Pablo's Page

My latest projects:

Pablo's Portfolio - A website containing my latest photos, a portfolio, and my Guatemala album that covers the years 2004-2008 (new photos coming soon as I have a trip scheduled for April 2010)

Request for support:

As I head down to Guatemala this year I will be doing my usual round of visitations with family and friends as well as conducting several meetings in areas where I have worked on projects and programs over the last several years. The projects that I will specifcially be focusing on during this trip are near and dear to my heart. I'll keep the descriptions short and sweet.

1. Basico school in the village of Saq Ja', Guatemala

I spent several years helping to get this school built up in the mountains above the town of Uspantan. You may or may not remember that when the school was being built there was no road into the village and thus all the building materials and supplies had to be carried in on the backs of the villagers and donkeys. This school has know been up and running for several years now but as of the last report, the teachers are not getting paid by the municipality. I will not get into the politics of this problem. One of the teachers is one of my best friends in Guatemala and one of the reasons that I went to live and work there. His name is Jacinto. I have posted the story of my initial encounter (from my book "When Necessary Use Words") with Jacinto here. According to my sources Jacinto is not getting paid, he is having problems feeding his family and is concerned about how his sons (he has 3 and a daughter) see him as a father and provider. This worries me.

How you can help: I am not a person who just asks for donations for the work that I do but I do feel a calling to help. While knowing that I cannot solve every problem, I strive to work with the communities that I have connections to to reach a sustainable and appropriate strategy for facing some of these economic problems that commonly face communities in povery. Above there is a link to my new photo website where you can see the portfolio of my latest work and a selection of my favorites from Guatemala. I have recently been printing these photos on wood panels, size 11x14. The new photos are coming out amazing and are much more affordable for me to produce. Thus I can provide each piece at a price of $60 and use the profits from the sale to support the projects that I am passionate about. Take a look at the website, if you see a photo that you like shoot me an email: ppitcher@gmail.com and we can work out the details. Thanks!

2. Local elementary school in Cucabaj I, Guatemala

In the last few years I have helped support a local electrification project in Cucabaj I (the village of my former housemates and basically family Juan Carlos and Maria Cristina) at the elementary school where Juan Carlos works. The electrification project was undertaken in order to help the school provide computers and training to it's students. The village has support from the local government on this project but it does not cover the entire project. Thus I have partnered with the village (where I stay when I am in the area) to provide a small amount of financial support. I hope to be able to check up on this project and continue my small part in its completion.

3. Accion Cultural Guatemalteca. This is where I worked during my 2+ years living in Guatemala and I continue to be involved as much as I can from 2000+ miles away. I hope to meet with the exectuvie director and other staff in order to see what the needs are for this coming year.