English tutoring groups with students.  6440′s Governor-Elect Carlos Frum also led an intensive course on entrepreneurship and helped students develop a business plan, which they presented at the end of the course.

To wrap up their trip, the group delivered water filters to families in several communities that do not have access to clean water.  They also helped assemble the filters and taught families to use the systems properly.

As if their donation of time and energy wasn’t enough, the work teams also raised the funding for the building materials and water filters.  The collaboration with Rotary International is an invaluable resource to Ak’ Tenamit.  Thank you to all of the participants of this year’s service trip and to all of those who made their work possible!

Patient walks 14 HOURS to visit doctor

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Several weeks ago a patient, “Luis,” visited our clinic because he was having trouble seeing, and Dr. Omar suspected that cataracts were to blame.  He made an appointment for Luis to see an opthamologist in Rio Dulce and promised to meet him at the office.  When Dr. Omar arrived at the appointment yesterday he learned that Luis walked or, more precisely, hiked, 7 hours through the jungle to reach the doctor.  He would then hike 7 hours back home.  14 hours round trip. He’ll repeat the 14 hour trip in two weeks when he returns for cataract surgery.  That makes a grand total of 28 hours of walking to receive healthcare.  The doctor was so moved by Luis’ determination that he is going to provide the surgery free of charge.

Luis said that he thought nothing of making the trip because he knew his family would fall into even deeper poverty if he lost his sight.  He is raising four children alone and if he went blind he couldn’t work or harvest crops.  That would mean not being able to feed his family, much less provide clean clothes or send them to school…  The smallest hope that someone would be able to save his sight and more importantly, his family, drove him to make the effort.

The opportunity to receive medical care is something that communities in Rio Dulce do not take for granted; it is so sorely lacking that people will walk 14 hours for one appointment.  Thank you so much to all those who have supported our healthcare program.  You make it possible for patients like Luis to ensure that they are able to continue providing for their family.

Reflections on Trans-America ride

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Jean prepares for his ride

On July 7, we wrote about the cross-country motorcycle ride that Rotarian Jean Vayssier organized to raise funds for Ak’ Tenamit’s secondary school.  Jean believes so deeply that education holds the power to transform lives in Guatemala that he drove across the US to raise support for Ak’ Tenamit’s education programs.  He began his trip in Washington DC on June 7, 2010 and made his way to Seattle before finally arriving in Albequerque one month later.  Along the way Jean spoke at Rotarian Clubs about the importance of educational programs like Ak’ Tenamit’s and their connection to reducing undocumented immigration.  He also invited other motorcyclists to show their support by joining the ride.  We are extremely humbled and grateful for his commitment to the Q’eqchi communities we serve.  Below are Jean’s reflections about his experience…  To read more about Jean’s trip and see pictures of his experiences visit his blog  http://transamericatenamit.blogspot.com

“In May 2009 I bought a BMW touring motorcycle in Albuquerque, NM.  My intention was to ride around the United States, 50 years after the author John Steinbeck drove almost the same route to rediscover his home country.

On July 8, 2010 I reached Albuquerque again, having covered 12,634 miles, a distance equivalent to half of the earth´s circumference, through 28 states.  I had traversed snow covered mountain passes at 10,000 feet altitude in 38 F, and crossed the lowest point of  Death Valley at 191 feet  below sea level in 110 F.  I was burned by the desert sun of Texas, drenched by rainstorms along the Mississippi and blasted by 60 mph winds on the Midwestern prairie during my 2 month trip.

I will never forget the solitude of the wilderness of Idaho and the wind swept beaches of the North Pacific.  What joy to sleep snow covered ground in the Wyoming mountains, and in the majestic redwood forests of the Oregon coast.  I saw the vastness and beauty of a great country, the United States of America, learned its history of struggle and discovery and met many good and generous people, always willing to lend a helping hand and invite me into their homes.

It was voyage of discovery and introspection, of joy and loneliness, and of great challenge and freedom.  I will never forget!”

If you are interested in organizing an event to benefit Ak’ Tenamit, please contact our office at theguatfund@gmail.com.