The group flew into Guatemala City but were in the south in Antiqua, a small city in the central highlands of Guatemala, surrounded by volcanoes and known for its Spanish Baroque-influenced architecture and buildings. Many of the buildings were restored in 1773 after a major earthquake destroyed them. At that point the capital of Guatemala moved to Guatemala City from Antiqua. In 1979, Antiqua was designated a UNESCO Heritage Site. Summerlin showed pictures of the resort city including duplexes, churches and other buildings all surrounded by active volcanoes. She also showed the products and beautiful garments, most of which are handmade, available for purchase. The old-world stores are mixed with modern stores giving a feeling of being in both the old and new world. The Rotarians stayed at Hotel Santa Domingo, which was formerly a convent. The hotel is very beautiful and there are six museums on site as well, a chocolatier and reminiscent of the world of the past.

Why Guatemala? Guatemala has the worst education system in Latin America. They have the highest level of malnutrition and maternal infant mortality rate. Most of the unaccompanied migrant youth who enter the U.S. from Guatemala come from four states in the Western highlands where one of the only crops that flourishes is the opium poppies, a source of heroin. There are a lot of youth whose only option for work is the poppy fields. The only choice they have is to work there or flee and try and find a better situation. 2018 saw a 50% increase in migrant youth intercepted at the U.S. border. These people feel their only option is to illegally enter the U.S. or work in a poppy field. Most of the youth only have a sixth-grade education.

The Projects:  This (Rotary) project was three-fold. The first was an at-risk youth fast-track employment project. The second was at Antigua School of Rehabilitation, a hygiene improvement; the third was responding to a volcanic eruption disaster from 2018. All the projects together were a $250,000 investment.

Summerlin said, "After we got there, we’d all get up in the morning and gather and go to the first project. It was clear that the buses we rode on were originally from the U.S. and had been repainted and converted into public transportation." Summerlin saw many buses with American city and state names on them. The first project site was an elementary school named Coronado. They conducted rehabilitation to the premises and computer lab. They painted the school. They refaced the building. Rotary is very committed to doing things a certain way so that the school will have long-term, sustainable benefits. The Guatemalans who worked alongside Rotarians wore shirts that said: I am Guatemala and Guatemala is me, meaning they were committed to staying in their country and making it better and not fleeing to the U.S.

The second project was on the other side of town building beds and furniture for the dormitories for a boarding school that educated students from level 6-12. Within weeks of starting the project several hundred children were due to arrive at the school to start their studies. Halfway through day two, Summerlin was asked to reface a mural because she likes to paint. She gathered up some of the younger people on the trip and went and got paint and materials. One of the goals was to be conscious of and honor the heritage and culture so they painted the children realistically with dark skin. Prior to, the mural was painted with children of pasty white skin. The Rotarians enjoyed traditional tourist events like going out to eat. They ate at a restaurant that was having a grand reopening and took up the entire restaurant. On the third day, the Rotarians went to a small boarding school for children with disabilities. The students are 100% dependent. Prior Rotaries had funded the facility and physical therapy equipment and beds at the school. Summerlin and Dominque, an Interact student from North Texas, who also had a lot of previous experience as a mission worker in Chile, fed the children lunch and interacted with them. They played with the children and prayed for their futures. The other side or the school is an elementary school. Rotarians spent time with these children and sang songs with them. After interacting with the children, they did a lime-stone wash on an outer wall of the school and repainted the entire wall.

Guatemala is home to the most active volcano is the world, Fuego. Fuego erupted in 2018 and was the biggest explosion it has ever had. When the volcano showed signs of erupting, some people evacuated but many did not because they are so used to minor eruptions. Every person who stayed, died. More than 1.7 million people were impacted. The Rotarians assessed the damage and learned what happened. The third part of the project was to work with the National Reconstruction Committee and work toward re-homing families who are living in shanty towns. After they visited the site of most destruction, the Rotarians went down and visited with the children and families and delivered items they needed. They also took six huge pinatas, and they spent time playing with the children. The children were so happy to play and have a respite from their trials.

Once you’ve been on a Rotary Global Service Project, you have a nice meal and get an official flag. Summerlin said, “Being on a mission trip is as important as the work that you do. The human connection and just being there, just having those conversations and being someone from our country who has left it all behind to be there and be in service to others is the most impactful thing you can do…like the theme this year – Service does change people’s lives. Never think that you don’t have the means, the talent or the wherewithal to get out and serve others especially in an international capacity. Just seeing your face let’s these folks know they are not alone in the world.”

After the trip, Summerlin flew to Peten, in the northern region to a city called Flores. She stayed in a beautiful hotel, Villa Maya. She took her meals on a beautiful patio. Other Rotarians on the trip went to other regions of the country, but Summerlin wanted to explore the Mayan region. Summerlin also showed photos of a group of young men who came from the fast-track school on the eastern side of the country. In Guatemala, the chances of getting a job are about 10%. Therefore, a Rotarian many years ago started a boarding school for students to do three years of middle school and three years high school. To earn a position at the school, students must leave their families and do three years of labor to earn a position to attend the school. Once in the school they do three hours of school and then fives hours of work in their field of study, like an internship. There are two tracks – tourism or technical school. When they graduate, their chances of getting a job are nearly 100% compared to the 10%. The mission of the school is to give young girls who would be getting married and having children as young as 13 or 14 an opportunity to get an education. During Covid the situation got worse, increasing the need for these students to get into the school and get the training. This school has been so successful that even the government has taken note and is starting similar schools around the country. Since Callie was there, three Rotary Clubs have been there to support these schools.

Summerlin has great memories of the work, the food and the friends. Dominque, who was a student wrapping up her time at North Texas, became a very good friend. They have met after the trip and have stayed in touch

“You know in Rotary you’ll make life-long friends, but when you join hands for an international project, your lives are never the same and you are internally bonded,” said Summerlin. “Hope you are inspired that maybe you’ll go on a trip one day. It has a way of working out if you have it in your heart to do international mission work.”