Author Archives: OB Administrator

My Time with Oxlajuj B’atz’

Posted on April 24, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

After three months in Panajachel and with Oxlajuj B’atz’ I leave feeling rewarded and blessed but with a hole in my chest at the thought of saying goodbye after such a short time. Recalling my first Monday at Oxlajuj B’atz’, I remember how overwhelmed I was. I had never been to Guatemala and after a full three-hour meeting in Spanish I was thinking – I really should have brushed up with a little Spanish course prior to heading south. But in less than a week everyone was familiar and I had a grasp on things; however, it took a good month to spell Oxlajuj B’atz’ correctly. I accepted the Guatemalan cheek kiss greeting and birthday sing-along (well, not entirely). I loved group lunches, seeing the staff busying about with new projects, and watching as a team contributed to the improvement of programming and community initiatives. I greatly appreciated the enthusiasm of the community facilitators and was astonished by staff and volunteer commitment to appropriate, successful project planning.

Oxlajuj B’atz’ was a unique experience in that it was the first small scale, community centered NGO I had worked with. I worked primarily on social media, templates and advertising material, in addition to helping plan International Women’s Day. Oxlajuj B’atz’s connection to the communities and understanding of the obstacles and social settings make them unique and well placed to create inherent, self-driven change for the Maya women. While they are a small organization, OB has a laudable vision and respect. The staff is so utterly dedicated, the leadership is sincere and committed, and the volunteers are talented and ambitious. I am eager to see how the organization and Women’s Center grow in the coming year; it is an exciting period of development and I am convinced only wonderful things will happen as the Fair Trade Store and Center enhance products and programs.

I will miss walking in to Casa Cakchiquel and being inspired by the potential of the organization, groups, and the building. I will miss Lucy’s passion, Nancy’s strength in character and organization, Letty and Mildre’s enthusiasm and sheer happiness, Reyna’s efficiency and knowledge base, the Chipiline lady always coming right after lunch, and the entertaining antics of certain, special volunteers.

I will miss waking up and seeing the volcanoes and lake, to think each day… “Wow, I live here, and it takes my breath away every time.” The country, the people, the geography, and the program were utterly incredible. I hope those that may read this have the opportunity to experience and contribute to such a special place.

Amanda Gordon – 24-4-2012

Guatemala, OB Blog, Panajachel

Rug Hooking Tour Testimonials

Posted on March 26, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

Testimonials from our recent Rug-Hooking Tour:

I can’t say enough about my recent 10 day Rug Hooking  experience in Guatemala with Mary Anne Wise and Jody Slocum. You could not ask for a more competent, good humored, unflappable leaders to see this beautiful country. The tour was set up to include time with indigenous women from rural villages who are part of a cooperative women’s empowerment program. Because of the thoughtful design of the tour and the cultural
competence of the leaders, we were able to spend significant, meaningful time with these women both as they worked at the cooperative (13 Threads) and by visiting their home villages. We were able to enter into their lives and share a common ground as women and artists.

All the details of the trip were meticulously planned for us. I have been to Guatemala 5 times and this is the first time I did not suffer GI distress. The food was delicious and safe. The rooms were clean and everywhere the settings were beautiful.

A big bonus was the women who were attracted to this tour, maybe it was that Mary Anne and Jody were the magnet and/or, maybe it is that rug hookers are a great folks to be with.
I highly recommend this experience. I would be happy to discuss this further and can be reached by email: cstockman2 at verizon.net

- Chris Stockman, February 2012

 

Whether a rug hooker or not, this was an opportunity of a lifetime to not only visit another country, but to actually participate in the culture of a proud, generous and hopeful people. Their beautiful ear-to-ear smiles are genuine even though their stories are often times hard to hear. Each person you meet touches your heart and awakens your soul to new thoughts and ideas. Their artistry is dynamic; alive with great energy and emotion and not to be missed. Once you see how they create their textiles, you will never be able to look at woven, hooked, beaded items in quite the same manner or possibly even as casually as you may have in the past. The tour was  extraordinary – we saw and did so very much in a very short time. I will never forget this trip!

