[versión en español abajo]

This fundraiser is for my friend Alma Patricia Tzalain, who was diagnosed with stomach cancer in late February. She has just started chemotherapy and is bravely fighting with everything she has to overcome this disease. Alma is a devoted mother to her 15-year-old son and her three daughters, who were recently reunited with her here in the United States - a long-awaited moment for her family.

Since arriving from Guatemala on November 18, 2008, Alma has worked as a farmworker picking apples, on dairy farms, in packing sheds, and in a tomato greenhouse. She has also spent six years as a board member of Alianza Agricola, where she has stood up for justice and dignity for fellow farmworkers across upstate New York. During the COVID pandemic, she published this Op-ed in the NYTimes.

Alma is one of the strongest, most resilient, and kind-hearted people I know. She has endured so much adversity during her life, yet somehow keeps smiling and remains hopeful. Despite her current suffering, she is determined to get better. As Alma undergoes treatment and fights to rebuild her health and care for her son, the financial burden is overwhelming, and she deeply appreciates your partnership in this fight. Your generous donation will help cover essential costs like gas for travel between Albion and RGH/Unity Hospital, lost income, medications, treatments, and the many unexpected expenses that come with cancer care. Any support you can give - whether through a donation or simply sharing this fundraiser on social media or with your networks - means so much. Your loving gifts will help carry Alma through this difficult journey, and she is incredibly grateful.

Esta recaudación de fondos es para mi amiga Alma Patricia Tzalain, a quien se le diagnosticó cáncer de estómago a finales de febrero. Acaba de comenzar la quimioterapia y está luchando valientemente, con todas sus fuerzas, para superar esta enfermedad. Alma es una madre dedicada a su hijo de 15 años y a sus tres hijas, quienes recientemente se reunieron con ella aquí en los Estados Unidos - un momento largamente esperado para su familia.

Desde su llegada de Guatemala el 18 de noviembre de 2008, Alma ha trabajado como trabajadora agrícola, piscando manzanas, en lecherías, en bodegas de empaque y en un invernadero de tomates. También Alma formó parte de la mesa directiva de Alianza Agrícola durante seis años, defendiendo la justicia y la dignidad de sus compañeros trabajadores agrícolas en Nueva York. Durante la pandemia de COVID-19, publicó este artículo de opinión en el New York Times.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/15/opinion/covid-farmworkers-paid-leave.html.

Alma es una de las personas más fuertes, resilientes y cariñosa que he conocido. Ha sobrevivido a tanta adversidad y, sin embargo, de alguna manera, sigue sonriendo y manteniendo la esperanza. Está decidida a recuperarse y agradece profundamente su apoyo en esta lucha.

Mientras pasa por el tratamiento, la carga económica es bastante. Su donación ayudará a cubrir gastos esenciales, tales como la gasolina para la distancia entre Albion y el RGH/Unity, la pérdida de ingresos, los medicamentos y muchos gastos inesperados que conlleva la atención oncológica. Cualquier apoyo que puedan brindar —ya sea mediante una donación o simplemente compartiendo esta campaña de recaudación— significa muchísimo; su apoyo y su cariño son profundamente agradecidos.