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Monday, April 29, 2013

First Steps for the New Chapel




We are making some meaningful progress in the construction of our chapel here at NPH! (The picture above is the site where we will build) The pastor of the local parish, Fr Tulio Privera, has been a great support and connected me with an architect he knows, who will work in collaboration with the kids from here who are studying architecture at the university. This architect is excited about being able to work on this project, and is going to contribute his services free of charge. Today, he sent a team to survey the land so that he knows what he is working with and can begin to put together some schematic design suggestions for the chapel. Chapels at NPH homes often do not have names, but after talking with Fr Phil Cleary, the head of NPH-International, we thought that naming this the Chapel of the Holy Family would help to communicate the focus of our mission here.




Some principles we want to keep in mind as we plan the design:

  •    We are thinking in terms of seating for 400 adults (the present population of NPH Guatemala, including the high school kids in Chimaltenango and the university students in the capital , is about 340. If we make sure to include an ample ambulatory and space in the back, there should be plenty of space for more- on rare occasions we also have with us many of the 150 employees, 20 full-time volunteers, and groups of up to 50 high school and college visitors.

  • The chapel should have a prominent presence among the other buildings, but also fit in style-wise with those that are already built.

  • The construction should be fairly simple, not elaborate- reflecting the situation of the children and the fact that everything here depends on donations from individuals and organizations.

  • We will look into the possibility of taking advantage of the slope in the terrain and investigate the possibility of including a walk-out  meeting room for Youth Ministry or other office space below the chapel itself- if this would not increase the cost too much.

  • We would like to include an enclosed patio or small plaza in front of the chapel to help define the space, and to provide a transition between the “profane” and the “sacred” spaces.

  • ·We plan to build the chapel in a traditional style- basilica or cruciform. The idea is to use a form and design that are compatible with what is found in other churches in this diocese.




I am excited to be at this stage already, and will be anxious to see the initial drawings that our architects produce!
You can learn about how to make a donation to help us make this dream become a reality by punching the button at the top "I Want To Help You Build This Chapel," or by clicking HERE

School and Workshops







One of the greatest achievements of NPH Guatemala has been the development of a Montessori program for the younger children.  A long-time volunteer from Germany both designed the program, and raised funds to build and equip special classrooms. At present, we have a Montessori program for preschool through first grade, with plans to expand to second grade next year. 



The regular school program, Primaria for grades 2 to 6 and Basico for 7th to 9th, makes use of a more traditional classroom format.  Unfortunately, the classrooms are poorly equipped, and their placement next to the outside play area where gym classes are also held makes for a pretty undesirable learning environment. There are few physical resources- hardly any textbooks or science supplies. Classes often consist of lectures, with the kids doing their best to take notes. Teachers for Primaria only have to have a high school degree, but those for Basico have a university diploma. There is a fair amount of transition among the teachers, as many teach just to earn money to further their studies in another field. The pay is poor, and so many also teach the morning session with us, and then go to teach the afternoon session at another school. (Schools here teach in two shifts- morning and afternoon.)



About 150 externs, children who live with their families in town, come here for school each day. They pay a small tuition (they’re given full scholarship if necessary). While it creates some problems to my mind, there is a certain advantage of our kids meeting and developing some friendships with those outside of the home. Because of changes in the law in Guatemala, it is no longer appropriate to run an “orphanage.”
So we are formally considered a “boarding school,” even though most of the kids here are here for the long term. Many who come from rotten family situations are placed here on order of a judge. The externs obviously do not board here, but inviting them in helps to maintain the facade that we are primarily a “school.” Plus, as much as I think the educational program here is poor, perhaps it is better than what would otherwise be available to them.



In addition to Primaria and Basico, we have a program called “Etapas” for those who arrived significantly behind in their education and need some catching up. What this means is that many are more like sixteen or seventeen years old by the time they finish 9th grade and move on to Bachillerato (a version of high school here, but one which is more career focused- often an end point in kids’ educational careers). Etapas covers in two years the material normally taught from grades 3 through 6.