-Shirley Plumb, February 2012

Guatemala, Latest News, OB Blog, Panajachel

Rug Hooking in Guatemala Tour

Posted on March 7, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

The first ever rug hooking tour to Guatemala concluded on Sunday, Feb 26th, 2012. Ten women from Texas, Massachusetts, Montreal, Wisconsin & Minnesota buddied up with our nine Guatemalan student rug-hooking teachers. 

We were united in purpose: to share rug hooking experiences and to build meaningful cross cultural friendships. Over the course of one week the Guatemalan rug hookers helped the visitors design and color-plan a hooked rug imbued with uniquely Guatemalan ‘flavors’.  While simultaneously rug hooking we shared personal histories, family photos, food, hugs- one of us even ‘google earthed’ her home in Texas and without understanding a word of spanish, she found her buddy’s home in Totonicapan right there on her ipad!

Thanks to the North Americans for taking the ‘leap’ and for making this dream partnership become a reality for our Guatemalan rug-hookers. It was an experience our students from Quejel, Patanitique, Totonicapan and Chirijquiac will never forget. Still more ‘thank yous’ to Rosa Garcia Garcia and Yolanda Morales Calgua for inviting us in to your homes at Patanitique and Quejel. Your presentations to our group- including a folk dance demonstration just for us- made us feel welcomed, special, and deepened our appreciation for the daily challenges facing Guatemalan women.

Thanks also to the staff and interns at Oxlajuj B’atz’ for their attention to detail and for being on hand to translate whenever needed. A special thanks to Reyna Pretzan for always knowing how to set the exact right pace. Is there an award for Best Tour Guide Ever? If so? I nominate Jody Slocum for her boundless energy, enthusiasm, insights and consideration. Jody is truly one of a kind.  Finally, a heartfelt thank you to the Delta Family Foundation. 

Prior to the tour I gave a lot of consideration to the pairing of the rug hooking ‘buddies’. The task was complicated for I had never met half of the north americans. However, I did know the Guatemalans because we’ve had the pleasure of working together for nearly 4 years. In the end, I made a list and mentally noted each student’s strengths and weakness and simply ‘winged it’. Here are two stories about the new rug hooking ‘buddies’.

All best,

Mary Anne Wise

Jean & Carmen
I knew the Guatemalan women would adore Jean, 80 years old from Mankato, MN, and so I paired her with Carmine, our Guatemalan student who, during previous classes has exhibited the lowest self esteem of any student. Carmine often needs to be reminded to speak above a whisper. She has come a very long way but she is still uncomfortable voicing her opinion. And yet she can enlarge scale free hand and hook like a dream. I knew Jean would be patient, attentive and kind: Jean is the embodiment of grand-motherhood. Over the course of several days it was an absolute thrill to watch Carmine help Jean design a rug. Carmine insisted that Jean “hook the right way” and pulled out any stray loops.  Slowly Jean’s rug took shape as Carmine’s vision appeared on the monks cloth loop by loop.

Jean brought photos from home to share with Carmine and Carmine brought in her photos, too. None of us had ever seen Carmine’s photos: yellowed black and white snap shots of Carmine as a young woman; color photos of her 2 sons and 1 daughter posing for the camera and looking thoroughly modern and, more recent photos of Carmine in the rug hooking classes. It was lovely, just lovely watching the women bond.  By the time the tour concluded, Carmine was walking on air.

Peg & Rosemary
You don’t need to be around Peg long to understand her ability to connect with teenagers because at heart she’s still a teenager, too. Peg is a retired high school art teacher from Red Wing, MN. Pairing Peg with 15 year old Rosemary was a no-brainer.

I met Rosemary for the first time when she arrived in the January ‘Teach the Teacher’ class. Another more experienced rug hooker was supposed to participate in this class but she was unable to get permission from her husband. In her place, OB selected Rosemary. My first thought was: she seems young, she’s only hooked 2 rugs, but after observing her work ethic I understood OB had made a good choice.

