Unillá Pacalá, Guatemala

The purpose of the proposed travel is to partner with the Uspantán Municipality in the Department (State) of El Quiché, Guatemala, to construct a potable water system for approximately 1500 people in the community of Unillá Pacalá, Guatemala. Two faculty, 30 students, six alums, and three community members from the Aggies Without Limits (AWL) community will spend three weeks in-country constructing the project. The Municipality of Uspantán, Peace Corps Guatemala, and the College of Engineering at NMSU facilitate the travel and construction logistics. During the construction project, students and alums from NMSU and community members from Unillá Pacalá:

1. Lay out and installed piping for potable water project.
2. Construct storage tanks.
3. Install approximately 80 tap stands.
4. Educate community members in the maintenance of the system.

Everyone played a part and carried responsibility in this trip, guided and unified by one shared mission. The AWL group pitched a picturesque tent camp outside near a local church and in the available open field. The days began at 7 a.m. with an excellent breakfast cooked by a beautiful community family. AWL members had the opportunity to interact with the local workers both during these mealtimes and after they finished their duties. With no signal or service in the local area, we bonded as students and as a family. 

This trip allowed for new doors to be opened:

• Community members learned new skills.
• The local children saw that change could be achieved through hard work and above all,
• AWL communicated with new people, which hopefully shed light on future projects.