A mission team from Caldwell Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, NC (www.caldwellpresby.org), has delivered 80 sets of jerseys & shorts donated from Flagler College (St. Augustine, FL) shoes (from donors nationwide), 20 balls plus other equipment from Peace Passers, to the indigenous community of San Rafael el Arado in Guatemala. The mission team was working through Common Hope (www.commonhope.org), a Minnesota-based nonprofit that provides assistance to Guatemalan families in the areas of education, healthcare, and housing. The church sponsors a child from San Rafael, helping to provide schooling, healthcare, and other services to her and her family, as well as support to the community as a whole.

Sally T, A member of the mission team says “Students from San Rafael were very excited to receive the soccer gear, since soccer is a popular pastime in Guatemala. The young women were especially happy to be included in the soccer plans and also recipients of the gear. Guatemalan children begin practicing their soccer moves with limes and other found objects by the time they are two or three years old. Yet rarely do village children have an opportunity to play with appropriate footwear and other gear. Mostly they play pickup games on dirt roads or empty fields after their chores are finished. Now the San Rafael school is planning scrimmages with neighboring communities. With these donations from PeacePassers, San Rafael students will enjoy their favorite sport even more!”