March/April Newsletter 2020

San Lucas Mission Newsletter March/April 2020 Letter from a Coffee Grower In This Edition Dear Friends, Juan Ana Coffee My name is Felipa Ajcalón Sajquiy, and I am one of the growers for the San Lucas Hear from four different coffee Mission’s Juan Ana Coffee Program. growers who sell their best I sell the coffee I grow to the Mission. It’s product to Juan Ana Café. These a huge help for us as growers to receive growers share how Juan Ana has fair pay for our product. The other buy- helped them improve their lives. ers on the street pay very little for our coffee. What is Direct Trade? Selling to Juan Ana helps us to advance economically and also offers the opportunity to improve our farming operations. Discover the difference between The Juan Ana Coffee Program supports so many families like me in San direct trade and fair trade. Read on Lucas. I am a single mother, and I am the only provider for my family. to learn why the Juan Ana direct This can be difficult. But with the help of Juan Ana, I was able to pay off trade model benefits workers best. my debts. Now I can provide support for my loved ones. Friends of San Lucas donors and Juan Ana coffee drinkers in the US are Mission Immersion Trips helping San Lucas get out of poverty. Thank you. May God bless you always, There’s a new way to experience San Lucas: Mission Immersion Felipa Ajcalón Sajquiy Trips. Learn what makes them Coffee Grower different from a typical visit to the Mission. Other Updates Read about an upcoming coffee special, school updates, and more!

Juan Ana Coffee The People Who Grow the Coffee You Drink Angélica Coroxón “I learned about the Juan Ana Coffee Program from my father. He worked for the program, and he told me about the benefits that the program offers. So starting last year, I started selling to Juan Ana too. Thanks to what I earn through the Juan Ana program, I am able to support my family. At the same time, I’m also able to advance my coffee farming techniques by investing in my tools and operations. With the Juan Ana program, my family can see a better future. Perhaps some day, we can build a bigger home or buy our own land.” José Antonio Galindo “The program is very efficient. When it started, they bought 15-25 pounds of coffee from me, and over time they’ve grown dramati- cally. Now I can sell 200-300 pounds each year to Juan Ana. And if we could sell even more coffee in the future, my family would benefit from even better living conditions, clothing, and medical attention. Our coffee is the highest quality. Juan Ana provides trainings, and we apply everything that we learn to improve the quality of the product we sell. Please drink Juan Ana!” Francisco Jacinto “Thanks to the Juan Ana Coffee Program, I was able to give my kids a better life. I was able to pay for the education they de- served. As a result, they have been able to find work now. I hope the Juan Ana program will continue to grow. With the help of the program, I might be able to buy land someday. When you drink Juan Ana, you help us greatly. You give us the opportunity for development here in Guatemala.”

What is Direct Trade? Direct Trade supports small growers. Quick Updates from Direct Trade offers the opportunity to buy directly from coffee pro- ducers. This model eliminates the intermediary, so Juan Ana can pay San Lucas Tolimán a dependable, above-market price to the grower for their best product. 1Thank you, Christ the King! Juan Ana coffee is purchased directly and exclusively from small growers. Regardless of market fluctuation, Juan Ana always pays On February 6th, the Parish of Christ the above the going rate so that producers receive fair compensation. King in Tulsa, OK hosted their first-ever This is mutually beneficial. Juan Ana strives to build a mutually beneficial relationship between fundraiser for Friends of San Lucas. the coffee program and the growers, lifting our collective dignity. Christ the King has been bringing groups Juan Ana’s goal is to support growers, not make a profit. Only basic costs are included in the price of coffee. This keeps the consumer to the Mission for several years and price low and ensures that the grower receives reliable pay. this fundraiser raised both money and The best price in San Lucas. Juan Ana pays a substantial premium to growers for their coffee, awareness. always above the local street price in San Lucas. In exchange, the grower delivers Juan Ana the best of their coffee crop. 2New Board Officers You can purchase In February, the FOSL Board elected new Juan Ana Coffee online at officers to serve one year terms. They are: Mike Greene, President; Bridget sanlucasmission.org Hermer, Vice-President; Arch Mrkvicka, Secretary/Treasurer. Thank you to all who serve on the FOSL Board! 3COVID-19 Updates Friends of San Lucas continues to monitor the spread of the coronavirus and is taking every precaution to protect the people of San Lucas Toliman. For the latest information on the Mission’s policy, visit sanlucasmission.org.

A New Way to Experience San Lucas: Mission Immersion Trips In 2018, Friends of San Lucas began designing a new kind of visitor experience known as Mission Immersion Trips. Mis- sion Immersion Trips give participants opportunities to take a closer look at the how and why behind Mission programs. These trips are designed for people who have been to the Mis- sion before, as well as total newcomers. Mission Immersion Trips usually run 5-6 days with groups of 10-12 people. These trips focus more time on learning and re- flecting and less on manual labor (although some groups also choose to work on a wood house.) Each trip is a little different, but many groups will: Pictured here: A Mission Immersion Group learns about Mayan spirituality and the Guatemalan civil war from Juan Atzip who • Hear from Mission Director Leonel Tun worked alongside Blessed Stanley Rother during the war • Learn about the important work of Health Promoters • Talk to Medical Director Dr. Rafael Tun about running a healthcare system in San Lucas • Enjoy a delicious lunch cooked by Guicha and her crew at the Women’s Center • Take a guided tour of a couple of the smaller communities where the Mission works and see examples of block, wood and hybrid houses, as well as meet a family waiting for a house. In addition, you will have the opportunity for guided reflections each evening as we ask ourselves how we can effectively and respectfully continue to walk alongside our friends in San Lucas. Each trip is led by someone with deep knowledge of the history of the Mission, usually in partnership with the Executive Director. If you would like more information, contact Stephanie Greene, our volunteer coordinator for Mission immersion Trips at [email protected]. Montessori School Update Specialty Coffee Coming in 2020! This year the San Lucas Mission School’s Mon- Juan Ana Coffee Director Edy Morales tessori Program expanded to include the first and his crew have been working on grade. Tentative plans include an expansion their version of honey coffee. Honey of this innovative educational method by one coffee is made by leaving the sweet, grade per year. Thank you to June Bower for sticky covering on the bean which is her work on Montessori teacher training in then absorbed as it’s dried under a San Lucas and to all the teachers who trans- shady covering. It produces coffee with formed their classrooms overnight to apply a wonderfully smooth, fruity flavor. this method. Watch for its release later this year! Thank you for your support and generosity to the San Lucas Mission. Friends of San Lucas • 3459 Washington Dr. Ste. 207 Eagan, MN 55122 • 651-508-1848 • sanlucasmission.org