Agros Blog

In honor of UN International Day of Families, we wanted to highlight the story of Diego and Dolores from the Agros Community of Villa Hortencia, Guatemala. This year’s International Day of Families theme is “Ensuring Work/Family Balance.” This means sharing the workload equally among family members, as well as focusing on family time and relationships. Diego and Dolores, along with their many children, set an example of family cooperation and hard-working spirit for all of the families that they encounter in their community.

Before becoming a part of the community of Villa Hortencia I, life for Diego and Dolores’s family was very different. Diego only planted corn and beans because he had no knowledge of the benefits of crop diversification. As is the case for many rural families before partnering with Agros, he relied on only subsistence farming – a risky practice that requires a huge amount of work for a small return and makes long-term growth nearly impossible. After joining the Agros community of Villa Hortencia I, Diego had the opportunity to be trained by Agros on sustainable farming techniques; he can now grow corn, beans and peas more efficiently and profitably. Diego has also attended various workshops on crop diversification and management, which have provided him with even more ways to support his family.

These agricultural workshops been immensely helpful for Diego and his family, but he and Dolores have also gotten involved in other training programs. The sessions Diego has attended have inspired him to become the president of the education committee. Today, Diego works hard alongside the teachers in his community to provide a better learning environment for both the children and the adults.

Dolores has also become empowered to provide for her family in new ways through her participation in various trainings. She recently participated in a dress-tailoring workshop, along with training on family nutrition and community banking. In addition to helping her husband with the snow pea crop, Dolores is involved with the community bank of Villa Hortencia I. With the support of her younger children, she is raising 12 sheep, 7 goats, 2 cows and 1 horse. Dolores is very grateful to Agros for their workshops, which have allowed her to take better care of her family. Reflecting on her experiences Dolores said, “I am so grateful to Agros for training me in nutrition. Now I can prepare healthy meals for my children such as making cheese from goat milk.”

Diego and Dolores are blessed with 5 sons and 4 daughters. Their oldest three children- Felipe, Gaspar and Maria – are married, and live in the community with their own families. Felipe has been trained by Agros to become a baker, and is developing and perfecting his skills in order to provide for his family. Diego and Dolores’ 6 younger children are still working hard to finish primary school. At 13, Pedro is just finishing 6^th grade, while Emilia, a year younger, is in 5^th grade. At 9 years old, Laura is in second grade, and Felix, a couple of years younger than her, is in first grade. Juan is in kindergarten, and their youngest, Lety, is 2 years old. Diego and Dolores have set a powerful example by raising their children to understand the importance of education and diligence.

This family participates in many projects within their community, and the rest of the community looks to Diego and Dolores as active leaders and role models. The whole family works very hard and shares responsibility — a perfect example of the kind family that the International Day of Families wishes to encourage throughout the world. Holistic relational and family development is a central component to Agros’s mission.  Thank you for joining with us in celebrating and supporting families like Diego and Dolores’, who continue to inspires us with their stories of hard work and dedication, not only on the International Day of Families, but every day of the year.

The following was written by Rachel Stenberg, an Agros International Student Worker in the Communications Department.

Mother’s Day is an occasion for families around the world to honor the incredible women that have nurtured and provided for them throughout their lives. We would like to take this opportunity to celebrate the incredible abilities and strengths of the women in Agros communities who are leading their families and communities out of hardship and helping to break the cycle of poverty. We believe that women are an integral party of every community, and we strive to celebrate and empower rural mothers in all of our work.

Our communities are full of stories of women who, in efforts to provide for their families, have taken on entrepreneurial endeavors as well as community leadership roles. Women who once had little or no means of supporting their families have worked to become small business owners, village health promoters, and women’s community bank facilitators, as well as filling a vast number of other important roles. Today, nearly half of all leadership roles in Agros communities are held by women – many of whom are also mothers. The incredible capabilities these women possess have not only resulted in dynamic financial growth, but also strengthened entire communities.

Take, for example, the story of Sonia, a member of the Agros community of Nuevo Renacer, El Salvador. Sonia is a single mother of four daughters, and recently became a grandmother. Their neighbors affectionately refer to Sonia’s family as the “house of women.” Sonia says that her mother Yolanda has always been an inspiration to her, and Sonia hopes to be the same for her daughters.

Sonia’s success since partnering with Agros has been remarkable. She now has a home built on land she is working toward owning and is able to provide education for all of her children – all of which seemed impossible just a few years ago.Sonia has also taken the opportunity to become involved in the community bank of Nuevo Renacer. Through a $300 loan, Sonia and her friend Mercedes partnered up to purchase and raise five pigs as the foundation for their small business enterprise. Sonia was able to repay her community bank loan in November, two months before the due date. With the profits, she was able to make the first payment on her land loan, and is now considering ramping up her land loan payments to be able to own that land outright even faster.

We are incredibly privileged to work with women like Sonia, whose example of strong matrilineal leadership is mirrored by mothers throughout Agros communities. Thanks to your support and advocacy on their behalf, we can continue to empower women to increase their income, strengthen their communities, and provide greater opportunities for their children.

Antonio, his wife Isabel and their six children are an exemplary family that can attest to the ways in which Agros can bring hope and life to a seemingly hopeless situation.

Before joining the community of Brisas del Volcán, Antonio made merely $75 a month. Like so many of the rural families that Agros works with, Antonio and Isabel did not own their own land, and it was difficult for them to make ends meet and to provide for their children. Despite this, Antonio worked hard every day to make the most of what they had, and he prayed that God would give him an opportunity to make higher wages, and to provide a better standard of living and a brighter future for his family.

Antonio’s prayers were soon answered; he was offered a job by his brother working as a bricklayer, which would pay $8 a day. Just when things started turning around for their family, Antonio received even more good news when he heard about Agros and its work in Brisas del Volcán. After much prayer, Antonio and Isabel made the decision to join the thriving Agros community.

Brisas del Volcán, Honduras was founded in 2006, and at the time was 100 miles away from the nearest Agros village. Antonio, Isabel, and their family were one of the first to join the community, and helped build the foundation for strong future growth.

