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It's that time of year again -- students are getting ready for the upcoming school year, and registration deadlines are fast approaching! We still have many students in need of sponsorship. Go to the Sponsor a Student page today to read their stories and sponsor a child for the 2011 school year. |
| Holiday Baskets |  |
Mayan Families is gearing up for our annual Holiday Tamale Basket drive. These baskets give families a festive Christmas meal including tamales, rice, meat, drinking chocolate, and other traditional foods. A donation of $35 will provide a basket to feed an entire family. Click here to make a donation. |
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Part 2 Monthly e-Newsletter November-2010 |
Greetings!
Welcome to the Mayan Families monthly newsletter part 2. Thank you to all of our supporters -- read about the families we've been able to help thanks to your generosity, and what's in store for December and January.
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Medical Funds Change Lives  In the past month, Mayan Families has been responding to an overwhelming need for medical treatment. Because treatment is so expensive and only 5% of indigenous Guatemalans are insured, families usually first try the free Health Center. Unfortunately, the overworked and underfunded doctors there often overlook important cases, and families with grave illnesses are shuffled aside. Such was the case with two-month-old Miguel, whose mother took him to the Health Center when he showed signs of a severe flu. The doctors barely examined him before sending him home, where his condition quickly deteriorated. Fortunately, Mayan Families was able to use funds from the Medical Program to rush him to a private clinic, where a thorough examination revealed he had much more than the flu - he had a severe case of bronchopneumonia, and was on the verge of death. After three days of constant medical attention, the doctors finally declared Miguel stable, and the family (as well as everyone at Mayan Families!) breathed a deep sigh of relief. You can read Miguel's story and others on the Family Aid blog.
The Mayan Families General medical funds allow us to respond quickly to urgent crises, such as Miguel's case. This holiday season, consider giving a general donation to the Medical Fund. Your donation could mean the difference between life and death for a family in need. To donate, click here, make your donation in the "Other" box, and indicate "General Medical Funds" in the Details box. |
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A Great Month for the Elderly Care Program 
The Elderly Care Program has made great strides this month. We've added seven new members to the daily lunch run and received a number of onetime donations that have been a great help to Panajachel's elderly. This month, we were able to distribute food, towels, clothing and sheets to many in the program (see the photos here), and were even able to give beds to a few! One person who received a bed was 81-year-old Victor, who broke his leg and had been sleeping on a bed made of wooden planks and straw with a giant hole in the middle. A donation from a Mayan Families supporter provided him a brand new bed and mattress, which made dealing with his broken leg a lot more comfortable. Another elderly woman named Francisca was also in desperate need of a bed - she is 90 years old and suffers a number of medical problems, but her family could not afford a bed for her. She had been sleeping curled up on a tiny bit of floor, directly behind the door. A onetime donation brought her a new bed, and she can finally sleep in comfort.
This program has grown from a simple feeding program to an overall care program, making sure that these elderly people get medical treatment and basic necessities. While medicine is crucial to ensuring that the elderly don't live in pain, it can also be expensive. You can help the Elderly Care Program by making a general donation, which will help us continue to bring food, medical treatment, and other necessities to the elderly. You can also sponsor an elderly person to help pay for their medical treatment and food - Francisca and Tereso are two participants who could greatly benefit from a medicine sponsorship! To make a general donation, click here, enter your donation in the Other box, and type in "Elderly Care Program" in the Details box. To sponsor an elderly person monthly, please click here, enter in donation in the Other Program section, and write the name of the person you wish to sponsor. Read more about the program on the Elderly Care Blog. |
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Milk for New Mothers
 Mayan Families has also been working recently to expand its Milk Program, which exists to help poor mothers care for their infants. The cost of milk in this area is surprisingly high, and many people don't realize how hard it can be for new mothers to feed their children. Guatemala has one of the worst rates of chronic malnutrition in Latin America: 30% of pregnant women face nutritional deficits, and 68% of indigenous children suffer chronic malnutrition. Malnutrition for the mother has far-reaching consequences for the child. Without proper nutrition, her milk dries up, leaving her unable to breastfeed. This problem is compounded by the disproportionately high cost of milk in the area. For an infant who needs baby formula, the cost is $54 per month. After a year, when the baby can drink milk, the cost is still $30 per month. In a country where 21.5% of the population lives on less than $1 a day, this is a prohibitively high cost for these many mothers. The most impoverished mothers are most at risk of seeing their milk drying up due to malnutrition, yet they are also the least likely to be able to afford milk or formula. With both natural milk and milk substitutes denied to them, they have no way of feeding their newborn children.
This creates a vicious cycle of malnutrition. Over a third of babies between 3 and 23 months suffer from chronic malnutrition, and of that, 13% face severe malnutrition. The Milk Program helps these mothers break the cycle of malnutrition by providing milk to their newborn infants. To help us expand this program to more mothers, click here, enter your donation in the Other section, and write "Milk Program" in the details section. |
To make a contribution please go to our website http://mayanfamilies.org/DonateOnlineand go the General Donation section to send a donation. If you would like to nominate a special family or a sponsored student to receive your basket please send us their name or student number by e-mail to Sharon@mayanfamilies.org
If you would like to pay by check please send your donation made out to Mayan Families to:
Mayan FamiliesP.O. Box 52Claremont, N.C. 28610 If you would like to give this gift in Honor of someone special, please send us an email at dwight@mayanfamilies.orggiving us the details and we will put them on our IN HONOR OF web page.....if you would like to include a photo of your "someone special" we will also post their photo.......to have an e-mail sent to the person you are honoring - please send us their email address.
Thank you for your support.Best wishes,Sharon Smart-PoageMAYAN FAMILIESTel: 619-550-2608 www.mayanfamilies.org ABOUT US:Mayan Families is a small non-profit group working in the Highlands ofGuatemala. We are a registered 501(c)(3) Non Profit Charity of the Internal Revenue Code. .Your donation is tax deductible. P.S. Please help spread the word by forwarding this e-mail to yourcommunity or posting it on your personal blog, web page and your socialnetworks such as Facebook, You Tube, MySpace, Twitter, Hi5, Blogs and any others thatare appropriate.
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Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! Sincerely,
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