One of the ways that NPH is preparing the kids for their future is to ensure that they also receive vocational training. Many of the “pequeños” will go on to study at the university, but that will not be the route that all take. In addition, the employment situation in Guatemala is such that it certainly will not hurt to have other skills. The workshops here provide training in iron work (all construction projects involving iron are done here), cooking (kids also help in the main kitchen), baking (all of our bread is made in the bakery), tailoring (all of the school uniforms are made in the tailor shop), carpentry (in addition to learning how to make furniture, the carpentry shop handles many projects needed for the home) and soap- and shampoo-making. (There was supposed to be a farming workshop, but they lost their instructor, and so someone on staff who knows how to make soap and shampoo stepped in. Granted, this is probably the most questionable of all, but at least they are providing something we need and can use,- plus, it saves the house some money since making it is cheaper than buying it.)




Those in “Basico” (7th – 9th grades) take part in the workshops for three hours each weekday afternoon after lunch. Frankly, I think their schedule is too full: class from 7 until 1, lunch, and then three hours of workshops.  But the kids mostly enjoy this time, and it gives those less academically inclined an outlet to learn and grow. Also, some of the projects they make can be sold (I bought a nice end table for about $30).

Monday, April 8, 2013

Holy Week at NPH Guatemala



Holy Week was always busy in the parish, but the intensity of Holy Week took on a new meaning once I saw just what it means to the people here in Guatemala. School is out for the whole of Holy Week (instead of the week after Easter, as it is in the US). The days are characterized by large processions that make their way through the streets of the town, with enormous floats carried on the shoulders of the faithful. The floats support scenes of Jesus and Mary, and are preceded and followed by musicians and crowds, many dressed in traditional garb. The street is covered with “alfombras” (“rugs” in English) made up of designs composed with colored sawdust, flowers and flower petals, pine needles, and fruit.  The individual alfombras are works of devotion, each made by a family (the closest thing I can compare this to would be the tradition we have of spreading rose petals on the ground for a bride to walk over on her way into the church).  Each of the five Holy Week processions in Parramos lasted three to five hours, with various “shifts” of people taking turns carrying the floats.  In Parramos, which is a small town, the floats are carried by about twenty-five people- an impressive sight. In nearby Antigua, which draws tourists from around the world for their processions, the floats are even larger, requiring the strength of up to a hundred or more people to carry them.  Each float is managed by a fraternity of men or women, for whom helping to carry the float is an act of personal religious devotion. Individuals pay for the privilege of helping to carry the floats for a certain distance, and this money helps to support the fraternity and the parish. The kids were all very excited to be able to make a couple of excursions into town and take part in the processions.

One Wednesday of Holy Week I joined the hundred or so priests of the diocese for the Chrism Mass at the Cathedral in the town of Sololá. The bishop here seems to be a beloved figure, and the priests are almost all native and very young. There are about 40 parishes in the diocese, which may not seem like a lot- but each has a number of mission parishes, and so the priests spend a fair amount of time visiting those in outlying areas. The seminary is full- about 80 in Philosophy and Theology.  The seminarians I have met seem to be serious and friendly young men with a sincere desire to serve God and their brothers and sisters.  Only two of the parishes in the diocese do not have parishioners in the seminary at one level or another. In the back of my mind, I wonder whether we might be able to recruit some of these for Chicago- for the reality is that, even if there were enough work here, there are simply not enough financial resources in the parishes to support them all once they are ordained.

Triduum and Easter here at NPH were great, although quite a change from the majestic liturgies we had at Saint Alphonsus. Since there was no priest here before, the liturgies of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday were firsts for most of the kids. We adapted them some, given the make-up of the congregation. But I think we remained pretty faithful to the Church’s prayer, and the kids were drawn into the Mystery that Catholics throughout the world celebrated during those days. Good Friday was especially full, as we walked a “living”  Stations of the Cross in the morning, followed by the Good Friday procession in town and the afternoon liturgy. Easter Sunday was glorious, and I hope that by next Easter, our chapel will be built so that we will be able to hold these services there.

Please see the page with pictures- I posted a batch from Holy Week, including from the procession in Parramos.