The following was written by Rachel Stenberg, an Agros International Student Worker in the Communications Department.

Earth Day is an opportunity for everyone to pause and reflect on our responsibilities as faithful stewards of the planet on which we live. Here at Agros, on Earth Day, just like every other day of the year, we are committed to bringing sustainable growth and earth-friendly development to the families and communities that need it the most.

In the developing world, many families stake their entire livelihood on the success of their crop yields. When those yields are not sufficient, the cycle of poverty is perpetuated. This means that environmental sustainability essential to the survival of the rural poor. Agros supports our community members through a number of initiatives in order to promote environmental sustainability.

An essential component of Agros’ model is educating our community members on how to develop their land responsibly and sustainably, protecting watersheds and natural freshwater resources, and maintain the productivity of their land with fertilization and reforestation. In doing so, the seeds Agros families plant will not only yield growth for families in the present, but they provide a lasting and stable foundation for future generations.

Each village we serve is at a unique step in the process toward environmental sustainability. The Honduran community of Brisas del Volcán recently planted 400 cedar trees and cultivated 1,000 tree seedlings for the purposes of reforestation and land restoration. Brand new garbage cans have been introduced in El Edén, Nicaragua, and community members have participated in educational programs on responsible waste management. Compost latrines for the production of fertilizer are common in Agros communities; and thanks to maintenance of clean water sources, access to clean water in every home is achieved by the time a community graduates our program. Finally, a number of villages in El Salvador and Honduras have pioneered “field schools”, where communities set aside a parcel of land specifically for use in learning new, sustainable farming techniques.

Agros’ environmental education and stewardship training program is a cornerstone of our holistic model – promoting agricultural practices that are not only environmentally beneficial, but economically and socially transformative as well. All of this would not be possible without the help of you, our partners, who give us the opportunity to further our work. This Earth Day, we invite you to look at the ways that you can play an active role in promoting sustainable environmental health in Agros communities.

• Plant a Dozen Trees
• Provide a Can of Worms
• Buy a Plot of Land

The following was written by Rebecca Craig, an Agros International Student Worker in the Communications Department.

“If you don’t have your health, what do you have?” We have all heard it before, and know how true it can be in our own lives; but for people living in the developing world this statement reveals a stark reality. Ailments that we in the developed world might consider as minor can be fatal in areas that do not have advanced health care systems, or where they are overwhelmed by need. Health care is expensive too, and for many of those Agros serves, living in extreme poverty, an illness can completely destroy a family financially.

At Agros, we view the health of all of our community members with the upmost importance! We have a number of health and nutrition initiatives to ensure the wellness of each of our communities. Today, in honor of World Health Day, we would like to highlight one of our Village Health Promoters. These health promoters go through an extensive training and certification process in order to learn about the importance of personal hygiene, nutrition, and oral hygiene, as well as instruction in first aid, preventive care, diarrheal diseases, and reproductive and sexual health. Village Health Promoters serve as a local source of expertise and training for their community. They also empower entire communities to gain healthcare knowledge for themselves and actively seek partnerships in order to meet their healthcare needs.  Health Promoters can also determine the severity of a community member’s illness and help determine when it’s necessary to travel to see a medical professional.

Glenda is a Village Health Promoter in Nueva Esperanza, Nicaragua. Before making the move to Nueva Esperanza in 2008, Glenda worked at a large plantation in order to take care of her disabled mother and three sons. As a single mother, providing for her family was incredibly difficult and she joined the Agros community in hopes of providing a better life for her family. Through her mother’s experience Glenda has firsthand knowledge of the importance of timely healthcare access. This coupled with her energy to learn and passion to help others led her to volunteer as the local health promoter.

Now Glenda serves not only the 33 families in her community, but also provides health trainings and administers medical supplies to four neighboring communities that have not yet had the opportunity to train a health promoter of their own. In this role she delivers pre and postnatal care, hygiene and nutrition workshops, and brings greater awareness to issues of reproductive health. Glenda recently led a workshop on how to make soymilk from soybeans. This provides children with much-needed protein and improves their overall diets; twenty-one mothers participated.

Glenda also serves as the liaison with partnering health providers such as Acción Médica Cristiana and the local Ministry of Health; these partnerships affords the communities she serves better access to services such as child vaccinations, family planning methods, gynecological exams, medicine, and free medical attention. Through Glenda’s generous service, many men, women and children have the assurance that their healthcare needs will be taken care of, something that many of them lacked before partnering with Agros. And so in honor of World Health Day Agros would like to recognize Glenda and all of the other Village Health Promoters who ensure the well being of their communities.

You can  help Agros to provide training opportunities for women like Glenda by giving a gift of Health Promoter Training.

The following was written by Rebecca Craig, an Agros International Student Worker in the Communications Department.

Today is International Women’s day! And this year’s theme is Empowering Rural Women: End Hunger and Poverty. This is because, according to the UN Millennium Development Goals, rural women are far worse off than either rural men or urban dwellers. At Agros we care deeply about the needs of rural women, and recognize the amazing abilities and strengths they have to contribute to their communities. Agros strives for equal gender representation within the leadership of its communities, and we also sponsor initiatives that specifically targeted women. One of our most prominent initiatives is Agros’ Women’s Community Banks.

The primary goal of Women’s Community Banks is to promote economic development by providing equitable access to credit. Through income-generating projects, funded by Community Bank loans, women are able to increase their household income and invest their profits into the well-being of their families. Beyond being a great tool for increasing the income and entrepreneurial skills of women, Community Banks also help to boost women’s self confidence. Being part of a bank means being part of a community of women who support one another in their various entrepreneurial enterprises, ensuring the success of each project.

Maria is a great example of the impact a Community Bank can have on a woman’s life. Before becoming a part of the Agros community of Cajixay, Guatemala, Maria and her husband walked long distances to a large farm as laborers in order to make ends meet. Then armed conflict arose in the region. Guerilla forces raged through their village burning everything to the ground, and they were left with nothing. However, Maria’s story now is one of progress.  As a leader of the Women’s Community Bank, Maria’s enterprise loans have given her the opportunity to be involved in a regional pea exportation project as well as own a small general store. Maria took out her first loan, for $65, over five years ago in order to buy seeds for the pea project. Now, with years of reliable repayment behind her, Maria has built up to taking out loans of $195 in order to support her multiple enterprises. With the profits from her enterprises, Maria she contributed toward paying off her family’s land loans, and well as providing other essentials. Additionally Maria has been able to save over $100!

