On May 27th, 2023, Mission JADE is hosting our third Art and Wine Walk Fundraiser for the Artists Against Trafficking movement! This fundraiser will be hosted at Legacy Park in San Antonio, to support 30 artists who have made a pledge to Mission JADE to stand against child labor trafficking. We are partnering with the Latin Indigenous Community in San Antonio to host a beautiful event to support the indigenous, Mayan, and Latin communities in Texas and Guatemala. We will have traditional Mayan foods, indigenous dancers, performers, musicians, and artists. This is our first free event to the public, so grab your family and come along!
Our goal is to raise funds to expand our current three programs in Guatemala. We have nearly 100 children we are supporting through our operations, and are looking to onboard more children to provide them a chance at JADE (Joy, Abundance, Development, Education). This event on May 27th, will be one of our most diverse fundraisers yet!
We are starting a podcast in January 2023 in partnership with University of Houston. This podcast will be focusing on labor trafficking, human trafficking in central america, and hearing the testimonies of advocates and survivors. We would love to have you on the podcast as a supporter and advocate yourself. Please email me at bonnie@missionjade.org so we can collaborate on a podcast episode. Please visit my latest podcast presentation with Creative Society for an idea of how our podcast will operate - https://creativesociety.com/videos/are-people-a-commodity-hostages-of-modern-slavery-experts-talk
Huge thank you to Elena for making the Mission JADE podcast possible and Dr. Paola from University of Houston for organizing all these amazing interns! Our podcast will be available in Spanish and English. Stay tuned for more updates and be sure to follow us on Instagram, Tik Tok, and Youtube!
Resumen ejecutivo del centro educativo
En Mission J.A.D.E nuestro objetivo es combatir la trata laboral infantil en Guatemala eliminando los impedimentos educativos, ofreciendo posibilidades para los jóvenes ya comprometidos a ocupaciones peligrosas, y facilitar formas de educación preventiva tanto en las escuelas primarias como en las comunidades indígenas.
Los traficantes laborales tienden a tener como objetivo a indígenas guatemaltecos, incluidos los jóvenes para realizar trabajos forzados en fábricas dispersas en toda Guatemala y países extranjeros. Los casos de trabajos que no son de fábrica incluyen mendigar, la venta ambulante, y animadores callejeros, que se encuentran principalmente en la ciudad de Guatemala y pueblos fronterizos. Los jóvenes eran cada vez más vulnerables a la trata a medida que aumentaba el reclutamiento en línea debido a cierres de emergencia relacionados con la pandemia y el cierre de escuelas.
En Mission J.A.D.E trabajamos directamente en zonas rurales con tribus indígenas que son el blanco de traficantes laborales. Debido a la falta de educación en esta comunidad, la mayoría de los niños terminan solo cinco años de educación antes de tener un empleo. En Guatemala estamos implementando programas para evitar la trata laboral de 100 niños indígenas. A través de encuestas comunitarias periódicas en Chimaltenango y Zona 3, seguimos identificando a adolescentes en riesgo y que son maltratados. Al proporcionar educación, oportunidades laborales seguras, capacitación vocacional y necesidades básicas, estaremos abordando las causas profundas de la trata laboral. Actualmente, iniciamos programas sociales para abordar el trabajo infantil en la agricultura y el sector doméstico. Nos esforzamos para asegurar que los programas sociales se ejecuten, estén bien financiados y sean capaces de lograr sus objetivos, incluyendo llegar a las poblaciones indígenas y limitando la posible trata laboral.
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Operation Development Launch in Chuixilon!
We are launching Operation Development through a pilot program of English Mentorship for 30 indigenous children in Chuixilon! Operation Development is multi-layered program that will provide various styles of mentorships for children and youth to learn trade skills. We are breaking the cycle of poverty by providing opportunities of education and prosperity!
Imagine a day of not thinking about going to work nor having the responsibilities handed to you without your consent. Now, imagine being in that situation but as a child at a young age.
These children should be working on their dreams, not in the fields. They shouldn't be deprived of the basic needs that will interfere with their growth as an individual that can be of help to society in the near future.
JOIN Mission J.A.D.E. in fighting against labor trafficking of children. Our goal is solely focused on providing specialized services for each individual child. We break the cycle of poverty by providing mentorships and programs to help them thrive. From poverty into prosperity - you can be the reason for a child's education.
All it takes is one person to start the change and make a child feel loved, safe, and supported. Give the youth the gift of the future. Donate today and start a mentorship program with us!
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We are so thankful for your help to launch our first Prevention Education Program in Guatemala to help reduce child labor trafficking of children. Our first program launched in Zona Tres, the city dump, with 30 students. This three week program has 4 main topics -
1. Reduce vulnerability
2. Underestand key terms of human trafficking
3. Educate on red flags
4. Interventions - Move, Speak Up, Intervention.
Our goal is to expand this program next to Chuixilon, Guatemala for indigenous youth who will be attending our upcoming secondary education school! If you are interested in having our Prevention Education program in your local community, school, organization or event, send us an email at bonnie@missionjade.org.
