Casa Guatemala is looking for long term volunteer teachers who have a heart to take care of children who have been abused, abandoned, malnourished or living in abject poverty. The teachers will also assist with providing day-to-day care and supervision of the children who live onsite as well as in the school. The teachers must be at least 24 years old and will be working with children ages 5-14 years of age, some children do not start school until as old as nine years of age.

Volunteers should be comfortable to fluent in Spanish and be able to commit for three months. Areas of need are teaching or assisting with classes in English, Spanish, Physical Education, Geography, Reading, Math and Agriculture. They will work for three weeks and then have one week off per month as well as free time to go into town for supplies. Casa Guatemala is located in heart of the jungle of Southeastern Guatemala along the Rio Dulce with limited supplies, electricity, and road access. This also means there are no hot showers and the volunteer will be hand-washing their laundry and have basic living conditions. Some days volunteers may be discouraged by the facilities and by their struggle to connect with the children, but at the end of each day they will have that sense of satisfaction knowing that they've made a difference in someone’s life. Volunteers usually leave feeling great about the time they spent at Casa Guatemala and stay in contact throughout their lives.

During 2015, 255 children were enrolled in the school from pre-kindergarten through 6th Grade. With 127 of the children stay on site and only go home on weekends or during vacations. The remaining children come from home every day on foot or by boat from close by villages. The organization is currently helping 116 different families from 31 different communities. There are almost equal number of boys and girls, 76 percent of them speak Q’eqchias their first language and most don’t speak Spanish upon their arrival. It’s amazing to see the transformation in just a few months as they are now all learning, speaking and reading in Spanish and English thanks to our wonderful teachers and volunteers!

About Casa Guatemala:
Casa Guatemala is a school and home for children from Mayan Villages in Southeastern Guatemala. It was established in 1977 by a Canadian couple who wanted to reach out and assist the abused, malnourished, and orphaned children during the brutal civil war. Their efforts catalyzed the mission to provide a safe home where the children could be nurtured and provided with healthcare and education. Today, Casa Guatemala supports more than 250 children, and has approximately 20 international volunteers, 15 teachers, and 20 employees. They have affiliate registered charities in the US, Canada, and Spain that helps to raise the funds needed to operate the organization. Recently GreatNonprofits.org named Casa Guatemala a 2015 Great Nonprofit.

For more information view Casa Guatemala @ www.casa-guatemala.org/.