Maria reflects on her experiences by saying; “Agros does not just teach about production and revenue, but accompanied us during the whole process. For this we are so thankful to Agros and all the work that we have accomplished together. Thanks to this support, my income has improved, my family and I have better living conditions, and we are also able to help others in the community.” Maria is a perfect example of the ingenuity and incredible abilities that rural women have. Given the chance they are able to utilize these skills in order to make a better future for their families, and break the cycle of poverty. Agros is thrilled to have the opportunity to accompany rural women on this journey! We hope that you will consider being a part of these women’s journey as well. If you would like to get involved, Agros has a number of gifts that support women’s initiatives within our communities.

• Women’s Small Business Loan
• Village Health Promoter Training
• Women’s Economic Initiatives Training
• New Mother & Baby Kit

After 5 ½ years working at Agros, first as a volunteer and later as full-time staff, Christina is moving on to go to graduate school in Atlanta. We are sad to see her go but excited for these next steps in her career. Her position is opening up, and we are looking for a replacement. Please read the job description and application instructions on our Careers page and spread them widely among your networks. For questions, please contact christinacagrosorg.

Kurt Meyer.  I met him almost 30 years ago in Guatemala when we were both young men.  He heard about my dream for helping the rural poor in Guatemala through land ownership, and instantly responded with his heart.  Over the years, he poured himself into the Agros cause in so many ways – as a board member and president of Fundación Agros in Guatemala, as a dreamer, friend, and encourager.  And most of all, as one whose love of Jesus translated into loving the poor.

Kurt and I sharing some moments in the Ixil in 1998. Photo courtesy of Mike Yukevich.

For many years Kurt ran a successful business growing and exporting bromeliads – plants that grow and thrive without roots in soil, such as orchids. His plants and flowers were of high enough quality to be in great demand in Europe.  Not surprisingly, Kurt had an encyclopedic knowledge of flora of all kinds.  On our many trips from Guatemala City to the Ixil Region to visit our Agros villages, Kurt would sometimes abruptly ask whoever the driver was to stop in the middle of nowhere.  Then he would leap out of the car and go over to the side of the road, and excitedly show those of us who followed him out of the car some rare or not so rare variety of bromeliad or other plant, give us its Latin genus name, and tell us all about its scientific classification and related orders.  Every trip with Kurt was a learning experience – not just about his beloved world of plants, but about life as well.

He was a sophisticated man with elegant manners.  He spoke Spanish, German, and English with equal fluency.  He and I shared a deep love for classical music, and every so often he would ask me to bring with me on one of my trips a particular recording he could not find in Guatemala.  These were, of course, pre-Amazon.com days.  He also had his share of suffering in life.  Along with thousands of others of German descent, he was deported from his native Guatemala during World War II.  He did not like to talk about that experience.  In more recent years, he lost his beloved wife to a sudden illness, and his only daughter in a tragic plane crash.

Kurt and I on the same trip the Ixil. Photo courtesy of Mike Yukevich.

Kurt’s roots in agriculture helped us in so many ways as we built the Agros village model, and helped the people to become successful farmers.  Early on, he dreamed of building a training center in the Ixil Region where Agros villagers and others could learn the best in methods and practices to enhance their production and their lives. He even drew sketches laying out what the center would look like, with training classrooms, living quarters for visitors, and demonstration plots.  That dream was realized with the inauguration of the Agros Ixil Technology Center in Nebaj in 2007.

Kurt Meyer died early morning January 29, 2012, after suffering a series of strokes and heart attacks during recent months.  He leaves behind three sons, Kurt, Dieter and Helmuth.

This is the first installment of what we hope will be a continuing series, Sharing Their Voices, which will highlight some of  the families living in Agros communities. These blogs will share the journeys that they have taken, as well as the impact that Agros has had on their lives, in their own words.  We hope this will give you a glimpse into their lives and help you better understand the work that we do in partnership with them.

Carlos Roberto and his wife Arely are members of the Agros community Bella Vista, Honduras where they live with their three sons: William, Carlos and Luis. Bella Vista was founded in September 2009 and was the fourth Agros community to launch in Honduras.

Prior to partnering with Agros, the family lived in a borrowed house with no latrine and had to rely on Carlos’ family for support. Like most families in the area where they lived, they did not own their own plot of land. Yet, their livelihood was contingent on their cultivation of basic grains so they had no other option but to plant crops on remote land in order to sustain themselves.

Their circumstances were very difficult but Carlos dreamed of someday growing coffee – a crop that he knew a great deal about – on a plot of his own land. In faith, Carlos planted almost two acres of coffee, a long-term crop that requires 3-5 years for the first harvest, even though he did not own his land and the results were uncertain.

Since Carlos and Arely partnered with Agros, their lives have changed drastically. Within the first year and a half of receiving a plot of land,Carlos was able to plant his crops – which included transplanting the coffee seedlings he had planted in the hopes of a better future – and began harvesting them that upcoming season. The family has also successfully harvested bananas, yucca, passion fruit, and corn, and now owns a cow for milk production. Carlos doesn’t just dream about coffee anymore, but was able to make his dream a reality, thanks to lots of hard work and the support of Agros.

Agros

In addition to all this, Arely motivated a group of women to form Bella Vista’s first Women’s Community Bank “Luz de Dios” (Light of God,) and currently serves as the bank’s president. The group receives loans that are then invested in their individual businesses. The women also save collectively in the hopes of one day providing loans to others. Through this work, Arely has learned how to manage a small business, and has raised about 100 chickens, which she will soon sell. This will allow Arely to spend money on necessary items like food and education for her children, and in the long term it diversifies her family’s income and helps them become self-sustaining.

