A mighty garage sale is planned for the weekend. The goal is to raise enough money to bring 20 people from Hope to Tactic, Guatemala.
Groups from Grace Baptist Church have been visiting the region at least seven times, each time bringing different members to witness a unique project.
Impact Ministries, explained Jacquie Corbett, was started by a Kamloops teacher who wanted to break the cycle of poverty and the lack of literacy in the region.
What started small has grown into 10 schools with 1,500 students, Impact Ministries’ website stated, and also includes churches, a medical and dental clinic and various projects including a greenhouse.
“We don’t go down and do the work. They are very much against that. They want the Guatemalans to be the ones doing the work,” Corbett said. “The whole school board is only Guatemalan, so they are very much directing how things should be, culturally and in the educational system.”
Corbett said the project has already borne fruit. Students who went through the school and on to higher education have come back to work as pastors, administrators and teachers.
Even though the project is aimed at self-sufficiency, they still need support. This is where the Hope group comes in. Going there to witness what is happening and what the needs are, helps those who return to work on supporting the project.
“It’s eye-opening and it’s intense emotionally,” said Corbett, as families in the region face a shortage of food, students often only have one meal a day, supplied by their school. “By having us go down there, we get excited for what they’re doing and are able to support them financially.”
This will be Corbett’s second trip there, and she is looking forward to seeing the orphanage which was being constructed when she was there in 2016. This trip will have 20 Hope residents, from the ages of 11 to 75.
A by-donation garage sale, except for some larger items, will be held Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Grace Baptist Church, 949 3 Ave.
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