Fair Trade Judaica (FTJ)

Guatemala 2013 Slideshows and Report

Special Appreciation to David Lingren and Gary and Roz Houseknecht for sharing their photos!

Click below to jump down to a particular story and slide show

Artisans and Families

Art of Weaving, Crocheting and Beading

Mayan Culture and History

Other Trip Highlights

FTJ Trip Participants

Artisans and Families

Our first visit was with the crocheters of San Marcos La Laguna (slides 1-5) on Lake Atitlan, renowned for their beautiful MayaWorks’ kippot. The group is comprised of about 25-30 women and one man, Bruno, who designs and crochets beautiful bags. We spent an hour introducing ourselves and sharing a bit of our lives. We learned that the women are now earning enough money so they can send their children to school. Our next visit was with the beaders of San Pedro (slide 6), also on Lake Atitlan. They make the intricate beaded mezzuzot (as well as Christmas ornaments) for MayaWorks. Our last visit on Lake Atitlan was another group of crocheters (slides 7-8). They surprised Jeannie Balanda of MayaWorks with 5 new kippot designs that they created on their own! We were all impressed and can’t wait for them to hit the market! Next was the village of Chiriquiac (slides 9-12) in the western highlands near Quetzaltenango. This group of 16 women is very skilled and does several types of weaving as well as embroidery for Mayan Hands. We watched them embroider the word “Shabbat” on woven challah covers and “Pesach” on matzah covers. In our conversation with them we learned that most of them were married between 14-18 years of age. The money they earn is used for food, clothes, and school supplies for their children. One of the trip highlights was meeting Lila Carmen Rosario and the other women of Tzanjuyu near Comalapa (slides 13-15); Lila helped design and has woven all of MayaWorks’ tallitot. Her daughter is already a skilled weaver at the age of 16. Our last visit was with the artisans of San Rafael (slides 16-18) near Salama and Rabinal. These women are master weavers on the backstrap loom, an ancient tradition handed down from generation to generation of Mayan families. We watched them weave the challah covers and bookmarks for Mayan Hands, and were able to explain the meaning of Shabbat and its rituals. An unexpected delight was meeting Miguel Hernandez Tax (slide 19), whose wife cooked a delicious meal for us!

Art of Weaving, Crocheting and Beading

One of the first things you notice throughout Guatemala is the peoples’ love of color (slide 1). Each community/region is known for its particular colors and styles of huipiles (women’s tops). Lila (slides 2-4) also uses a large foot treddle loom for her tallitot; it takes at least 12 hours to weave a tallit and another 5 to prepare the yarn and loom. You can see a finished tallit compared to what Lila is working on. Miguel (slides 5-10) is an accomplished weaver who works from home. We enjoyed seeing his creativity in using a bicycle wheel to thread his yarn. He designs his weavings initially on graph paper, and then translates that to the large foot looms he weaves on. The backstrap loom (slides 11-13) is one of the world’s oldest forms, passed from one generation to the next. One end of the loom is attached to a fixed object and the other to the weaver; by leaning back and using their body weight they create the tension for the loom; here you see one of Mayan Hands’ challah covers being woven. One of the most intricate processes is involved with ikat (jaspe in Guatemala-slides 14-17) used in countries around the world. It is a dyeing technique used to pattern textiles that involves a resist dyeing process similar to tie dye, but used on individual yarns before weaving. It involves at least 17 different steps and requires constant adjustment by the weaver to assure that the pattern is revealed accurately in the weaving process. Crocheting kippot (slides 18-21) is a more adaptable skill as it can be done almost everywhere, although constant awareness is required to follow the specific pattern. It takes almost 4 hours to make one kippah. The MayaWorks’ kippot crocheters have become expert enough that they are now creating new designs on their own. Another artistic skill is demonstrated by beaders (slide 22), who weave these tiny pieces of glass into beautiful mezzuzot.

Mayan Culture and History

Traveling around Guatemala, you are consistently reminded of the agricultural season. While we were there in late January-early February, we saw people drying coffee beans, chili peppers, and corn on the sidewalks and in their yards (slides 1-3). A highlight of the trip was meeting Pedro Guoron Ajquijay (slides 4-5) who used to work with the Ministry of Education and is now working to revitalize Mayan culture. He shared the Mayan creation story with us, and we learned that gratitude, seeking opportunities to improve oneself, and living a good useful existence are major themes. We then spent some time at Iximche Ruins (slides 6-7), a holy place to the Mayan, and were blessed to witness a shaman leading a sacred ritual. These candles (slide 8) were lit inside a Catholic church, where Mayans also go for Sunday morning services. People still depend on natural healing remedies, which can be found in the local markets (slide 9).

Other Trip Highlights

A trip to Guatemala is not complete unless you attend the Thursday or Sunday market in Chichicastenango (slides 1-4). Although many tourists attend, it is a regional market where local Mayans purchase vegetables, flowers, and even lime for making their tortillas. This woman is even doing her embroidery while waiting for customers. We heard live music (slide 5) in one of the plazas as we walked through the markets. It was a blessing to bring and share gifts with the artisans and their families (slide 6). We were treated to two home cooked meals by the artisans (slides 7-8), including a yummy sauce made from grinding pumpkin seeds and chili, homemade blackberry juice, and tamales. Lake Atitlan (slides 9-12) was one of the most beautiful places we visited, with the clouds and volcanoes playing hide and seek with each other. And, our hotel, had an entire line of hammocks to relax in, night or day! A special treat was going for a walk in the Biotopo Quetzal reserve (slides 13-14) where we saw beautiful plants shrouded in the moist dampness, known as “chippy-chippy”. The ever present “chicken” buses and tuktuks used for local transporation (slide 15). Deborah Chandler of Mayan Hands introduced us to an artisan cooperative running a recycled glass factory (slides 16-17); Fair Trade Judaica is talking with them about a possible Kiddush cup and candle holder set for Shabbat. We were inspired by the creative use of recycled plastic bottles (slide 18), used both for infrastructure and design.

FTJ Trip Participants

We had a fabulous group of 13 participants, in addition to the wise and gracious counsel of Jeannie Balanda of MayaWorks and Deborah Chandler of Mayan Hands, as well as their other staff. We gather for our first evening together (slide 1), wrapping up platters of dried fruit for Tu B’shvat to share with the Jewish community. Ilene is appreciating and choosing fabric to bring home for a sewing project. Gary, our group photographer, is showing some photos to one of the children. We’re enjoying a delicious lunch outside in the perfect weather. Carol is checking out the beautiful colored yarn at Miguel’s place, while Judith is trying to thread the yarn on the home fashioned bicycle machine. Barbara is enjoying her new Mayan weaving. We’re helping to make tortillas for lunch! Cantor Joel Bressler leading a final Erev Shabbat service in the cloud forest. The whole group, happy and exhausted at the end of our 10 day trip together.

Fair Trade Judaica is a beneficiary of UpStart Bay Area.

Fair Trade Judaica is a project of Community Partners/Jumpstart.

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