What is a home?  I think about this question often.  For me it is a place of comfort, it houses my family and all of my material possessions.  It is a structure that not only serves a physical but emotional purpose as well.  The structure and interior of a home has always been something that I find interest in because I feel that a home is a direct reflection of the way in which people live.  For this woman who I visited in Santiago, Guatemala, her home consisted of one room with one bed.  The room was filled with bags of things that had been accumulated over the years.  Torn clothing, broken baskets, tied garbage bags.  The walls were made of wood strung together, and the bed, which was made of sticks, had garbage bags on all sides to keep water and insects away. The roof was rusted.  Pictures and mirrors were hung lopsided and placed around as means of decoration.  It was dirty, and crowded. There was virtually no place to move around.  The woman sat down on her bed, and she looked into the abyss of “things”.

I asked her who lived in her home, and she told me her husband and three children.  I looked her in the eyes and hugged her. When I originally asked if I could photograph her and her home, she was fearful and wanted to know why. I explained that I wanted to spread awareness to people who are unable to understand a lifestyle unlike their own. Now, I thanked her for trusting me, and I told her that because of her, people will begin to open their eyes.  As I began to walk away, she grabbed my arm and turned me around.  She looked at me with a deep emotional stare and said, “God is with you.  Thank you.  May you fly with God.  With God you will go.”  I resisted the urge to do anything else than smile at her.  I looked at her with dry eyes, turned around, and walked away with tears.

To read about Paisley’s other experiences and see more of her photos, visit her blog.

The other little girl was born and raised by her parents in Tierra Linda, Guatemala. She is also 5 yrs old.

Two 5-year-old girls, both were born in Guatemala.

Left: girl raised in US; Right: girl raised in Guatemala

You can see the difference in the height and weight. The shorter 5-year-old girl has not received good food or medical attention (probably no medical attention would be more accurate) since she was born.

Several charities help preschool children with feeding or snack programs, targeting 4-5 year olds. But, actually it is a little late to provide good nutrition. The 5-year-old has growth stunting, and she will never be able to catch up. Worse is that brain development and IQ can be effected. When malnutrition starts at age 6 months to 3 years (the most important years for growth and development), a child will never recover from the damage done. This is stunting from malnutrition. It is not genetics that indigenous Guatemalans are short in stature. It is estimated that 80% of rural Guatemalan children suffer from stunting and chronic malnutrition.

The sustainable solution to malnutrition is to educate mothers on what to feed their children, especially during the critical years – 6 months to 3 years. Mothers don’t know that a corn tortilla softened with Pepsi or coffee is not food for infants. Programs need to teach mothers to select healthier foods like eggs, avocado, bananas, soft cooked vegetables like chaya, carrots, and sweet potatoes, chicken soup, beans and rice, soft white cheese, oatmeal or Incaparina. Children (and parents) need to be educated to avoid sodas, candies, Tortrix chips, and junk foods, and instead eat fruits like frozen coco-banana or papaya, peanuts, yogurt and juices. To help break the cycle of poverty and malnutrition, the key is always education.

Miracles in Action is currently developing and implementing nutrition and agriculture education programs, and we are testing and promoting chaya, an indigenous, spinach-like vegetable. If you would like to support our efforts to provide sustainable solutions to malnutrition in Guatemala, you can target your tax-deductible donation to our Nutrition Projects.

Contribute online, or mail your check to:
Miracles in Action
2244 Park Ave.
Cincinnati, OH 45206

Thank you,
Penny Rambacher, R.D. (Registered Dietitian)

Miracles in Action has wonderful stories on their website, but until you experience it first hand, you really can’t understand the impact and scope of their work. I hope to share my experiences, so you can see miracles in action, and travel along through the lens of a photographer.

Miracles in Action works with partner charities in Guatemala who facilitate the projects they support.  One of their like-minded partnerships is with People For Guatemala, a charity implementing their stoves project.  Penny shared with me that, “When people think of sponsoring a stove, they think of a modern electric stove like we have in the US.  But, these are a very different type of stove, and one that saves lives and the environment, plus time and money.”

