Newsletter

Happy New (School) Year! School started this week for Escuela Integrada! On Monday, we welcomed 160 students at Escuela Integrada for a brand new school year. Twenty three of these students are brand new to our school. In Guatemala, schools begin in January and end in October. Instead of being off in June and July…

The clock is ticking on GRACES’ year-end campaign—at press time, we just passed the $25,000 mark. Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! Did you know that donations received on December 31 far outpace all other single-day giving the rest of the year?! Your donation today makes a big difference for GRACES’ Year-End…

Years ago I was attending a home visit with our psychologist, Lily. Periodically Lily will visit families’ homes, and I love being able to go with her. During this time, we had just started serving breakfast at Escuela Integrada. I have probably been on hundreds of home visits over the past 15 years, and there…

“In reality, it is a big help because sometimes times are tough, and it is really hard to even buy sugar,” said Lisbeth, a parent of a student at Escuela Integrada. For the families at Escuela Integrada, vacation months are not packed full with adventurous travel or meals in restaurants. Instead, it’s quite the opposite.…

Each November and December, every family at Escuela Integrada, including the teachers and staff, receive a food bag to get them through the months when school is not in session. In every food bag, families receive: 5 lbs bag of rice 5 lbs bag of beans 5 lbs bag of sugar Pancake mix 4 sticks…

Did you know that Guatemala has the 2nd highest rate of moderate or severe food insecurity in all of Latin America and the Caribbean? More than half of the population suffers from food and nutrition insecurity, which results in maladies such as stunted growth, susceptibility to illness, mental health difficulties and loss of structural brain…

A lifelong impact What happens to a student after they graduate from Escuela Integrada? With the school now in its 21st year, we are seeing the cyclical change that can occur in families simply by completing an education in Guatemala. As an organization we are working to improve our data-tracking capabilities so that we can…

Did you know that the academic year in Guatemala runs from January to October? This means school is almost out for summer for the kids and teachers at Escuela Integrada! The end of the year is an exciting time of celebration for the students, families and teachers. This week, students are completing their final exams…

As we recently wrapped up our Annual Sponsorship Appreciation Week, I wanted to take some time to reflect on and address some important aspects of our Sponsorship Program. GRACES Sponsorship Program is different from other sponsorship programs with large nonprofit organizations. This is an intentional difference and it centers on the concept of relationship building.…

Nearly ten years ago, a small group of people from the U.S. and Guatemala met in Antigua to discuss how they could continue to fund Escuela Integrada—despite extreme financial challenges. A newly-formed nonprofit, GRACES, sought to keep Escuela Integrada afloat. That moment became known as the first Supporters Gathering. Year after year, the practice of…