Gretchen's Return to Guatemala: volunteering and learning with Trama Textiles

Twenty-seven years ago, I first came to Guatemala to volunteer with an organization in Antigua. This year, as part of my sabbatical, I wanted to return to Guatemala to learn Spanish and volunteer with a new organization. One day, while searching the web, I learned that Xela is one of the best places to learn Spanish, and I also discovered Trama Textiles.

I signed up to spend three weeks working with Trama’s Coordinator, and I hoped that I could bring some of the fundraising skills that I had developed over the years to help Trama expand their fundraising efforts.

My time with Trama has been more than I even imagined. On the first day, I learned the ancient art of backstrap weaving from Amparo and another very patient volunteer named Alana, I jumped into the initial stages of designing a student sponsorship fund, and I made some inspiring and wonderful friends. 

Now, as my time is coming to a close, I feel so happy with the work we did to streamline and finalize several important fundraising features on the Trama website. We created and launched a program to sponsor students in school and added a “donate now” button to the website. We also designed a fundraising plan for 2025. Xela is a vibrant, safe, and interesting place to live. And along the way, I had many fabulous adventures, and I made some decent progress in learning Spanish!

I am so grateful for this experience, and I look forward to watching Trama continue to support hundreds of women in villages throughout the Guatemalan highlands. 

Click here to learn more about the various opportunities to volunteer with Trama Textiles, or reach out to our coordinator with any questions.