My Story

Chuchuca, where your child lives, is an area located high on the side of a mountain in the state of Quiché, Guatemala. Life in this area is very difficult and very isolated from the outside world. It is more than a two-hour walk to the nearest market town of Zacualpa. Chuchuca is a farming area where corn and black beans, the staple elements in their diet, are the major crops. The Quiché Indians who inhabit this area trace their ancestral roots to the ancient Mayan civilization. They normally speak an Indian dialect called Quiché - however, Spanish is becoming more common. Very little money ever changes hands in this area as they live on a barter system.

Hello! My name is Keily Floridalma Luis Morente. My birthdate is April 22, 2020, which makes me 4 years of age now. Due to my young age, I am not attending school yet. For now, I spend my time by playing with my dolls at home. I love animals and I like cows. My favorite color is sky blue. I enjoy eating eggs with black beans. I live happily with my father and my mother; I have two brothers and two sisters. My father´s name is Mario Luis Ruiz. He works both as a farmer and day laborer in our village to provide for us. Furthermore, he goes to pick coffee beans from November to February to get more income. My mother´s name is Marcela Morente Chingo. She usually stays busy with the housework, and she raises hens and pigs. I am healthy and as well my family.

Let me tell you that my mother is the owner the house in which we live; there is only one room made of wooden boards, a tin roof and a dirt floor. We do not have a kitchen so my mother cooks inside the room. We do not have running water or electricity at home; we have a solar panel to get light, and we get the water from my uncle´s house. My father pays for the water and it is a yearly payment. We are a very humble family and our main need is groceries. I walk 40 minutes to arrive to the feeding program and my mother is the one who takes me to the program. We attend the Light and Life Assembly of God Church. This is all for now. Many and abundant blessings over you!

Kisses and hugs,

Keily Floridalma Luis Morente

Translated by: Violeta Hernandez / A-A-C Secretary-Antigua Guatemala