What is Guatemala Day?

Over 2,000 people are headed to Raleigh this Saturday afternoon to celebrate the first ever Guatemala Day and Curamericas Global, will you be one of them? Guatemalan food, music, and dancing are just of the few things to see and experience from 3-6pm on 1924 Capital Blvd. Raleigh N.C. 27604 in the Food Bank parking lot. Come have fun and experience Guatemalan culture at Guatemala day. While you are there, stop by our Curamericas Global table to say hello to our excited volunteers and ask them question about what we do in the U.S. and in Guatemala.

The First of Many

Guatemala Day was created during the inauguration of the Consulate General of Guatemala by Raleigh’s Mayor McFarlane. This Saturday, June 9^th, is the celebration of the one-year anniversary since the Mayor made the holiday official. At Day of Guatemala there will be activities for all ages. Activities will include  face painting, K9 dogs, firetrucks, Guatemalan food, music, and dancing. Entrance to the event is free and open to the public.  The Guatemalan people of North and South Carolina are eager to show you their culture and way of life.

What’s the Consulate General of Guatemala?

The Consulate General of Guatemala in Raleigh just opened its doors last Summer on 6050 Six Forks Road Raleigh, N.C. Before it’s opening, Guatemalan people of the Carolinas had to travel to D.C. or Atlanta to receive national documents. According to Molina of The Raleigh News and Observer,  the consulate, “provides consular identification, issues and renews passports and issues visas to U.S. citizens who would like to travel to Guatemala”, as well as lawyers easily available to give free legal advice. For those individuals or families who do not have the means to travel to Raleigh, the Raleigh Consulate General of Guatemala has a mobile consulate that delivers services all over the Carolinas as well.

Partnerships

Out of the estimated 105,000 Guatemalans that live in the Carolinas, Raleigh has the highest population (Molina, 2017). The Guatemalan General consulate of Raleigh has done an excellent job reaching this in need population. Curamericas Global has become familiar with this wonderful organization and some of the Guatemalan people that live in the Carolinas through consular Saturdays held at the Guatemalan General Consulate. Community organizations who also serve the Guatemalan people are represented here connecting to these  people just like Curamericas Global. Curamericas Global has loved serving as a health resource each Consular Saturday. At these events we have a chance to meet the Guatemalan people of the Carolinas. Through personal conversation we can find out what their direct health needs are. At these Saturday events Curamericas Global teaches the attendees about our Casa Maternas located in  Guatemala and other health services we can provide either in Guatemala or the United States. We also help Guatemalans that live stateside by being and building a health resource database.  The health resource database will be completed by collecting and researching free services and education that attendees will benefit from.

Join our Team

For those of you who want to find out more about Guatemala Day and register for the event click here. And for those of you that want to find out more about Consular Saturdays and the work of Curamericas Global click here. Curamericas Global helps to save lives of women and children all over the world. Please reach out on our website or any other social media accounts to connect with a volunteer to find out how you can be a part of the Curamericas Global team.

Curamericas Global’s director, Andrew Herrera at the May Consular Saturday event

References

Molina, C. (2017, June 19^th) Guatemala Opens a Consulate in Raleigh. News and Observer. Retrieved from: this link

By: Shelby Davenport Events and Outreach Intern

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