It was with big smiles that this family shared all they had been able to accomplish with the support of Agros. “We are up to date on managing the fields, and are receiving training, so that we are able to become more specialized.” They view the land they will someday own as “precious gift from God,” and are confident that it will not be too much longer before they will be able to pay off their land loan and receive the title. “Our dream is that we would see our children graduate, be competitive producers at a high level, sell our products in the ideal market for exports, and expand our crop areas while improving our living conditions. Thanks be to God for Agros International.”

After being recognized for our innovative work relieving rural poverty, I am excited to share that Agros has wrapped up a very successful two-year collaboration with the World Bank.  In 2008, Agros was selected along with 100 other winners from a pool of over 1,800 applicants to receive $200,000 from the World Bank Development Marketplace Competition – a competitive grant program that identifies and funds innovative, early-stage projects with high potential for development impact – to implement our project proposal.

Our project, “Land Ownership for the Rural Poor in Mexico,” was designed to purchase land for two rural farming communities in Mexico, and has since resulted – with support from other generous partnerships and foundations – in the formation of Santa Fe Ajké and Nueva Ilusión.  Not only was this a big step for our Mexico office, but it was also a huge achievement for Agros: our innovative model was recognized by a prestigious institution, and we benefited from the expertise and support of the World Bank staff that came alongside us for this project.

Through our partnership with the World Bank, Agros was able to expand to a new region in Chiapas, Mexico—the Guatemala border region in Comitán.  Chiapas is one of the poorest states in Mexico, and Comitán is infamous for ethnic and economic persecution of the vast number of Guatemalan refugees who fled there during the 36-year civil war that ended in 1996.

While visiting Comitán in 2007 in order to prepare for the establishment of Santa Fe Ajké, one man recounted to me the community’s 10-year struggle with the Mexican government to connect to a local water system. Instead of providing for the families’ basic need for water, politicians ignored the obvious urgent needs. Abandoned by both the Guatemalan and Mexican governments, one member said he felt as though the community was “not here nor there,” like citizens of neither country.

Thankfully, with the generous support of partners such as the World Bank, First Fruit Foundation, SG Foundation, and the individual networks that comprise the Santa Fe Ajké and Nueva Ilusión JWAV groups, several families from the group I visited in 2007 started the first Agros community in Comitán: Santa Fe Ajké.  From the beginning, the hard work of its community members has been evident in their motivation to continue despite two years of challenging weather, including drought and torrential rain.  For Nueva Ilusión it has been a long journey to find productive land at a reasonable price, but in June 2010 the land was finally purchased. These two communities have accomplished all of the goals set forth in the project agreement, including:

Santa Fe Ajké

• Defined vision and values, plus a three year village development plan
• Established seven distinct crops for food security and income generation
• Built 20 houses and 20 latrines
• Established a water distribution system
• Received their promissory notes for their land loans

Nueva Ilusión

• Defined their vision statement and new community name
• Selected and purchased land
• Defined vision and values, plus a three year village development plan
• Established four distinct crops for food security, two which are sold for income generation
• Built has 20 houses and 20 latrines

Looking ahead, Santa Fe and Nueva Ilusión still have critical steps to take that will create sustainable, long-term growth.  Though the work with the World Bank has ended, Agros will continue our work for several more years in each of these communities to ensure that they are on the path to land ownership and lasting success. You can follow these communities progress along their journey in the Village Updates by going to the Our Villages tab on our website. Thank you for your continued support!

As we recently wrote, Agros communities in Nicaragua and El Salvador have been affected by heavy rains related to Hurricane Jova. Some communities have suffered food shortages and health complications, and the storms have also wreaked havoc on basic infrastructure like homes and access roads. We want to update you on the damages, and let you know what plan of action our Country Directors and Regional Director have put into place.

Damage from storms affected four Agros communities in El Salvador and six communities in Nicaragua. The most pressing concern is severe crop damage that has put some communities in dangerously low supply of vital crops. These crops, which typically serve as the primary food source for future months, have been completely lost in some cases. Agros is working with local authorities and partnering organizations in-country to tap into local resources and help the communities replant. Several communities are installing silos to better store basic grains, and avoid the risk of future crop deterioration.

In addition to crops, damages to homes and some roads were also sustained, and Agros is working with families to make repairs and prevent water from leaking into homes and causing further health issues. Some communities are suffering from higher rates of respiratory infections stemming from the water damage. Illness has been most severe among younger children, who are the most vulnerable. Agros is connecting communities to medical care to treat these infections.

While both El Salvador and Nicaragua were impacted, El Salvador has been able to address the needs in communities through local government partnerships, and general operating budget. Nicaragua is also tapping into partnerships, but needs more support.

For a complete list of needs and action plans for both countries, please click here.

If you would like to make a gift to help our communities to rebuild and replant, please click here to make a donation. Your gift of any size to Agros now will go a long way to help rural villagers impacted by the devastation of these recent storms by providing food, medical attention and repair to community infrastructure.

It’s nearly 3:00 pm in El Edén, Nicaragua, when a sudden wind driven torrent of rain turns the tin sheeted roof above us into giant timpani drums!  We’ve gathered here, a team of ten from the states along with fifty or so community members, to witness a first in this lush village nestled in a valley alongside the Dariense Mountains of Nicaragua – a coffee roasting and cupping demonstration led by master coffee roaster Artine Yapoujian.

Wide-eyed wonder greets every wisp of bluish smoke as the ancient rock-tumbler-like roasting device rolls the “café oro,” (“gold coffee” as it’s known, and handled here), over the propane burner.  Fifteen minutes later, a bead of sweat upon his brow, the master slides open the cylinder and quickly pours out the now chocolate colored beans into shallow plastic cooling tubs. He sifts the beans back and forth rapidly to keep them from continuing to “cook.”  Now, the moment of truth, the perfect grind prior to the steeping and cupping… alas, “What do you mean you didn’t bring the grinder Artine?” says his wife Sydney.  “Well, I brought it but it’s back at the hotel,” replied Artine. But not to worry, their first ever taste test was not to be thwarted, one of the participants posits the notion of using a cleaned up corn-grinder, and the deed is done!

