Scholarship Distribution in Chirijkiak, San Juan Ostuncalco, and Llanos del Pinal

San Juan Ostuncalco

Last week was a busy week for the Pop Wuj Scholarship Program, as meetings were held and scholarships were distributed in three communities: Chirijkiak on Wednesday, San Juan Ostuncalco on Thursday, and Llanos del Pinal on Friday. 

San Juan Ostuncalco

The idea of the Scholarship Program or the “becas” is to supplement a family’s income to pay for school-related needs such as books, writing utensils, and school uniforms, and/or to make up for the income forgone by having children attend school rather than work.  The total cost of providing a scholarship is 100 Quetzales (about $13) per month, or 1,200 Quetzales (about $160) per year for each child.  This seems like such a small amount of money for what is gained: access to, and motivation for, achieving an education. 

Llanos del Pinal

Each meeting began with a presentation by Teri, a Pop Wuj social work student, who spoke about the importance of healthy relationships, family planning, and birth control methods.  The talk included dispelling common rumors about contraceptio, such as the myth that a contraceptive injection can cause an abortion if received while already pregnant.

Llanos del Pinal

Birth control is a contentious issue in Guatemala, as most of the country is very religious--mostly Catholic or evangelical Christian, but Pop Wuj is committed to making accurate and useful information available to our scholarship recipients and their families as a means of empowering women to make their own decisions regarding their health and their bodies. 

Llanos del Pinal

After the talk, the scholarships were distributed to the families, 100 Quetzales per recipient for this month.  The Scholarship Program funds the education of over 130 students from kindergarten to university level. Fifty percent of the scholarship project budget comes from the profits of the Pop Wuj Spanish Language School.  The remaining 50% is funded by individual donors who sponsor individual students.  Most of these donations come through the Foundation Todos Juntos, a U.S. 501(c)3 nonprofit.  Many former students and their friends and families are currently supporting the education of our scholarship recipients.

Llanos del Pinal

If you are considering a donation to the Pop Wuj Scholarship Program, rest assured that these scholarships are among the most noble causes to which one can give; providing an education for one of our children is not expensive, and the rewards of doing so are priceless.