In my travels with People for Guatemala, I learned that much of a Mayan woman’s day is taken up with the chore of making meals for her family.  This includes either buying or collecting wood to make an open fire inside their house to cook tortillas and beans.  The open fire creates toxic smoke inside the house which the woman and her children breathe – the equivalent of 2-3 packs of cigarettes a day in smoke inhalation.  Also, children are seriously burned by these fires.  Their use of wood is so great that much of the family’s income is used to buy wood and the result is deforestation.

I was fortunate to tag along and photograph one solution to this dilemma – the installation of a $115 chapina, safe, vented stove.  Miracles in Action has funded over 1700 of these life-changing stoves in rural villages – an accomplishment resulting from generous donors who wanted to help women by sponsoring a stove.  The stoves use about 75% less wood, and they vent out the smoke, and contain the fire – saving lives and forests.

To see more of my work, please visit www.PaisleyDee.com

This is Juana, a woman needing a stove… as you can see from the thick smoke in her house.

This is a home with a vented stove, making a sustainable difference for an entire family.

Connecting to Miracles

Hello, my name is Paisley Dee and I am a photographer out of Miami, FL. I am working with Miracles in Action to photograph and capture the amazing work which is being done here in rural Guatemala. I met the founder of Miracles In Action, Penny Rambacher, during my Art Basel 2011 solo-exhibition showcasing my work throughout Southeast Asia. Miracles in Action was selling handicrafts in the gallery next door, and instantly we connected through our common interest and desire to make a change in the world. My photography portrays stark human conditions with a focus on people and their surroundings. My desire is to bring awareness toward those living in extreme poverty through their daily survival to stay alive, and to somehow connect that awareness to an outlet of change. Miracles in Action has provided that outlet for this work, and I intend to spread this awareness as far as I can. I feel my photography has the ability to speak louder than any word possibly could.

More photos and stories to come, as I explore Guatemala and travel with Penny, Christie, David, Jan, and the many dedicated humanitarians who are making a difference in the world through “Miracles”.

To see more of my work, please visit   www.paisleydee.com

As the new year begins and many people contemplate new beginnings, why not consider becoming a Thrillionaire? According to thrillionaires.org, you are a Thrillionaire if you can recall a time when you gave someone a real thrill while you gave something – money, time, a kidney, kind words, prayers, ideas, stuff – You are a Thrillionaire if you light up when you think about giving.   Anyone can be a Thrillionaire.

Looking for inspiration? Just look around; there are plenty of thrills to be had. You might collect change every day and fund one of our projects like a a safe stove or water filter to improve someone’s daily life.  Or sponsor a scholarship for a child seeking education. Or feed the parking meter for someone. Or give a kind word to the cashier at the grocery store. Whether giving small or large, giving to Miracles in Action or elsewhere, thrills are thrilling! And being a Thrillionaire can become a habit as Thrillionaires want to experience that wonderful thrilling feeling again and again.  Also, it is often contagious to others!

Thrillionaires is a project designed by the Harnisch Family Foundation to encourage the thrill of giving. Thrillionaires tell their stories so that others will become inspired.  At Miracles in Action, we love when people share their stories, as it is the best way for us to invite others to join us in our mission and gain support for our work.  Comment on Facebook or email us to share your Thrillionaire story.

We are in need of urgent help to build a retaining wall to save one of our schools. When Miracles in Action’s School #9 was built there were some existing buildings on the property that were being used for the school and are still being used today.  We recently replaced the roof on those existing structures. Without these buildings, children will not be able to go to school. As you can see in the photos, they are in danger of sliding off the hill and injuring people.  They need these classrooms to allow ALL children to attend school.  These buildings that we are in danger of losing, are also where the preschool classes are held. A strong family center is also located in one of these buildings. We need to raise $9,000 to save this school. We need help with this ASAP! Please help save a school and donate today by clicking on the link below (once on the page click on the top “donate” button):

http://www.miraclesinaction.org/donate/contribute/

Once you are on the paypal form you can specify under ”special instructions” that the funds are for this project by typing: SAVE A SCHOOL!

