A New Director of Development
When I was 6-years-old, I traveled to San Cristobal de las Casas with my dad. At the time, I did not truly understand the reasoning for our trip. It was in part to visit water well projects built by On the Ground (OTG), founded by my dad and his friend Chris Treter, of Higher Grounds Trading Company.
I remember the bright colors and the warm air. I remember the markets where I bought a blue hat with black flowers, the long hikes through the mountains to visit remote villages…and my dad insisting I carry my own pack. I can picture the courtyard at Posada Isabel where we stayed, and playing with other kids with whom I did not share a language. I remember the plaza where I sat and colored with my Disney princess colored pencils.
The specific details are a blur to me but, but I was excited, and this time San Cristobal feels like home.
This second time around, I returned, not as a kid traveling with her dad, but as the new Director of Development for On The Ground. Hence, my focus was on reconnecting with a place that I held in my heart for 16 years. I traveled with a group of nine other people who worked in the coffee industry. For most of them, this was their first time in Chiapas or their first time in a coffee growing region. One of the aspects of this trip that I enjoyed the most was being able to watch those around me experiencing this place for the first time. Trips like this are such a bonding experience and on top of reconnecting with this place, I made amazing memories with those in the group with me, including three of my board members at On the Ground.
Throughout the week, we visited some incredible places and met many inspiring people. Promoting education has always been a passion of mine, going back to when I was in high school and partnered with OTG to crowd fund the education of 17 war orphans in the Congo where OTG does work in gender equity. On one of our first full days, we visited CIDECI (Centro Indígena de Capacitación Integral) which is an autonomous community. At this institution, students are sent from all over the state of Chiapas to learn trades essentially. They can choose from programs like baking, woodworking, sewing, music, computer sciences, and so many others. The students may stay as long as they desire and when they return home they are meant to share their knowledge with their communities. It was beautiful to see the prioritization of education for children from indigenous communities.
The most impactful time for me on this trip was the visit to the Acteal community where in 1997, 45 people were killed while they were praying. When we arrived, the memories from when I was six returned. I remembered this community from when I was younger. I could recall playing with other children on the steps of the chapel where I now know they host a mass each month in remembrance of those 45 people who lost their lives.
This time, we all sat in a room and listened to the story of a survivor named Lupita. In the massacre, she lost nine family members including both her parents and her grandmother. Now, 25 years after the massacre, she continues to fight for justice for her family and her community. To me, one of the most shocking aspects of this story is that there has been no justice for this community. The government never prosecuted those who were responsible for the killings. Those men still live in the community today.
Ready to get to work
I have always struggled with writing conclusions. But, this is not the conclusion of a trip. This is just the beginning of a journey. As I watched San Cristobal fade away through the clouds on my flight home, I found myself brimming with a renewed passion for all that On the Ground does and has already achieved. Throughout the last dinner as a group, everyone was overcome by their emotions, as the intensity of our collective experience began to sink in. The week was incredible and so much was learned and absorbed. There is much work that needs to be done and we now must decide where we are going to take our projects. I look forward with excitement and filled with anticipation and opportunity, to my upcoming work with OTG.