All along Rosemary has been telling me she attends school- I was confused by this because if she was in school, how could she get time off to participate in rug hooking classes and attend the rug hooking tour? Oh well, I pushed the thought aside.

Over the next few days Peg teased apart Rosemary’s story…. I had never heard Rosemary’s story so I was especially curious to listen as Peg gently probed her brief history. As if they were Rosemary’s big sisters, OB staff members Reyna & Mildred held her hand as they translated into english Rosemary’s painful life.  Her father is long gone… her mother has 4 other children, all younger, and she needs Rosemary’s help to feed the family. Rosemary has been cleaning houses since she was 5 years old.

Rosemary’s mother has been very critical of her ‘art’- it didn’t sell. Going beyond criticism, her mother told her she wasn’t any good and she should stop coming to the classes, she should stop rug hooking, she should go back to cleaning houses. Recalling her mother’s hurtful words, Rosemary breaks down in tears.

And then, miracle of miracles, somewhere along the line her two rugs sold. Her mother has now changed her tune: she wants Rosemary to teach her how to hook.

It turns out the school Rosemary was referring to? it’s the rug hooking classes- that’s her school.



Guatemala, Latest News, OB Blog, Panajachel

Who knew anatomy could be so much fun?!

Posted on March 2, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

During the past few weeks I´ve had the privilege of traveling to ten rural communities with OB´s facilitators to present a program about human anatomy. This had been requested by OB´s members and written into the annual plan.

We started by writing a curriculum. Given our time frame, 3 hours for each group, I thought we might cover the circulation system. But the facilitators, Lucy, Mildre and Letty had grander ideas. They wanted to cover the whole human body, with presentations in multiple local languages and they made it happen!

Following a head to toe outline they used creative activities to enable participants to demonstrate various functions of major systems in the human body. Posters, skits and mime helped connect complex anatomy and physiology to the women´s daily activities. The room was filled with laughter while we all balanced on one foot, felt a companion´s heart beat, and watched someone refuse to strike her companion, because she could exercise the power of reason and refuse to do so. Poignant memories were recalled in another demonstration of brain power.  One woman shared the experience of receiving her first pair of shoes, at age 14.

Women of all ages attended, some came from quite a distance and some with their small children.  In one case a grandmother politely asked permission for her young adult grandson to join us.  Before the presentations many women could not identify the correct location of their heart, stomach or kidneys. Some were able to state the names of organs or systems but did not know their functions.

In one group a few of the older women shared their experiences with menopause and then asked for a future program with more about the function of the reproductive system, not for themselves but to share with their daughters.  Most had not been to a doctor and few had previously discussed personal issues with anyone. Many requested more information about the digestive system and the respiratory system, common areas of discomfort and illness. Some stated a preference for herbal medicine while others wanted more information about the immune system.  Feedback confirmed that everyone gained new information and the majority requested more.

For me, the trips themselves, to distant communities, were an educational adventure. We often started before dawn, taking 4-8 different vehicles on any given day. These included vans, pickup trucks and buses, full of more people then would seem possible, in addition to the ubiquitous tuks tuks, three wheeled vehicles that provide essential transportation in most cities. We also walked through a few corn fields and some local markets as we made our connections. Breakfast on the run included hot chocolate milk with rice, so delicious, and habas. This is a hot drink made from broad beans, not my favorite, but very nutritious. These trips were very time consuming so there was ample opportunity to enjoy both sunrise and sunset over Lake Atitlan, undulating landscapes, distant volcanos, and vistas of terraced crops. Everywhere people were wearing their colorful handwoven clothing.

There´s a limit to what can be covered in three hours, even for OB´s highly skilled community facilitators. Yet we covered more ground then I thought possible. As my part of this project draws to a close, I stand in awe of the dedication, creativity and resilience of the women who staff Oxlajuj Bátz´.  Each one supports the others while working together toward stated goals, truly a “dream team” and I thank them for giving me the opportunity to join them.

