Take a look at how the local Church in Guatemala is sacrificially working to stop the spread of COVID-19 among the most vulnerable in their country.
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Ingrid, the Compassion alumna epidemiologist
There are many heroes on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic, working to find a cure, to protect others and to prevent the spread of the virus.
Compassion alumna, Ingrid of Guatemala, is one of these heroes. Ingrid is an epidemiologist, specializing in treating lung diseases at one of the three hospitals that Guatemala’s government has designated to treat COVID-19 cases.
Ingrid (far right) receiving a donation of masks to prevent contamination during medical checks.
“When we received the first COVID-19 patient, the government designated one hospital to specialize in dealing with infected cases. I will work in the isolation area because there are few epidemiologists in Guatemala,” says Ingrid.
As well as helping to treat COVID-19 cases, Ingrid also works at preventing infections.
“I raise awareness to my neighbours, the people that I know, about how complicated the COVID-19 virus is. I tell them how to prevent infections and the cleaning protocols they need to follow,” she says.
The proud Compassion alumna shares how the program helped her to become who she is today.
“Without Compassion, I wouldn’t be a doctor, not even an epidemiologist. I owe too much to Compassion,” she says.
Thank you for your bravery in caring for the medical needs of the most vulnerable, Ingrid!
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Yonatan, the Compassion alumnus tailor
Compassion alumnus, 25-year-old Yonatan, is using his tailoring skills to sew face masks for his community.
Yonatan teaches tailoring at his former Compassion centre. With activities at the centre cancelled and a huge shortage of supplies facing his community, Yonatan decided to take matters into his own hands.
“When we heard the news that Guatemala had its first case of COVID-19, all of the people in the community stocked up on supplies at the pharmacies. I was worried about how we could protect ourselves, so I decided to make reusable face masks,” he says.
Yonatan is the only person producing face masks in the wider region.
“Be careful, follow the rules, stay at home, take it easy and trust in our Lord,” he says. “God will always take care of His sons and daughters.”
Thanks for the creative ways you’re using your skills to stop the spread of COVID-19, Yonatan!
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Centre distributes sanitizer from student workshop
Students at El Nazareno Child Development Centre making hand sanitizer before social distancing regulations were in place.
Before the lockdown, El Nazareno Child Development Centre in San Andres was running a workshop where teenagers learned to make hand sanitizer to sell at their local income generation fair.
When the COVID-19 pandemic broke out and all centre activities were cancelled, Elder, the centre director, had the idea to produce antibacterial soap and distribute the hand sanitizer the teenagers had made to the community.
We were working on the hand sanitizer when the local news notified us of the first virus infection here in Guatemala. Thanks to God, we had a good production before the lockdown,” he says.
Elder and his team began distributing the soap and antibacterial gel, along with bags of food, to parents of children in the Child Sponsorship Program. They even had enough to give to other vulnerable families in the community who aren’t part of the program.
A Compassion-sponsored child and her mom receive food and soap from El Nazareno Child Development Centre.
“It is a wonderful opportunity to help others. We are so impressed at how God prepared us before the lockdown. Thank God all of the children are safe in their homes,” says Elder. “We can’t wait until after lockdown to keep producing hygiene supplies to support the community.”
Thank you, Elder and El Nazareno Child Development Centre for your creative work and service to stop the spread of COVID-19!
Here are some prayer requests from our Compassion Guatemala team:
- Please pray for continued provision for all the children whose caregivers are unable to work and are struggling to provide for their families.
- Join with the Church in Guatemala in declaring victory over COVID-19 in Jesus’ name.
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You can help families affected by COVID-19 through our disaster relief fund.
For our most up-to-date information on COVID-19, please visit our updates page.
Words by Javier Ellis, with Laura Phillips
