Jardin Atiteca Group

Thank you for your loan. It has been disbursed to the Jardin Atiteca group, consisting of Petrona Guoz, Asunción Sitán, Gregoria Quievac, Paulina Guoz, Margarita Gomez, Maria Pacay, Julia Quievac, Rosa Guoz, Nicolasa Cujcuj, Juana Ajtujal, Juana Rujuch, Rosa Ajtujal, Felipa Chojpen, Maria Tzunun, Barbara Ajtujal, Nicolasa Ajtujal, Josefa Ajtujal by Friendship Bridge in Guatemala. We are excited to watch this business grow. Over the next 13 months, Friendship Bridge will be collecting repayments from this entrepreneur and posting progress updates on the Kiva website.

To get to the women of Jardin Atiteca Group in Cerro de Oro, I needed to take a boat across Lake Atitlan to Santiago de Atitlan. From there, I jumped on a pick-up truck headed for the quiet highland town nestled between the lake and the hill of the same name (Cerro de Oro literally translates to Hill of Gold). When I got there I didn’t get the quiet welcome I am accustomed to when arriving in Cerro de Oro. It was the day of the Feria de Cerro de Oro, their annual festival celebrating their town and its culture. There was a Ferris wheel, vendors selling goodies and loud music coming from the main square.

The women of Jardin Atiteca were in lively spirits; all clearly excited for the evening’s events which they explained would include a marimba band. Marimba is an instrument like a xylophone with keys made from wood that is traditional in Guatemala and is included in many of the country’s celebrations.

Through the blare of the background music, we began discussing the loans the women have received and how they have affected their lives. Paulina Guoz is one of the younger women in the Jardin Atiteca Group. At only 22 years old, she has been working in the family business of weaving for over seven years. Her mother learned how to weave in San Lucas Toliman, a town on Lake Atitlan renowned for its textiles that use natural dyes. Her mother, in turn, taught Paulina the family trade at the age of 14. She has been extremely grateful for the loan she has received because it has improved her ability to buy larger quantities of fabric. In the past she was purchasing 2-3 pieces of fabric at a time and at retail prices due to her limited income. They cost more and therefore gave her a smaller margin of earnings. With the extra money from the loan she has been able to buy larger quantities of fabric in advance at wholesale prices. Now she is earning more money from her products and has been able to support her family more.

As the meeting came to a close, the music got louder and the women began getting antsy. They joked that they were excited to go home and get ready for the big evening (mostly by napping so they could dance the night away). With the extra money that they have earned since their business has improved, the women of Jardin Atiteca were looking forward to a bit of relaxation and a nice night out on the town.