Help the Avila's pay off their Car!

Kerri Gibbard Kline is organizing this fundraiser.

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Hello everyone! Let's Help the Avila's pay off the cost of their car!

I traveled to Xela, Guatemala in February 2023, 16 years after my first trip there. I reconnected with the Avila family and had the chance to see the important work they are doing in the city. Upon my departure, I decided to kick off the donation campaign once more to help them pay off the purchase of their car.

The work they do is far-reaching, holistic, and all-encompassing:

They're often the ones the hospital will call if someone ends up there unaccompanied by friends or family; the Avila's are usually already connected to these folks.
Members of their family are doctors who visit indigenous kids in the hills above Xela, treating sickness and injury when these families cannot travel to clinics.
They accompany those on the margins, not to change them or convert them but simply to offer companionship and support. Sometimes this means practical help, other times it means simply sharing life together.

Aside from the work that they do, German and Karla are incredibly special human beings:

They are openly affirming of LGBTQ+ folks and warmly welcomed me into their home and their weekly family Bible study. This embrace of me challenged my own preconceived ideas of what it might be like in Guatemala as a visibly queer person.
They see and value local leadership; there is one member of their team who was previously a community member that they served. She's a mom who was on the receiving end of their work but eventually started volunteering and then became called to join the team full-time. German and Karla believe so deeply in the value of local leadership that they are helping pay her monthly salary, even when they still have a monthly shortfall for their own salary.

The Avila's purchased a car from a friend in January 2023 with no means of paying it off, trusting that God would provide. So let's help them pay it off! Thank you for considering donating and please email me if you'd like to learn more.

~Kerri

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