Lili started working at UPAVIM in 2002. She was eight months pregnant with her fifth child when her husband was shot and killed just outside of the UPAVIM building. She was left a single mother with no way of supporting her growing family. Just after the death of her husband she started working at UPAVIM as a sewer. Her first months at UPAVIM were painfully difficult as she only made about $15 per month. As the UPAVIM artisan program grew, more work became available and she was able to earn more and more money each month. “UPAVIM is nothing less than a second home for me and for my children.” Despite a number of challenges and hardships that Lili has worked to overcome in her life she continues with an attitude of perseverance and hope. Lili’s youngest son, Juan Fernando had a series of seizures just after birth that lead to a serious stroke. He was hospitalized for months during the time Lili was just starting work at UPAVIM. Currently, at the age of 13, he still has at least one seizure per month. To keep his seizures under control Lili has to purchase about $100 worth of medicine per month. $100 per month for medicine for one of six children is an almost unbearable cost for Lili who works hard to send her kids to school and keep food on the table.

United For a Better Life. UPAVIM strives to provide opportunities for women to recognize their potential, both individually and as a group of women united by the desire to create a better life. We believe that when women acknowledge their own capabilities, and have the space and structure to develop their talents, they begin to empower themselves.

Located in a "Red Zone" of Guatemala City, La Esperanza is a community plagued by gangs and violence. For the women of this community, UPAVIM offers a place of sanctuary. It is a space for them to be with their sisters and friends, the women of their community who give them love, hope, strength and purpose. It is also a place of employment to provide income and security for their families. While faced with the numerous challenges of poverty and violence, UPAVIM remains a beacon of hope for the women and children of this community.

 “Gangs exist because young people have nothing to motivate them to fight for a better future, so it is important for our community to have a place like UPAVIM, with schools to educate the children of the neighborhood and give them a safe place where they can learn and develop aspirations for their future. It gives me great comfort to know that my children can count on UPAVIM and are not playing in the street risking their lives.” -upavima (translated from spanish)

Finding a solution to all of the challenges facing our community requires a real commitment from each one of us – as empowered women, mothers, partners and workers – to take the lead and make the necessary changes, and to do so in solidarity with our community and in solidarity with the most vulnerable and excluded people in Guatemalan society.

Lili started working at UPAVIM in 2002. She was eight months pregnant with her fifth child when her husband was shot and killed just outside of the UPAVIM building. She was left a single mother with no way of supporting her growing family. Just after the death of her husband she started working at UPAVIM as a sewer. Her first months at UPAVIM were painfully difficult as she only made about $15 per month. As the UPAVIM artisan program grew, more work became available and she was able to earn more and more money each month. “UPAVIM is nothing less than a second home for me and for my children.” Despite a number of challenges and hardships that Lili has worked to overcome in her life she continues with an attitude of perseverance and hope. Lili’s youngest son, Juan Fernando had a series of seizures just after birth that lead to a serious stroke. He was hospitalized for months during the time Lili was just starting work at UPAVIM. Currently, at the age of 13, he still has at least one seizure per month. To keep his seizures under control Lili has to purchase about $100 worth of medicine per month. $100 per month for medicine for one of six children is an almost unbearable cost for Lili who works hard to send her kids to school and keep food on the table.

United For a Better Life. UPAVIM strives to provide opportunities for women to recognize their potential, both individually and as a group of women united by the desire to create a better life. We believe that when women acknowledge their own capabilities, and have the space and structure to develop their talents, they begin to empower themselves.

Located in a "Red Zone" of Guatemala City, La Esperanza is a community plagued by gangs and violence. For the women of this community, UPAVIM offers a place of sanctuary. It is a space for them to be with their sisters and friends, the women of their community who give them love, hope, strength and purpose. It is also a place of employment to provide income and security for their families. While faced with the numerous challenges of poverty and violence, UPAVIM remains a beacon of hope for the women and children of this community.

 “Gangs exist because young people have nothing to motivate them to fight for a better future, so it is important for our community to have a place like UPAVIM, with schools to educate the children of the neighborhood and give them a safe place where they can learn and develop aspirations for their future. It gives me great comfort to know that my children can count on UPAVIM and are not playing in the street risking their lives.” -upavima (translated from spanish)

Finding a solution to all of the challenges facing our community requires a real commitment from each one of us – as empowered women, mothers, partners and workers – to take the lead and make the necessary changes, and to do so in solidarity with our community and in solidarity with the most vulnerable and excluded people in Guatemalan society.