“¡Peligro, peligro…agua caliente!” (Danger, danger…hot water), the crowd splits, creating a path directly to Artine and Jared, who have precisely prepped 6 white cups, ready for the steep. Next comes “cutting the crema” – the process of removing the creamy caramel color substance that rises to the top when the coffee grounds are combined with the hot water – and the subsequent slurps from special spoons revealing the distinctive characteristics: “bright,” “nutty,” “earthy,” and “fruity”.

Here we see eye-popping revelation as the two men and two women who were chosen to partake in the tasting, after a near surgical removal of the foamy crema, experience their first “slurp”:

Wonder of wonders, CAN it be so?  Unbelievably, perhaps, all the barista bean-team members suddenly see too what I’m seeing, the light of wonder that comes from “firsts” in our lives…for those who’ve never tasted fresh roasted coffee before.  In fact, later upon probing the crowd I learn many have never tasted coffee, period!   They’ve picked it all their lives – under the fear-inducing glare of the “patrón” and his coffee-field-guards, wary of being “robbed” by the pickers – but have never tasted that which fuels the world every morning. This is somewhat ironic, indeed since after petroleum, coffee is the world’s second leading commodity.

What do we learn from this; what did this beloved Bean-Team return home with?  Many things to be sure, but never… never again will we take for granted the work behind the baristas’ counter…many hands, brown, yellow, white and ruddy red, layer, upon layer of them, picking the beans from the “bean-there” slopes of coffee the world over.

Consider how you might join folks like the staff and customers of BMC as we come into this, our most grateful time of year and the generous season that follows and call us or email us…there are many ways to help those many, many, hands!

Last month, heavy torrential rains passed across Central America and Mexico, affecting all of the countries where Agros works. Unfortunately, these storms also brought flooding and crop damage to Agros communities in El Salvador and Nicaragua. We have been in close communication with all Agros Country Directors as they have evaluated the storms’ impact. They are now formulating plans to support these communities through this time.

The initial damage estimates are:

El Salvador:
Approximately 75% of the bean crop has been lost in two communities so far, and corn crops were also badly damaged. Homes and latrines have suffered water damage as well.

Basic grain crops damaged in three communities: El Milagro, San Diego de Tenango and Nuevo Renacer
Homes damaged in three communities: La Esperanza, San Diego de Tenango and Nuevo Renacer

Nicaragua:
The northern Matagalpa region was hit especially hard by these storms, particularly coffee and corn crops. Health is also a concern, as many are suffering from related respiratory illnesses.

Basic grain crops damaged in three communities: San José, Tierra Nueva and El Edén
Productive crops damaged in three communities: Nueva Esperanza, San José and El Edén
Homes damaged in one community: Tierra Nueva
Health concerns in four communities: Nueva Esperanza, San José, San Marcos and Luz del Mañana
Access roads damaged in three communities: San José, Tierra Nueva and El Edén

Guatemala:
No significant damages reported.

Honduras:
No significant damages reported.

Mexico:
No significant damages reported.

Country Directors and staff are working with the local authorities to access available local resources to help the communities replant.

Agros International’s priorities are to make certain that essential food security remains in all villages; that income generation continues; and to ensure access to needed healthcare and housing repairs as necessary. Agros International has emergency funds that will be leveraged towards this effort; local authorities are making resources available; and if needed Agros will launch an appeal to raise additional funds to cover the unexpected losses.

“Agros has the special sauce.”

This is a quote from an Agros supporter and friend that attracted me to the organization 11 years ago as a volunteer, and again four months ago as the new Director of Programs. About six weeks of my first few months at Agros has been spent in Nicaragua and Honduras, attending a regional leadership meeting and visiting Agros villages.

A few weeks ago, while visiting Bella Vista in Honduras, I was sitting at a table of weathered, gracious farmers, being served traditional gallo pinto, plantains, locally grown and squeezed orange juice and the house (farm) coffee brew. While watching the fog lift from the surrounding hills, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of peace about my decision to join Agros.

How and why did I come to join Agros? Allow me a very brief, self-indulgent detour to provide a brief bio.

I’ve been working in the field of international development for the past 12 years. I’ve held positions with several non-governmental organizations, including Oxfam America, Mercy Corps, and World Vision. I’ve worked in strategic communications, resource development, and program management.

I received my graduate degree at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in Boston where I studied public health, monitoring and evaluation, and other aspects of international development.

For the last three years, I’ve been with World Vision in Seattle, designing and managing programs for major foundations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

About six months ago I was approached by Agros to consider the Director of Programs position, and was instantly intrigued. I accepted the position, and the last few months have flown by.

What are the ingredients in the “special sauce” that lured me to Agros? Here are three of many:

1. Agros is both wide and deep. Like many other organizations, they operate an integrated, holistic community development model that recognizes the multi-dimensional nature of poverty. However, the model is also focused enough to have meaningful and sustainable impact, offering land ownership coupled with a robust economic development program – including credit, agricultural development, access to local, regional, and international markets. However, if you ask beneficiaries what contributions from Agros have meant the most to them, more often than not it’s the “softer” but essential elements of Agros’ program: everything from leadership training to marriage counseling to anger management.

2. Agros feels like an organization at a tipping point. We are making critical investments in the technical rigor of the program model (what is our “theory of change”?), in the monitoring and evaluation system (how do we define and measure our progress?), developing the capacity of our field staff, and forging strategic partnerships in key areas of our work (e.g. child nutrition).

3. Finally, Agros has a unique and powerful commitment to cultivating authentic relationships – between our staff, donors and partners, and the communities we seek to serve.

Like every organization, we’re far from perfect, but I’m excited to be part of this team and very hopeful that we’re putting the right ingredients in the pot.

The following was written by Rebecca Craig, an Agros International Student Worker in the Communications Department:

Today is World Food Day! As many of your may well know, Agros’ development model is built around sustainable agriculture. Because of this deep connection I’d like to highlight an issue that has gotten quite a bit of media coverage lately: a lack of global food security. The most dramatic and horrific example of this problem is taking place in Somalia right now where famine is ravaging the country. Governments from around the globe have pledged millions of dollars in food aid, but even in conjunction with a number of international NGOs working in the region to bring famine relief, news reports continue to say that this effort may not be enough. While this region is currently the hardest hit by the issue of food insecurity, this is a global issue that is not just affecting the horn of Africa.

