http://www.longwayhomeinc.org Long Way Home - Development Organization in Guatemala en-us http://www.longwayhomeinc.org/images/Logo.jpg http://www.longwayhomeinc.org 83 150 http://www.longwayhomeinc.org Matt Paneitz began the month by presenting Long Way Homes Tecnico Maya School project to over 100 8th graders at the prestigous private school, Colegio de las Americas in Guatemala City. Students and Teachers were so impressed, that they immediately began fundraising for the project and asked to continue LWH"s environmental presentations, and hopefully bring the 120 students to Parque Chimiya for hands on alternative building experience in late April. Rebecca Sanchez joined Matt for the second presentation at Las Americas which facilitated discussion of the students" carbon footprints and easy and creative ways they could lower them. University of Oregon interns, Kelsey Moore and Sarah Mykkanen and Oregon State intern, Alissa Hunsaker joined the LWH team and, after only four days in Guatemala, joined in the presentations given at our neighboring community"s school, Cohol Juyu. A journalist from the Prense Libre, one of Guatemala"s largest newspapers, covered the event. The full article, and translation, can be viewed at our Multimedia page. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org On February 11th, the year of planning by Dr. Joe Hull culminated in one of the largest LWH donations to Comalapa yet; a 2003 Dodge cargo van filled to capacity with firefightering gear, medical equipment, shoes for the children and much needed toolsfor the school construction. Matteo Panneitz, Aaron Colvin and Ben Smith drove the donated van and donations in a two week journey from Boston to Comalapa, where they were met with a parade of welcome and a party with the entire town in attendance. Three Massachussetts fire departments, Anna Jacques Hospital in Georgetown and the Boys and Girls Club of Boston made the incredible donations possible. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org With help from the neigboring village of Simajhuleu, Comalapa firefighters, and 38 volunteers from across the United States, LWH broke ground on the Tecnico Maya Vocational School. With their combined help, an area is being leveled for construction of the technical school. A retaining wall made of tires and the first of many latrines and sheds are also under construction. In addition, the yearly reforestation project has begun with the sprouting of native Cypress, Pine and Elm tree seedlings in preparation for planting in the spring. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org LWH Executive Director Matt Paneitz will spend four weeks in November and December touring the US to raise awareness and funds for construction of the new Tecnico Maya Vocational School. Elizabeth Rose, President of the LWH Board of Directors, has organized a number of fundraising events to be held in the greater Boston area. The tour will also serve to promote the LWH volunteer and internship program, and will include several stops in Paneitz"s home state of Texas. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org Long Way Homes biggest project to date is now underway, the construction of a vocational school that we will build on 1.75 acres of land in Comalapa. We are already collecting used tires and trash-filled plastic bottles to use as construction materials for the new school which will serve about 500 students at the elementary, middle and vocational high school levels. Students at the vocational level will have the opportunity to learn about alternative energy, mechanics, carpentry, masonry, welding, electrical, and small business. This photo shows the current Tecnico Maya elementary students and teachers. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org The enormous retaining wall project that LWH undertook at Parque Chimiya in October 2007 is now officially finished! The biggest part of the wall along the parking lot was completed in the Fall of 2007, thanks in large part to the hard work of LWH volunteers Bryon Salaz, Koda Amadon and Holly Pierson. Extending the wall all the way up the park driveway along the gardens has been a "poco a poco" project ever since, with volunteers Jason and Kaela Asher helping out with the final touches. LWH Board of Directors member Lars Battle played a key role in the wall"s completion by donating the final materials needed to complete the wall, as well as providing numerous hours of labor. Thank you to all the volunteers who helped build the Parque Chimiya retaining wall! http://www.longwayhomeinc.org 43 families in Panimacac were successfully interviewed and surveyed in regards to their current water situation. A complete report including statistics, graphs, and GPS maps were compiled and will be sent to Engineers Without Borders who plans to bring running water to the village. In this photo a local community leader is measuring the output from one of their natural springs. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org After seven months of hard work, we completed the construction of a round tire house, built using discarded car tires, earthbags and trash bottles. The house largely consists of 250 tires rammed full with the dirt from old adobe bricks. For a total cost of under $2000 we were able to safely use roughly 64,000 pounds of garbage as building material in this prototype test structure, 13 feet in diameter. LWH staff members Liz and Adam Howland now reside in the new Tire House. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org Long Way Home welcomes the newest member of its Board of Directors, Rory Pendergast, a third-year law student at Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego, CA. Having served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala, Rory has extensive experience with water projects similar to the ones LWH is currently working on, as well valuable experience working with the population we serve. We look forward to the contribution he will make to the LWH team. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org Engineers Without Borders of Minnesota completed its second assessment trip for the LWH water project in Simajhuleu, a small village about 10 miles from the center of Comalapa. The assessment included mapping the village, analyzing water samples, measuring water output from natural springs owned by the community, and surveying the 500 families who live in the village. A number of LWH volunteers helped gather data on the current living conditions of families in Simajhuleu, including their health concerns, level of education, and access to water. EWB will return in early 2009 to implement the project that will bring a reliable source of running water to the village. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org The recycling program continues to be successful as local students fill used plastic bottles with trash to use as construction "blocks." LWH is collecting trash bottles from the surrounding communities of Comalapa including Pavit, Panimacac, Simajhuleu, and Cojoljuyu. Most of the 23 elementary schools in Comalapa are also collecting trash bottles for future construction projects, including the new Tecnico Maya vocational school. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org If you are interested in volunteering, visit our opportunites page and download an application. You can also intern for college credt in the US or in Guatemala. We have a number of great programs that can help you while you help others including education, community development, environmental awareness, appropriate technologies, and others. http://www.longwayhomeinc.org LWH laid concrete on the basketball court at Chimiya in May, and after a summer of hard work, we are finally cutting the ribbon. The basketball court represents one of the largest projects at Chimiya and is a cornernerstone of the Comapala Project. Come see the progress that has been made in all of our areas.