How to Help Children in Guatemala: What Actually Works and Where to Start

What do children in Guatemala need?

UNICEF’s 2026 country programme document for Guatemala sets the scene: 64.8 percent of children and adolescents live in poverty, and 42.1 percent of children under 5 are stunted. Primary school reaches almost every child, but only 55.2 percent of adolescents are enrolled in lower secondary and 27.5 percent in upper secondary.

Here is what that looks like in one village. Las Delicias del Jobo, in Taxisco, Santa Rosa, has 7 schools, primary schools and telesecundarias (rural middle schools), with more than 700 girls and boys aged 6 to 16. They walk to class on dirt roads, in sun or rain, and some cross rivers to get there. What their schools ask for is specific:

• School supplies and backpacks.
• Desks.
• Shoes.
• Recess games for the primary schools.
• A computer.

And one bigger goal: building a proper secondary school so more teenagers can keep studying after primary school.

What is the best way to help children in Guatemala?

There isn’t just one, but help that works tends to share four traits:

1. It answers a specific list. Ask before you buy. For Christmas 2022, for example, Start with a Smile Project asked for shoes without heels, Incaparina (a fortified cereal drink), toothbrushes and toothpaste, bar soap, sweaters in sizes S and M, and non-violent toys (Guatemala.com).
2. It lasts. A desk or a roof serves for years. In the schools of Las Delicias, the project has brought more than 4,000 notebooks, more than 100 desks, electricity, a kitchen, blackboards, roofs, toilets and medical outreach days.
3. It comes through someone who knows the place. Amalia Jarquín was born in Las Delicias del Jobo and went back to improve education for the village’s children. Every year, the project delivers school supplies to about 500 kids.
4. It protects dignity. No photos of children with their names, no private details about families. A gift is given, not put on display.

How can I donate money to children in Guatemala?

The most direct way is Start with a Smile Project’s GoFundMe. A project volunteer in the United States organizes it, with Amalia as co-creator.

Two things to know before you give:

• Start with a Smile Project, Proyecto Sonrisas in Spanish, is a not-for-profit community initiative: apolitical, non-religious and non-governmental. It is not a registered NGO.
• The GoFundMe is a personal fundraiser, so it doesn’t come with a tax-deductible receipt. As the FTC puts it, donations to individuals are not tax deductible. IRS Publication 526 also lists foreign organizations, except certain Canadian, Israeli and Mexican charities, among the ones you can’t deduct.

To vet any organization before you give, read how to choose a charity in Guatemala. If you live outside Guatemala, see how to donate from the US or abroad.

What should I bring to Guatemala to donate?

If you’re traveling to Guatemala and have room in your suitcase, this is what schools and families use most. The full list is on How to help.

• School supplies: notebooks, crayons, markers, pens, paints, backpacks, children’s books in Spanish and used computers.
• Hygiene: toothbrushes and toothpaste, soap, sanitary pads and towels.
• Clothes and shoes: shoes, sandals, socks, caps and sunscreen.
• Toys: soccer balls, jump ropes, dolls, toy cars and coloring books.
• Food: vitamins, fortified flour and powdered milk.

Then message us to arrange how we’ll receive it in Antigua, Guatemala; Amalia and the volunteers take it to the children. Before you shop, check what to bring to Guatemala to donate and what not to bring.

When is the best time to help: back to school or Christmas?

Both work, for different things.

• Back to school. In 2026, Guatemala’s Ministry of Education set public school classes from February 2 to October 30, as reported by La Hora. Supplies, backpacks and shoes go furthest when they arrive before the school year starts.
• Christmas. Every December 24 since 2014, Amalia leaves Antigua at 6:00 a.m. with family and friends for the road to Tecpán, where children wait along the roadside. Each package holds a toothbrush and toothpaste, a nutritious food and a toy. In one recent year they handed out 500 packages and, thanks to donated toys, close to 1,000 gifts.

The full story is on Paint smiles for Christmas.

How can I start helping today?

If you can’t give money right now, sharing helps too: here’s how to help without money. And to see where all of this began, watch Amalia’s story. If you’re ready, it takes three steps:

1. Give what you can on the project’s GoFundMe.
2. Message us on WhatsApp at +502 5562 3313, email amaliajarquin@gmail.com or use the contact form to arrange an in-kind donation.
3. Follow the deliveries on Instagram and Facebook, where the project posts photos of each one.