Contribute to our Founder Alyssa's Campaign to help vulnerable communities in rural Guatemala during the COVID Crisis
Community + Street Dog COVID Crisis Relief Fund
Thank you to everyone for wanting a place to contribute to my efforts to feed the abandoned street dogs and donate to vulnerable communities around Panajachel!
To give some more background:
I am originally from New Jersey but have been spending most of my time in Guatemala for the past 8 years. Since the COVID outbreak, here in rural Guatemala on Lake Atitlan all the shops, restaurants and streets are empty. There is a curfew from 4pm to 4am and people are only allowed out during the day to run necessary errands. Many people here survive daily hand to mouth. Now there is no income, hunger is a reality and we don't know how long people will be able to go without working.
The local firehouse is accepting donations and getting care packages of rations to needy families. And I am assisting with their efforts!
But since the country is shut down and everything is closed down there is no where for street pups to get leftovers, scraps or any type of nourishment.
For the past few weeks, I have personally been checking on the furry friends and giving them food and water! During these efforts, I came across many new dogs and litters of newborn puppies. I have since brought two puppies in to foster them on the meantime. Any new funds will go to buying more appropriate food, helping me foster the puppies and sterilize more female street pups to stop reproduction!
Furthermore, I am providing donations and cooking for the volunteer bomberos a few times a week. The firefighters are the ones truly risking their lives all day out in the communities and we want to make sure they are well fed and strong!
To maintain transparency, I have videos showing all the efforts on my instagram @alyssaya!
Instagram: www.instagram.com/alyssaya
Venmo + Paypal: https://linktr.ee/alyssaya
In her most recent IGTV video. She posted:
Thanks to your donations, we were able to reach more people in need!
✨ Yesterday, we cooked fresh food for community members that pass by our house every day. Living between Panajachel (the hub of Lake Atitlan) and the smaller village Santa Catarina positioned us in a place to connect with our neighbors. Every day we see people walking and biking to and from Panajachel. While even the public transport is only Q3/$0.40 people are without means to pay even that during this time.
Instead of just handing out dried food (rice, beans, sugar) and other supplies, we first wanted to be a little more thoughtful. Sharing a home cooked meal can really help lift spirits. And let our neighbors know, they are not alone. Most people we met said they have not eaten or just eaten the basics, so it was nice to cook them a little something more flavorful and with more nutrients.
For those that do not know, Alfonso is a professional chef and made Arepas, a meat stuffed tortilla from his hometown of Venezuela. He also made a fresh vegetable soup with tons of healthy ingredients. We have hopes to cook another meal next week and accompany it with rationed food for them to take home as well. Any new donations will help make that possible.
Thank you for caring and being a part of this journey.
At the moment, she has been able to give the community hope for the future thanks to your donations and support for the families with low resources. Including the street dogs. Right now the donations are still open via Facebook, Instagram and Paypal and if you can donate at least $1 it would be greatly appreciated.
From Hiptipico and Alyssa we thank you for caring and wanting to help!
To donate >> https://linktr.ee/alyssaya
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