Thank you supporters, activists, sponsors and our partners. Thank you for contributing to make this happen - every donation is one step closer to helping another child in need. Help us expand this program by donating, sharing this post, or purchasing a ticket to our fundraiser in HTX!
Every child deserves a chance at Joy, Abundance, Development, and Education. Our mission is to ensure they get it!
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We are proud to announce our food box program has expanded to 27 at risk youth in Chimaltenango, Guatemala! Our October food box distribution provided every child's family enough food to last one full month. We wouldn't have been able to continue and expand this program without our monthly donors!
Since our GlobalGiving Campaign and Art & Wine Walk Fundraiser, you have enabled us to expand our program to 27 indigenous youth in Chimaltenango, Guatemala! With your help, we have sustained families one month at a time, one food box at a time. Starting this December, you can choose exactly which child to sponsor.
That’s right, we officially have a Sponsor a Child program launching on December 1st!
Because of contributions like yours, we are able to launch our first Sponsor A Child program! For $35 a month, you can provide a 15 pound food box to one of the 27 indigenous families we are working with. The pandemic has been hard on us all, especially in Guatemala. People living in remote areas deserve to not worry about where their next meal or clean water comes from.
Before we introduce the full 27 children, I would like to give you an early opportunity to sponsor one of these three children. Introducing Elvis and Josue. Click the link tree in our bio to sponsor their monthly food boxes TODAY. After you register your child sponsorship, I will send you information about their personality, hobbies, dreams, and goals in life.
Although our next fundraiser in April 2022 is to open a secondary school for these children, it is your monthly donation that help keeps food on their table and enables them to pursue education. You are the change and we need your help!
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Looking back from where we started as Imhotep, LLC to where we are today, as Mission Jade – still on the same mission of fighting labor trafficking of boys in Guatemala, we are grateful that you remained with us through all transitions. At Mission Jade, we are especially appreciative of your support of our new Food Box Program and Prevention Education Program.
The Covid-19 pandemic has wrought insurmountable challenges towards the global economy, organizations and families. It is in times like these where the minority and vulnerable are easily forgotten and succumb to the suffering they’ve known all their lives. It is for this very reason that our collaborative efforts ensure that no boy child in Guatemala is forgotten.
To combat this, we are excited to announce that our food box program is well underway and has taken a successful turn, thanks to you and our fellow sponsors. The Food Box program was primarily created to provide the vulnerable with food during these trying times. With the funds raised in our GlobalGiving Campaign, we were able to launch our food box program operations by providing 60 boxes of food, weighing 15 lbs. each to at-risk and indigenous children and family members. By this August, we will deliver 40 more boxes and plan to expand this program by facilitating more community needs assessment for secondary age children who are at risk for labor trafficking.
We are so excited to share with you the impact you are creating soon! From this point onwards, we will be able to provide 3 monthly food boxes to children in need. This is a notable achievement, and we still need your support to further this project to enable us to provide more food boxes. Will you continue to stand with us?
For only $15 a month, you can sponsor a child’s 15lb food box!
One of the ailments of child labor trafficking is that it steals a child’s right to education. Our Prevention Education Program is aimed towards providing education, safe work opportunities and more to these at-risk children and their family members. Your continued support in this program enables us to reach more children thus increasing the literacy rate in impoverished areas.
In August 2021, Mission Jade is launching our Prevention Education course in Zone 3, the city dump. We have partnered with Luz para El Futuro to establish a 1 month training course for 7th - 10th graders.
Why did we choose Zone 3, the city dump, for our Prevention Education launch?
Life Inside the City Dump of GuatemalaCarlos grew up in Zone 3, known as “the city dump”. His family has never left the walls of the dump, as they all work by collecting recyclables inside of it. Carlos had dreams of pursuing education to be a firefighter. After missionaries opened a school near his house, he was able to begin elementary school at 12 years old. Shortly after he graduated his first year, he was offered a job opportunity on dump trucks. This dangerous job includes unsafe travels, unsanitary and hazardous work, and possibly migration. Carlos decided to trust in the offered money instead of education, as it was most familiar to him and enabled him to feed his family. Since he left the school, no one has been able to contact Carlos. This story is not uncommon for children in Guatemala, as most people live on less than $2 a day.
Resources and education are very limited especially for working children. By donating today, you are helping kids like Carlos stay in school by providing education materials and food for at-risk families. Additionally, our prevention education program will share the importance of education, safe work environments, and identification of labor trafficking red flags.
With your help, we can directly impact the lives of indigenous children and prevent the need for children to work. You can help a child like Carlos from the repercussions around crime revolved around exploitation.
We invite you to join us as we continue the mission. There are four main ways to get involved.
(1) Share your time! Join an outreach initiative. Contact Bonnie at Bonnie@missionjade.org.
(2) Share your talent! Join our Board of Director’s or a Committee: Governance, Fundraising, or Strategic Planning.
(3) Share your resources! Donate directly or support/volunteer at our fundraisers.
(4) Share with others! Like us on Facebook and share our upcoming educational posts to educate your friends and family.
Thank you for your friendship and support as we enter this next phase.
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