Pamela Marble – 20-2-12

 

OB Blog

February 2012 Newsletter

Posted on March 2, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

We have just published our February Newsletter 2012!  Some highlights include:

  • News from the field: Anatomy Workshops
  • New Store System
  • Teach the Teachers with Mary Ann Wise
  • Community Day Tours and 10 Day Maya Women Inspire Tour
  • Volunteer Opportunities

 

Latest News

Oxlajuj B’atz’ invited to Guatemala in Motion

Posted on February 17, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

Oxlajuj B’atz’ is one of only eighteen NGOs invited to talk about their work, challenges and plans for the future at the Guatemala NGO Network’s “Guatemala in Motion” event in Antigua, Saturday, Feb 18 from 10am to 2pm.

Join us as we showcase OB through our projects, products, testimonials and volunteer opportunities.

Further details can be found at: http://www.laantiguaguatemala.net/en/home

Latest News ,

Teach the Teachers

Posted on February 10, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

Mary Anne Wise and Jody Slocum of Cultural Cloth, LLC have been partnering with Oxlajuj B’atz’ for over three years on an initiative to bring the craft of rug hooking
to OB’s groups. This technique, very different from weaving, introduced a new opportunity for income generation and encouraged our artisans to express themselves freely and creatively whilst integrating elements of their Maya culture into the rug designs.

The following is an excerpt from Mary-Ann’s travel journal after her recent trip with Jody to OB in January to teach the first of four Teach the Teacher workshops scheduled for 2012. In these workshops Mary-Ann works with nine of our star rug hooking students teaching them to become design teachers to help the women in their co-operatives learn the craft. This first session included two days of travel to Guatemala City & Antigua to collect information, sketch, take notes, and listen to presentations by experts in textile development & traditional arts at the Museo Ixchel, Guatemala City.

“It’s impossible to describe what a treat it is for these women to be away from their responsibilities at home. For most of them, their day begins at 5:00 a.m. making breakfast, tending animals, and keeping their families on schedule. Around 9 a.m. their ‘work’ begins: textile production, tending crops, gathering wood for cooking fires, preparing more meals. And so on until bedtime at 10 p.m.

This field trip turned out to be a good idea. Who knew that only two of the 9 women had ever been to the City (an experience they don’t remember because they were quite young). The former director of the Museo (Barbara Knoke) welcomed the women and made them feel immediately comfortable – no intimidation at all. She is very good with los indigenous and remembers (unlike me) to pause for her Spanish words to be translated into Quiche. (Three of our students barely speak Spanish).

Jody, BJ & I met Barbara on our very first buying trip for the first trunk show in 2006. She has done amazing work documenting traditional clothing and collecting samples before they disappear forever. She understands the textile traditions here are quite fluid and ever changing. Even though she is now retired, I am delighted she agreed to give our students a
special tour.

The student’s assignment was to sketch ideas for rugs from the older textiles on display at the museum. I was uncertain if they would feel comfortable sketching and so last week, on our final day of class before leaving for our ‘field trip’, we took a practise walk down Santander, the main street in Pana. I wanted them to get comfortable sketching so we stopped at textile vendors here and there, pausing to draw design elements from various textiles.

The minute we entered the Museo today they whipped out their sketchbooks. Two of the women brought their small children on the field trip, too. The reality is they don’t have anyone back in their village to tend these toddlers and the only option is to bring them along.

I was disappointed that Soyla didn’t come on the field trip. Her rug was my favorite in the Anderson Center exhibition and she is one of the most talented in the group. Soyla opted not to come on the trip because she is facing all kinds of pressure, she rec’d Q500 for a rug and was away from home in our class for a couple of days. Back in her small village, gossip swirled all around, neighbors speculated where did the money REALLY come from, and what was she REALLY doing in Pana, and how shameful to leave her children. All of this gets back to her husband in the US and when they speak on the phone, he is unkind. She does not know if she should continue with the class. Which is too bad beause she has so few options to earn money. And: she is so talented.

Lucia, the assistant director at OB assures me: if rug hooking is something Soyla really wants to pursue (and it is) Lucia will find a way to get her the support she needs.

If anyone can help Soyla it’s Lucia!!