In recent years, the UN food price index has continued to skyrocket, more than doubling in the last decade. The poor are always the hardest hit by these increases; while increasing food prices may mean inconvenience for those of us living in developed nations, it can be the difference between eating one or two meals a day for those living in poverty. This is a complicated issue but there are a number of reasons for growing food insecurity:

• The world population is rapidly expanding – which has more than doubled consumption in the last decade
  • Each year there are about 80 million new mouths to feed
• Demand for meat, milk and other grain intensive livestock is rapidly increasing
• Bio-fuels that turn grains into fuel for automobiles bind the price of grains to perpetually rising oil prices
• Water tables are falling due to exorbitant use of irrigation
• Soil erosion destroys valuable productive land each year

Today there is more demand for food crops than ever before, and producers can’t keep up. Unfortunately the poorest are suffering the most from these shortages. However, Agros is attacking this problem in a twofold manner. First, Agros works with the poor in Central America to help meet their food needs by growing crops on their own land. When the first few families make the move to start a new Agros community one of the first projects they undertake is planting staple crops for the community as a whole. It is of the upmost importance that there will be enough to feed the entire community through their experimentation with other cash crops and enterprises. In this way Agros provides built-in food security for each village from their inception.

The second component of Agros’ involvement with food security is much more far reaching. As Agros communities grow and develop, they become self-sustaining through producing crops and selling them in the world market. In Guatemala alone, snow peas from Agros communities are sold in supermarkets such as Marks & Specser in England, and they are working to get these products to market in the United States as well. Additionally, you can find gourmet coffee Agros produces here in Seattle through Cafe Lusso Roasters, sold in a variety of places from Street Bean Espresso to the Microsoft Executive Briefing Center. Other products are sold in local markets closer to the communities themselves, serving local populations with enhanced access to food supplies.

However, just producing and selling crops is not enough for Agros communities. It is paramount that these resources will be available for generations to come. To this end, Agros provides training and technical assistance for sustainable land use and good stewardship practices, including organic composting, education about soil conservation, land reforestation, and protection of watersheds. In this way Agros has taken steps to ensure that our communities will limit the effects of falling water tables and soil erosion that have stifled production in some areas, and each community will be able to provide for their own food security needs as well as the global communities for generations to come.

One of my new favorite authors is Dr. Vishal Mangalwadi. In his thought provoking work, Must the Sun Set on the West?: An Indian Explores the Soul of Western Civilization, he contrasts the lives of J. S. Bach & Kurt Cobain, two iconic musicians from different ages, both long now deceased, yet still very popular. When comparing the drastic difference of these two artists’ musical styles and worldviews he uses the phrase “always mind” – a summary of the two great commandments: loving God and loving one’s neighbor – to describe the worldview of Bach’s & the Bible while pointing out that Cobain‘s most successful album, “Nevermind” epitomizes the nihilistic opposite worldview. He rightly states, I think, that when we live out the two great commandments, we will, “always mind” about the welfare of others rather than attempt a narcissistic nirvana of “nevermind.”

While reading this I was reminded of someone who recently exhibited how “Always Mind” played out in his own life: Barney Reynolds. I recently witnessed Barney blessing his dear friends, and Agros’ recent guests for our Tierras de Vida event, Serbando Mérida and Ana Toma de la Cruz, a married couple from the Agros village of La Esperanza, Guatemala with a true labor of love a decade in the making.

Ten years ago Barney and his lovely wife Marge joined several of us on a Vision Trip to Guatemala to meet the newly selected villagers of La Esperanza. At that time the land was unsettled and undeveloped but through years of hard work has become verdant and fruitful. The president of this fledgling rag-tag group of highland indigenous Mayans was Serbando. A man of impeccable integrity, resolute resilience, unquenchable curiosity, and lifting leadership, Serbando greeted Barney’s towering figure of luminous blue eyes & white hair with gracious gratitude under a simple blue-tarp welcome canopy. From that moment they were knit together. Barney, the champion of Agros’ first Journey With A Village experience, a then recently retired Boeing engineer, began applying his meticulous planning methodology and keen eye to the task at hand. One benefit of which is his “always mindful” record of historic moments, whether present himself or from others who traveled to La Esperanza in the years hence.

Following our most recent Tierras de Vida on Sept 24th, Barney presented Serbando and his wife Ana with a personalized record of their historic story as part of La Esperanza’s success!  It was a book filled with chronological photos and salient commentary capturing a young man and his beautiful young wife’s sojourn from nothing to abundance; it was a tour de force of what it means to live out “always mind,” truly a labor love! Watching the “handoff” of his gift to them, this humble man of God, my heart nearly burst in gratitude. I knew I was witnessing in that moment a “knighting” of sorts, lifting further the dignity and character of a couple worthy to be honored and emulated, while showing us all that “always mind” is borne of love for God and for one’s neighbor, above self. Thank you Barney, even as you helped launch thousands of safe flights, you pioneered for Agros the journey of accompanying compassion we’ve called Journey With A Village. Today this is a vital link to forty-two villages impacting thousands of families like Serbando and Ana’s. When Barney helped lead the way ten years ago we had but nine serving a few hundred, last year we had four-hundred and ten volunteers who traveled to Agros villages to serve thousands.

To find out more how you too can be part of our “always mind” culture, check out the work of Agros and meet Serbando and Ana while you’re there.

Before moving to the Agros Honduras community of Brisas del Volcán, Omar and his wife Ana Maria had gone through countless trials. Omar walked five miles to work as a day laborer for a large landowner. He worked two weeks at a time, only returning briefly to spend time with his family before leaving once more. Despite his hard work, he was barely able to feed his family. Ana Maria describes the experience:

“My husband was a day laborer in the fields growing coffee, grains, and other crops. He worked hard for the landowner and received pay of $1 a day, which added up to about $20 a month. Every day, Omar would walk 8 kilometers to work in the fields. Sometimes he would be away for up to 15 days so that he could feed the children.”

