Child Aid - Building Brighter Futures

General

Why does Child Aid work in such different areas?
The simple answer is we believe in people not projects. In Mexico Child Aid connected with skilled and dedicated people who were struggling to provide hearing services to children and adults living in poverty where literally no services existed. In Guatemala Child Aid identified dedicated individuals who with meager resources were working tirelessly to attack the problem of illiteracy through the vehicle of rural community libraries. The success and sustainability of our programs is based on empowering local people to create the change they seek to give their children greater opportunity.

What percentage of my donation will go to support program expenses?
To date, our Board of Directors has been sufficiently generous that their support pays for all administrative and fundraising expenses. Therefore, all other support Child Aid receives goes to program expenses. With costs so much lower than those in the U. S., your donation goes a long way and can make a huge difference in the lives of many children, families and communities.

Who are your donors?
Indivdiduals, from throughout the United States and world, who are committed to giving the very poor a hand up, not a hand out. People who give $10 or $10,000, directly or through workplace giving programs. People who believe all children should have a chance for a better life. Enlightened Foundations who understand that we all benefit by helping those less fortunate. Volunteers who donate their time and talent to make the world a better place for all.

If I am visiting or vacationing in Guatemala or Mexico can I see your work?
Yes, most people who visit Guatemala at some point visit Antigua. Our staff in Guatemala can arrange visits from Antigua to some of the nearby communities where we work. If you are visiting Oaxaca City, we can arrange for you to visit our partner CORAL.

How many employees do you have in the United States?
We have only 2 full time employees in our Portland, Oregon office, an Executive Director and an Administrator. These individuals are assisted at times by a student who receives a modest monthly stipend. Our founders also spend countless hours working for Child Aid without any compensation.

What are Affiliated Partners?
Affiliated Partners are individuals and organizations who we have been working with for a long period of time. These partners have matured to a point where, though they still receive significant assistance from Child Aid, they are separate locally incorporated entities. The level of Child Aid’s direct involvement varies among these partners.

Guatemala – Libraries and Literacy

Can a community library really make such a major impact?
Yes, by itself perhaps not, but when coupled with training, organizational development and literacy programs the impact is amazing. The library and school classrooms come to life. Learning becomes about critical thinking and dreaming, not about copying and memorizing.

Apart from Libraries, do you help improve education in other ways?
Yes, we provide large numbers of scholarships to students who would not otherwise be able to attend school. Child Aid has a growing teacher training program to help teachers learn how to bring reading and planning into their classrooms. We also provide meals for malnourished children, build classrooms, provide tutoring and support local parent and teacher groups seeking to improve their community’s educational opportunities.

Can I purchase Spanish books and send them to you to take to Guatemala for the libraries?
While we do occasionally take books down, this is not a very efficient method of delivery; books weigh a lot and take up a lot of space. We generally will try to take down items that are small but costly, such as items for computers. It is more efficient for us to combine monetary donations to pay for large shipments or purchase of specific textbooks the schools use in Guatemala.

Why are literacy statistics so unreliable?
Literacy is often based upon whether a person can write his/her name and whether they can read a simple paragraph. Importantly, not necessarily whether they fully understand what they read but whether they can simply pronounce most of the words. While this may be the extreme example, it shows the often unreliable nature of these statistics. It has been our experience that functional literacy is much lower than reported in statistics.

Where in Guatemala do you work?
Most of the communities where we work are in rural areas some distance outside of Antigua or in the Lago Atitlan area. Though many look close on a map, due to poor roads and the mountainous terrain they are somewhat isolated and can take many hours driving to reach.

Mexico – Hearing Services

Can children with severe hearing problems really enter public schools in Mexico?
Yes, success often depends on identifying and working with children at an early age. Without this, many hearing-impaired children in Oaxaca would literally never attend school. This is why CORAL’s Early Detection Program and Therapy/School Program are so important. To see what can be achieved please see the two videos about Ofelia that show what can be accomplished. See More

Do you provide hearing services for children and adults?
Yes, our main focus is on children however we also provide services to a large number of adults. Some of these adults would literally have lost their jobs but for the hearing services provided by our partner CORAL.

Aren’t there other testing services available for children in Oaxaca?
No, unless you are a person of means, there are no other early detection services for the poor in Oaxaca. We have also found that even when parents, who unfortunately did not know of CORAL, scrape together some money for a test, the quality of testing and the information they receive is let us say not the best.

Why do you say Oaxaca is the poorest state?
Oaxaca used to be considered the second poorest state but because of political problems the tourist industry has been hit hard severely impacting the local economy.