On the plus side- in the: Ya Win Some Ya Loose Some category, Sindy came on this field trip. I was told her husband did not give her permission to attend but I’ll be damned if she wasn’t at the bus first thing this a.m. Sindy is hugely talented, too.

It’s been a full day. I know they’ll be up early- I seriously doubt any of them have ever slept in past six a.m.- so we’ll continue our work in la mañana. Before the field trip concludes, they will be given their homework assignment for Monday: arrive at class with 2 designs for new rugs based on a textile you saw at the Museo. You must make multiple templates of the design elements in a variety of scale and I want to see all of the
templates, too.”

Guatemala, OB Blog

OB Launches Anatomy Workshops

Posted on February 1, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

Pamela Marble, a volunteer medical practitioner who has successfully worked with OB on a number of occasions has developed a curriculum and worked to train our Community Facilitators in women’s anatomy. The Community Facilitators will visit all of our cooperatives in the coming months and a comprehensive health guide will be developed.

The first program was held today, 1 February with Mujeres Artesanas las Rosas group in Pantanatic! We are very excited to see how the program develops and look forward to feedback and suggestions from both the cooperative members and facilitators.

Latest News

Rug-Hooking Workshop Concludes as a Success

Posted on January 26, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

A rug-hooking workshop, lead by renowned rug-hooker Mary Anne Wise, was held January 16-24. Participants learned advanced rug-hooking techniques, explored typical Guatemalan designs and textiles, and learned how to be rug-hooking instructors themselves so that they are now equipped to train the women in their own communities advanced rug-hooking skills.

Oxlajuj B’atz’ would like to extend a warm thank you to Mary Anne Wise, Jody Slocum, and all our staff who worked to make this possible!

Latest News, Panajachel

Tour Details & Costs

Posted on January 11, 2012 by OB Administrator Leave a comment

Tour Details:
Call or email the Thirteen Threads office to schedule your tour. Tours may be customized upon request to meet your group’s needs and interest. Minimum of 8 participants.

Phone/Fax: (502) 7762-6245
Email: thirteenthreads@gmail.com
www.thirteenthreads.org

Costs:
$1,695 + Airfare (price is based on double occupancy hotel accommodations. Single occupancy is available for an additional $180.)

Included:
All meals, ground transportation, hotels and admission fees. Hotel accommodations will be 3-star hotels or better that cater to American and European standards (example: www.hoteldosmundos.com).

Not included:
Round trip airfare to Guatemala City, gratuities and personal expenses (shopping purchases, snacks, alcoholic, etc.).

Payment:
Deposits and balances preferably made by check or wire transfer. Tour may be purchased by credit card upon request. The balance of the tour cost is due 30 days prior to departure. With your authorization, we will automatically bill your credit card when the balance is due.

Cancellation/No-Shows and Refunds:
No refund will be issued for no-shows and cancellations made less than five (5) days prior to tour date. A 50% refund will be issued for cancellations made six (6) to twenty-nine (29) days prior to tour date. A full refund minus an administration fee of 10% of the total cost will be issued for cancellations made thirty (30) days or more prior to tour date.

We strongly recommend the purchase of travel insurance to all our customers.

Spanish Language:
A bilingual guide accompanies the tour. We will often have additional translators to assist in translation from Spanish to one of
the many local Maya languages.

 

About Oxlajuj B’atz’ (Thirteen Threads):
Thirteen Threads is a non-profit indigenous women’s empowerment and non-formal education organization working throughout Guatemala since 2004. Thirteen Threads provides capacity-building skills training to 20 Maya women’s cooperatives throughout rural Guatemala in four program areas: Artisan and Product Development; Democracy and Team Building; Health and Well-Being; and Small Business.

In December 2010, Thirteen Threads opened a Maya Women’s Center & Fair Trade Store, located in a historical building in downtown Panajachel. The Center houses a cooperative Fair Trade store, resource library, community space for workshops and special events, and provides a departure point for tours to the women’s communities.

For more reading:

www.atitlan.com
www.lonelyplanet.com/guatemala
www.visitguatemala.com
www.moon.com/destinations/guatemala/discover-guatemala

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