Living paycheck to paycheck, he had no dreams for the future, and had simply accepted his poverty. “How could I possibly imagine owning land if all we had ever known was this place where we worked for someone else?” explained Omar.

Despite her husband’s concession, Ana Maria still dreamed of a life of economic freedom and stability. When she heard about Agros, she excitedly convinced Omar of the possibilities, and they moved to Brisas del Volcán.

Their lives have completely transformed since their arrival at Brisas. They have a permanent home, made of sturdy cement blocks, complete with running water. They are growing coffee, plantains, and cacao, but this time on their own land, and their efforts will allow them to own it out right. In addition to what they are growing for profits, they have basic grains and a milk cow for personal consumption. Omar has also been attending an adult literacy class through which he has learned how to write his name. Ana Maria has been able to contribute to the family income as well:

“I have always been a dynamic and entrepreneurial woman. I have been able to use these qualities in my community. For a year I have been active as a leader and treasurer of the Brisas del Volcán community bank. My involvement with the bank made me feel so empowered, and I feel as though I am able to give back and serve other members of the community. I even decided to learn how to read and write. Little by little I began to integrate activities into my daily life that would generate income, such as selling tamales and bread, occasionally washing clothes, harvesting coffee, and hauling firewood. I was also a partner of a small tajaditas (plantain chips) business with two of my friends.”

Ana Maria and the rest of the women in the community bank are about to enter in to the third loan cycle. She borrowed $127 in the first cycle, and $180 in the second cycle. She has managed to pay off both loans by selling the tamales and bread that she makes. Each month she earns $30 profit, which allows her to continue to invest in savings in the community bank. The tajaditas business is thriving as well. Members of the village have produced 400 pounds of plantains to date, with a profit of $191. Ana Maria is also currently designing labels that can increase sales.

With all they have accomplished, Omar and Ana Maria now believe that the sky is the limit. Some of Ana Maria’s goals for the future include:

• Giving her children an education
• Having a united family
• Growing as a business woman and generating more income
• Producing her own raw materials (such as plantains)
• Having a space with conditions that help increase her productive activity

The couple smiles with happiness at what they have accomplished and what is yet to come. They are deeply thankful for what Agros has done for them and are passionate about future endeavors.

As we give thanks for all of our partners who supported Agros in our Fiscal Year 2011, I am mindful of the countless intangible gifts that were shared.  In the past year, a total of 417 people traveled to Latin America with Agros. Together they formed 26 Service Teams, who journeyed with Agros villagers and enjoyed mutual encouragement; 8 Vision Trips, who explored developing opportunities with Agros and met our amazing international staff and communities in person; and a couple of unique combination trips that did a little of everything!

The coming year is already starting off well, with many more trips on our calendar.  I look forward to collaborating with many of you to that end! My role with Agros includes facilitating all travel, including planning and training for, then executing and following up on, dignifying inter-cultural exchanges.

While participation in a trip with Agros may not contribute to the financial support of our partnership with communities throughout Latin America, it does reflect an awareness of the value of presence, not only presents. Thank you to everyone who helps raise the Agros core values of fostering relationships, facilitating participation, and following in the ways of Jesus by supporting and engaging in these opportunities for the greater Agros community to connect with and serve one another.  Connecting with people in this direct and relational manner is an Agros distinctive that so many of us are truly grateful for and excited about.

One trip participant, veteran international photojournalist Amanda Koster, who helped organize Agros’ collaboration with SalaamGarage,* summed up her experience recognizing Agros’ success:

“After over a decade and a half of working with NGOs, something powerful affected me on this particular trip, working with this particular NGO, Agros International.  It was one of the first times we did not directly face extreme poverty, remnants of warfare, exorbitant levels of deadly diseases, or even the beautiful yet invisible presence of an NGO. Instead, we got to face success. The people themselves shared their success with us, right down to the last boxbole**.”

Agros and our partners value people, not only projects. We recognize that by physically coming alongside someone, even if only for a short time, we are demonstrating they have value, are worth visiting, and that we believe in them.  We believe that development is something we do with people, not to or for them.

Thank you for joining Agros in empowering people by sharing your presence.

* This unique collaborative trip resulted in some great citizen journalism and a beautiful book.

**Boxboles (pron. bosh-bow-lees) are an indigenous food creatively developed by the Mayan people of the Ixil region in Guatemala.  During Guatemala’s bloody civil war (1960-96), preparing tortillas by slapping the dough between hands was too risky for people in hiding.  To keep from being found in the highlands, boxboles were prepared by steaming, not slapping dough.

Seven years is a long time for hope to flourish. For the 28 families clustered on the outskirts of this coffee farm near El Tuma, far in the Nicaraguan highlands, hope in a promise the local municipality made to them seven years ago is all but extinguished.  The government moved the families from El Tuma, where they were squatting on tiny plots of land near the main road, to a coffee farm 30 minutes away.  The owner of the farm said the families could use a corner of his land to build temporary homes, while the government looked for a permanent place for them to live.

Today, seven years later, the families are still on the coffee farm, and hope the landowner doesn’t force the government to move them once again. Over the years, their families have expanded, new children have been born, and the little homes they’ve built of sticks and tarp are more crowded.  They’ve come to the realization that the government may never find them a new place to live, permanent homes, and improved living conditions for their children.

Young Yamileth recently told me about her life in Siempre Viva, a name the families gave to themselves, which translates to Always Alive.  While there’s no electricity, “lack of access to water is the hardest part about living here,” says Yamileth. “There are no latrines, which means we have to relieve ourselves in the local river – the same place where we bathe and fetch water to cook and to drink.”

