A Forever Home for la Puerta Abierta

Ten years ago, La Puerta Abierta was created.  What began in 2007 as a one room library with a part-time local librarian has grown into a thriving, multilingual school that provides an early childhood education program, a primary school with 110 students, a traveling library, teen reading circles, parent education, professional development and a hub for a mothers’ artisan group!

For the last five years, we have been searching for a “forever” home for La Puerta Abierta.  As you may know, we are committed to meeting the needs of our community’s families as their children advance in our elementary school.  We have found creative solutions to hosting our classes, including a makeshift school, known to many at the “jungle school,” on borrowed land and with temporary materials.  While we are fond of our outdoor-school and we are proud of our problem solving skills in finding temporary housing for a school, we are very much aware that a school on borrowed land is unsustainable for the long-term vision of La Puerta Abierta.

Recently, we were offered the opportunity to purchase our forever home for La Puerta Abierta, a plot of land just around the bend from our current site.  In addition, this land already has a brick and mortar, two-story structure on it, with seven rooms, one for each grade, plus an administrative office.  This would truly ensure the future of La Puerta Abierta. 

We are over the moon and out of our minds, delighted to finally discover a physical space to  secure the future of our school, though challenged by raising the funds to buy the land and building.

We need your help to make this dream come true.  For the purchase and development of our site, we must raise $300,000.  As a small school serving a community with limited resources, we are counting on YOU!

We hope that you are inspired to contribute to a legacy of dignified, creative and purposeful education for the children of Santiago Atitlan, the future leaders and dreamers of our community.  We would welcome all donors to visit our village and school, to see for yourself the difference your contribution makes!

Any donation will help make impact. Thanks in advance for your contribution to this cause that means so much to our community.

At the end of the day it's not about what you have or even about what you have accomplished...it's about who you have lifted up, who you've made better.  It's about what you have given back.
--Denzel Washington