Thank you for your help. You are helping to making a difference in the world!

One of Miracles in Action’s great supporters, Linda Davis, was recently written about on www.secondact.com her article can be found at http://www.secondact.com/2011/11/entrepreneurs-newest-challenge-building-schools-in-guatemala/ Below is an excerpt from that article:

Davis decided to go back to school for a master’s degree in social psychology. She also became a volunteer and benefactor for a nonprofit group, Miracles in Action, that builds schools in Guatemala. Davis recently completed funding a second school in the Central American nation.

“These people were building schools in Guatemala so that the girls could get educated,” Davis says. “When I met them and learned more about the organization, I knew it was a fit for me. The nonprofit determines which village needs the school, the villagers build it themselves, and they find someone to fund it.”

When she decided retirement wasn’t for her, Davis says she worked with a life coach to determine her next steps. “We talked about things I’d always wanted to do but [had] never done,” she says. At the top of her list: Getting a graduate degree and helping to empower other women through social change.

Davis’ coach introduced her to Miracles in Action, a nonprofit that works to help impoverished Guatemalans through educational and vocational projects. Flight attendant Penny Rambacher and her mother, Noreen, launched Miracles in Action after 9/11 and her mother’s cancer diagnosis, also in September 2001, left them searching for a way to leave a positive legacy. The pair frequently used Rambacher’s American Airlines employee discount to travel together, and they had been touched by the children they met on a trip to Guatemala.

Rambacher, who continues to run the charity after her mother’s death, seeks out underserved pockets of need in rural Guatemala. Then she matches needs with donors such as Davis to develop projects that focus on education, vocational training and sustainable development. “My mother believed that providing aid was just putting a Band-Aid on poverty,” Rambacher says. “But doing things like building a school would make a difference for generations.”

In the past seven years, Miracles in Action has built 37 schools; the average cost of a new school ranges from $20,000 to $25,000, Rambacher says. The organization has earned positive ratings from Guidestar, which reviews U.S. nonprofits.

Davis says she and her two daughters, who are in their 30s, provided funding for materials and construction for their first school in 2009, and she received photos of the progress as it was built. The three women traveled to Guatemala for the opening.

“I wanted my daughters to be involved so that they could see the life they have is privileged,” Davis says. “The trip was amazing. The people in the village were so proud of the school. Through translators, young women told us that they were told they couldn’t go to school, and they want their daughters to be able to go to school.” (Watch a video of the school’s opening here.)

Hooked, Davis partnered with her sister to build a second Guatemalan school, which opened in 2010. They split the expenses to build the second school in memory of their mother. “My mom had always wanted to be a teacher and didn’t get an opportunity to go to school,” Davis says. “So for us, this was a good way to remember her.”

Brandon still needs to complete his Board of Review, and hopes to officially receive his Eagle Award before the end of the year.  Congratulations, Brandon, and thank you for your care and concern for others!!

580 lbs of aid was collected and packed by a team that Brandon recruited as part of his service.

Last year, she didn’t have a party so she decided to host two jewelry parties to sell some of the beautiful handmade products created by the Guatemalan women.  She was able to raise over $2,000.  She also wrote a formal request to her school principal to sell the Guatemalan keychains at school and raise more money.  Kaitlyn realizes how fortunate she is to have her family, nice home, good education and so much more. She wants all the kids in the world to have the same experience. Her goal is to be able to raise enough money by her 16th birthday to open up a school in Guatemala.

Her mother states, “I am truly proud of her kind and generous heart and that at such a young age, she is blossoming into a beautiful young lady with good morals and values.  She’s an inspiration to me.”

Miracles in Action thanks Kaitlyn for her caring heart and very generous contributions to Miracles in Action and wishes her a very happy birthday!