Protecting household gardens from 6 months of devastating seasonal rains will allow families in rural Guatemala to grow nutritious greens and vegetables, and thus have better nutrition, throughout the entire year.
In Guatemala, over HALF of children under 5 suffer from malnutrition, & in poor rural areas simply having enough food is a serious problem. Our main project fights malnutrition & increases food availability by teaching families home gardening skills. However, the rainy season brings 6 months of devastating rains which can ruin the gardens, destroying plants & washing away carefully prepared soil. Thus, families get improved nutrition & more food for only HALF the year.
To solve the problem of destructive rain, simple structures called Toldos will protect the gardens. Designed to allow good air circulation to avoid heat buildup or diseases caused by trapped humidity, the Toldos are made with local bamboo, and no power tools or expensive hardware are needed. Average cost for a Toldo is $150 for the covering plastic, bamboo as needed, and staff to help single moms build their Toldos. YOUR SUPPORT IN ANY AMOUNT WILL REALLY HELP THESE RURAL FAMILIES.
Protective Toldos will first be built for the 65 most needy of our 300+ participating families, giving them access to nutritious vegetables and greens for the entire year. As other families adopt Toldos to protect their gardens year-round, Toldos will join with other gardening skills & nutrition knowledge to form a sustainable resource shared throughout the community, and hundreds of children will be spared a lifetime of suffering from the long-term damaging effects of malnutrion.