Agros Blog

A group of us just returned from a deeply inspirational trip to Guatemala. The following is the first of several reports to come, and was written by Brooke Rufo Hill, the Agros Service & Education Manager.

The First Families Move to La Providencia, Guatemala.

I recently had the privilege to spend time alongside the staff of Agros Guatemala in the remote region of Barillas, visiting the Agros villages in that area. During this time we bumped along rugged roads to visit the established Agros villages of El Edén, Nueva Primavera, and Villa Linda, as well as the newest Agros community of La Providencia. It was an incredible privilege to witness the first families move onto this beautiful and productive piece of land.

The terrain is over 550 acres of lush fields with crops of coffee, cardamom, and sugar cane already growing; it has a rushing river and spilling waterfall to boot. La Providencia is truly a site to see — it exudes a sense of hope and prosperity.

The leaders of La Providencia greeted us when we arrived. Each of the men had smiles ear-to-ear — they were anxious to give us a tour of their new home and the fresh start of opportunity was in the air. We found ourselves crossing a rickety suspension bridge swaying over the river, bushwhacking our way through the coffee plants and overgrowth, and posing under the glorious waterfall for photos. During this two-hour tour, we were able to engage in valuable conversations with both the community leaders and the staff of Agros Guatemala.

One hundred families will make up this village located in the northwest of Guatemala. Almost a half of the families are now in the process of moving onto land; the rest of them will begin to move in early January. Agros Guatemala is working with a professional engineer and architect to help the community design their master plan for the village. In the meantime, the families are choosing temporary locations to place their homes. The day we visited, representatives of all the groups and families of La Providencia were there to receive their plot assignments so they can start planting corn now to have food for their families. Most families also already have members working on the coffee and cardamom harvests. For now the community’s focus is to harvest the crops, plant corn for their families’ food, and construct their temporary houses, as well as working toward overall community organization and integration of the families. The community has already formed their key committees and they are beginning to work on integrating the different groups into the one large community.

La Providencia — both the fertile land and the amazing people who will make up this new Agros community — is alive with a deep sense of hope and opportunity. After visiting La Providencia and spending time with the families and Agros Guatemala staff, I now have a clear understanding of why the Agros tagline is “Land. Hope. Life.”