Yamileth showed me the small home she and her husband, Pedro, cobbled together from tarp and wood they found in the forest.  Smoke fills her home as she cooks for her three children from an open fire. Yamileth’s grateful that her oldest daughter, Eva, is getting an education. Eva walks 30 minutes to and from the primary school in the nearby town each day, where she attends first grade. Yamileth stays home with her two younger children, Pedro age five, and Jennifer, now two.  Because her husband Pedro works two hours away from the farm, he walks to work at the beginning of each week, and returns home only on Saturdays. He brings money he’s earned from jobs he’s picked up during the week, either planting corn or clearing fields with his machete, the single tool he owns.  Many days, there’s simply no work to be found, and Pedro returns home with less than enough to supply daily food for his family.

Two doors down, Maria Isabel, another young mother with two children, shares a similar story. Each day, her husband Moises travels to nearby farms looking for any work he can find – but often he finds nothing. Maria Isabel longs for a home of her own, where she can raise her baby Andy, now four months old, and Antonio, her six year old, with better prospects for their future. She hopes to live in a place with clean water, a latrine for her family, and perhaps even electricity. For now, she shares her tiny home with another family, enlarging their space by adding two hammocks in the front yard, covered by a tarp.

What amazes me most about the 28 families of Siempre Viva is that, in spite of their circumstances, they have retained hope that life can indeed become better for themselves and their families! And they are striving to improve their lives. They’ve organized themselves and work together to advocate for their rights in any way they can within the local municipality. On their small parcel of land – owned by the gracious farmer – they have built a temporary preschool. One of the women from their group teaches the younger children there each morning.  Another woman from Siempre Viva serves as a health care provider, using a first aid kit a local ngo has provided to treat minor health issues within the village. The families truly hope for more permanence, a place with improved access to water and better sanitation. They long for homes of their own, with gardens where they can grow their own food to provide for their families’ needs, and a place where there’s more opportunities for dependable work, so they can be more productive. They’ve demonstrated they’re willing to work hard to improve their prospects for the future. They simply lack opportunities.

Just last week, the staff of Agros Nicaragua learned about Siempre Viva from Agros Nicaragua Economic Development Coordinator, Amanda. Amanda’s mother heard about the plight of these families, and passed along their story to Amanda. The families of Siempre Viva are exactly the type of families Agros exists to serve: hardworking, capable people who desire to be productive and provide a better life for themselves and their children.

Next Thursday, Amanda, will return to Siempre Viva to meet with the families and discuss the work of Agros and the opportunities we provide to hardworking families, to own land and boost their incomes. If the families are interested, Amanda will return again to share more about Agros’ community development model. In time, the families of Siempre Viva may indeed qualify to become part of the next Agros village. As they wait, Agros will continue to meet with them and help to strengthen community organization and their ability to advocate for themselves.

As I said goodbye to these families I met here, I was filled with a mix of emotions. The conditions here break my heart. Yet the work ethic, persistence and steadfastness these families have exhibited over the past seven years give me incredible hope for their future. I know that with their willingness to work and take advantage of opportunities, Yamileth, Maria Isabel, and the other families of Siempre Viva can truly thrive in an Agros village. I’m encouraged to know the dialogue has begun, and that Amanda will begin meeting with them next week, as she returns to share more about how Agros can help them turn their dreams into reality.

The following was written by Rebecca Craig, an Agros International Student Worker in the Communications Department:

Last month, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation launched a new small farmer initiative that is directly related to the mission of Agros. Speaking at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food, Bill Gates said, “I’ve become convinced that supporting their efforts to grow more food and get it to market is one of the best possible ways to invest money if you want to help the world’s poorest people become self-sufficient.”

This idea is at the heart of Agros, which has been partnering with rural poor families in Central America and Chiapas, Mexico to attain self-sufficiency through agriculture for nearly thirty years. But one of the factors that sets Agros apart from other organizations is that we view the inability to access land ownership as a major contributor to rural poverty. Without land of their own, the rural poor must either rent small plots of land that only allow for small yields and forces them to give a portion of their yield back to the owners, or work on large farms for little pay and with no job stability. Both of these options take a huge portion of food and potential profits away from those most in need.

That’s why Agros works with a group of families to identify and purchase agricultural land, with the understanding that these families will work to pay off the loans and eventually own that land. These families begin growing their crops, initiating a repayment of those loans at a low interest rate over a period of about ten years. Their payments enable Agros to recycle these funds into future land purchases, effectively passing on the blessing to other communities in need.

Of course, land alone is not the answer. Rather, we form a partnership that is founded on our holistic and participatory development model which entails a long-term commitment to join with each of the communities. Agros comes alongside the families we work with and facilitates this process, ensuring that families access necessities like housing, clean water, and education, in addition to small business loans and training for land use and stewardship.

This is not charity; it’s an investment in the capacity of people and in agriculture.  First the families can begin to grow crops to feed themselves and their families, making day to day survival less of a struggle. Once they’ve reached a steady food supply, then they can begin trying new crops and securing contracts to sell them for additional income, with assistance from Agros agronomists.

Mateo and his wife are a great example of just how necessary land ownership can be to poverty elimination. Over twenty years ago, Mateo and his family fled from the civil war in Guatemala to the safety of Mexico. There they worked on different ranches, dependent on the whims of landowners for survival.  Twice the family tried to put down roots and grow coffee and plantains, only to be kicked off the land. Coffee in particular is a crop that grows well in some climates in Central America, and when produced at the right quality can be quite profitable. But it is also a crop that takes three years to fully mature, and thus requires being on the same land to reap the benefits of years of hard work. Mateo and his family never had that opportunity before partnering with Agros. Now the family lives in the community of Nueva Ilusión and is working towards owning their own land. Looking forward, Mateo shared, “I’m happy because now we have the security of having land to plant—no more patrones kicking us off without notice.”

We have witnessed the amazing potential that agriculture holds for our community members like Mateo, and have enthusiastically watched them journey out of poverty and into self-sufficiency in just one generation. Our families’ hard work – through cultivation of crops such as coffee and snow peas for world market consumption – has given them the opportunity not only to own their own land but also to earn a living, support their families, and dream of a brighter future. We hope that Gates’ speech draws greater attention to the importance of what small farmers are doing in Agros villages throughout Central America and Mexico.  For more information on how Agros is working to empower families and small farmers in Central America and Mexico, click here.