Budgets & Project Maintenance
We are grateful to announce that PROJET SIMPLE GUATEMALA has been able to consistently provided for 28 people for the past 4.5 years! Over 35,000 meals have been served. A special thanks to all of you and your support throughout the years to help make this possible.
THE BUDGET: The project was set to run on $600 per month. What is the money used for?
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$42 / month to rent the house
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$144 / month for our cook's salary *
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$362 / month for the food ($0.62 per meal)
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$42 / month for fire wood (used to cook the food)
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$10 / month for extras: cleaning supplies, "octoe" (which is used to start the fires), trips to the "molino" (the machine that grinds up the corn to make dough for the tortillas).
* The community sets the salary for our cooks, and $72/month for each one was decided to be a fair wage to begin with. They work Monday - Friday, around 20 - 25 hours a week.
Meetings with the 26 we serve explaining how the Community Center will operate.
Staff planning meetings with the cooks to discuss the menu.
Buying the cooking supplies with staff.
Meetings with the 26 we serve explaining how the Community Center will operate.
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THE SUPPLIES - An investment of $500 was made to purchase the cooking and cleaning supplies, tables and chairs, bowls and cups, serving utensils, water filtration system, and printing costs of the visual and bilingual instruction manuals. The cooks took ownership of creating their own kitchen staying within an assigned budget.
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THE MENU - Much time and effort was taken to create a menu rich in nutrients while spending great attention to stay within the traditional norms of their original palette and customs. View examples of the meals by clicking here!
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A LOCATION - The location was selected by our local partners, as they searched and negotiated for the most simple and affordable place to rent, as we have place to move to a permanent location this summer. Their goal is to be able to provide space for the project participants, to be able to relax and eat. We have plans to move to a new location with land, so that gardens can be built, and emergency housing can be provided.
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COLLABORATION - The goal was for the people of Chajul to have ownership over this project... it is "for" and weekly "run by" them! Daily meetings were held with: our cooks, the local community visionaries (that were placed in leadership roles), the future participants (during our individual home visits), and group meetings with all involved (to discuss and consult them with the details of the project). Freedom was given to both those running and attending the program, to make decisions of when and how the project was to be run. This open communication is important and valued as high priority, in order for the project to sustain itself so it could be independently on their own terms, within their own personal and cultural boundaries.
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ORGANIZATION - Bilingual (Spanish and Ixil) instruction manuals, menus and recipes, shopping lists, a receipt system, bank accounts, and routines were designed. Meetings, practice shopping days and meal prep/cooking moments were held to prepare staff to run the project independently; for many procedures were slight adjustments, new to their indigenous ways-of-life and routines.
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COMMUNICATION - We stay in weekly contact with both the project leaders and our head cook via free texting, and visit as often as possible to check-in. Pictures, updates, and receipts are texted weekly to keep us updated on the project. We communicate together in Spanish, as both the leaders and the head cook are fluidly speak conversational Spanish.
