Work Week Teams

Each year, Hands For Peacemaking Foundation invites a number of Work Week teams to come to Guatemala to work on a project to assist one of the villages that the organization serves.

The Work Week experience gives people an opportunity to work hand-in-hand with people who live in extreme poverty while assisting them in a project that will have a positive impact on their lives.

Examples of past projects that Work Week teams have accomplished in the past include the following;

•  Village school construction,
•  Building water collection systems to provide safe water supplies
•  Clearing areas and assisting villagers to plant gardens
•  Installation of high efficiency stoves
•  Building a pig facility and providing pigs for a village
•  Planting village fruit trees
•  Installing water filters
•  Building chicken pens and supplied chickens for a village

FAQs

Who Can Attend?

Teams often come from churches, civic organizations, students, businesses, and interested community volunteers.

How Big of a Team Can HFPF Handle?

The minimum size is 10 people and the maximum is 16 team members.

How Much Does A Project Cost?

There are a number of variables that involve a Work Week project.  Some of the items that can impact the project and its costs are as follow;

•  Size of group
•  Priority of needs of villagers
•  Whether a group wants to stay in Barillas or is open to staying in a village
•  Physical ability of the team members
•  Ability of the group to raise the necessary funds for a project

Once the team director has contacted the HFPF staff, the options for a project can be worked out as well as possible dates.

How Many Days Will We Need To Allow For Our Trip?

Usually 10 days is the ideal time span for a Work Week experience.  Most groups fly to Guatemala on a Friday and return the following Sunday.

What Are The Participant Fees To Attend A Work Week And What Do They Cover?

The Board of Directors has kept the participant fee at $1,250.00 per person for several years.  Participants will need to be responsible for their own airfare to and from Guatemala.

Participant fees cover the following;

•  Participant and luggage transportation from the Guatemala Aurora Airport to a
   Guatemala City hotel            
•  Hotel stay in Guatemala City
•  Ground transportation to Santa Cruz Barillas
•  All meals while in Barillas or the selected village
•  All transportation to and from village project

What Participant fee doesn’t cover:

•  Meals at Guatemala City Hotel
•  Souvenirs
•  Meals in Antigua or alternate site
•  Airfare to and from United States

Available option for Work Week teams

Ground transportation from Guatemala City to Barillas usually takes 12-14 hours.  Weather permitting; Work Week teams can fly to Barillas in about 1 hour for an extra fee.  The additional charge is $500.00 per total of 850 pounds per flight each way.  Hands For Peacemaking Foundation pays the additional fee above $500 per flight in credit for ground transportation.

If this option is exercised, payment will be needed at the time of the last Work Week team payment for the Guatemala project.

It is important to understand that HFPF can not guarantee that weather will be satifactory for flying for all team members.  It is also important that the team either choose to travel by ground or air since participant fees are based on ground transportation, not both.