Angelina is working hard as a Health Volunteer!

Angelina is 27 years old and lives in the village of San Marcos Chamil in rural Guatemala. Her story is similar to the stories of many other women in the communities where Medical Teams Guatemala works.

After completing just two years of school, Angelina was married by the age of 15. She has three sons (Lydia, 10 years, Jaime, 7 years and Fermin, 4 years). A few years ago her husband left her, and all of a sudden, she had to work hard to cover the basic needs of her family. She currently supports her family by selling herbs and vegetables.

Angelina says she sometimes has to walk up to five kilometers to neighbouring communities to buy products she can sell at the market. These trips earn her about $5, and she does them about twice a week. Angelica says “I want to give good education to my three sons, because maybe they help me financially later.”

In addition to worrying about their children, Angelina also cares about the residents of their community. She serves as a Health Volunteer, and she is currently being trained by Medical Teams to prevent maternal and child deaths in her community.

A few weeks ago Angelina activated the village’s Emergency Plan, because one of her neighbors had complications in her pregnancy.

Angelina was able to immediately coordinate action at the community level, called an ambulance and referred it to the regional hospital. That same night Victoria had her baby by caesarean, and is very grateful to the people who helped her.

After this experience, Angelina is feeling very motivated to continue in her role as a Health Volunteer, and looks forward to the continued training provided by your donations!