In a season of uncertainty due to the COVID-19 coronavirus threat, Child Aid is grateful to be able to support our staff members in the United States and Guatemala by safeguarding their jobs and continuing their pay during this crisis.

Your steadfast support of our mission has always meant the world to us, and Child Aid has honored your allegiance by spending wisely, planning earnestly and saving our pennies for just such an emergency. And while some of us have the means to weather a crisis of this magnitude a little worse for the wear, our staff in Guatemala is particularly vulnerable to the worst economic effects of a global pandemic. To know that we can offer even a little bit of shelter during these scary times makes us proud, and it should make you proud, too. We couldn’t do any of this without you.

In Guatemala, all of Child Aid’s in-classroom program activities have ceased due to a government-ordered national school closure. Child Aid is taking all precautions to safeguard the communities where our staff live and work by practicing social distancing, sanitation best practices and being a source of well-vetted and up-to-date information about the spread and containment of the virus. Our staff is using this time to delve into professional development and long-range planning and is communicating with each other easily through our already-established virtual technology. Additionally, we are exploring ways in which we can virtually support the thousands of educators and children we normally see in schools, including preparing and distributing videos of staff reading Spanish language children’s books. Our hope is that we can provide a measure of normalcy, joy and learning to the children of Guatemala. 

As always, Child Aid appreciates your care and support of our fundamental mission: bringing quality education to the children of Guatemala. We aren’t budging from our commitment, and we know you aren’t either.

Thank you for your unflagging support, and I promise to keep you informed about the state of our staff and the people of Guatemala throughout this crisis.

Please keep safe.

Warmly,

Nancy Press Ph.D.
Child Aid CEO