Thank you for your continued prayers and financial support for the Nutritional Center and Home for Children in Patzun, Guatemala. Your generous support helps provide for the care and education of the children. See the email below as Elvia will graduate as a pre-school teacher and will be the 21st career education graduate sponsored by the St. Matthias Mission!

Below is a recent email from Franciscan Sister Ana Mirian at the Nutritional Center:
October 20, 2020 
TO: St. Matthias Parish,
Many blessings and gratitude for all the aid that you send us. Thanks be to God, we and the children are fine. The situation continues to be difficult since they are not giving us news about the people infected. This means that we continue to be careful. The children have not had any visits even from their families because there are no buses and the cases of illness continue. But they continue with school; this week are final exams. Thanks be to God, Elvia did well with her grades and will graduate, thanks to her hard work and your aid, although we do not know the date. It will possibly be a ceremony with one person accompanying her. She is very happy. God will repay you for everything. We continue praying a lot for all of you.

The St. Ann Mission in Guatemala has changed its name to reflect our new parish to Guatemala Mission of St. Matthias. All checks and correspondence should be made to "Guatemala Mission of St. Matthias." Thank you for your continued support and know that 100% of your donations go directly to the mission: The children of the Hogar (Home) in Patzun, Guatemala.

From Thursday, June 6th until Thursday, June 13th, 2019, Fr. Francis travelled with nine others on our annual mission trip to Patzan, Guatemala. A special thanks to those who while not accompany us and have supported the mission not only at the time of our trip but throughout the year. 

Thank you for your continued support of the children and the Franciscan nuns of Patzun, Guatemala.

July 23, 2020
TO: St. Matthias Parish

Thanks be to God, we are well. Yes, there was a very strong tornado but thanks be to God, it only took the roofs and rafters of two block houses and no one was hit. It was near Calvary in the fields and headed to the mountains. That is why it didn’t cause more destruction. It tore out the corn in its path and rained very hard.

Due to the virus we continue to be quarantined except for emergency trips to buy food and other essential business. Here in Patzún there are six more sick people. There are still no buses. On Saturdays and Sundays everything is closed. It is a difficult situation. Antiqua is filled with sick people. There are 13 departments where travel is prohibited including Guatemala, Sacatepéquez, Xela and Suchitepéques. Only cars with license plates that corre- spond to that town can be on the road. More than 1,000 people get sick each day and many have died. It is a difficult situation.

We continue praying a lot for you also But thanks be to God, we are well. Greetings to all. Take good care of yourselves. The children pray hard.

Blessings,
Madre Ana Mirian
Nutritional Center and Home for Children

April 8, 2020

Good afternoon to our friends of St. Matthias Parish,

We are sending you a special greeting from the children and the nuns, hoping you are well and protected. Thanks be to God, we and the children are well. There is the sad news that 9 cases have shown up in Patzun in only 3 or 4 days. We are shut in with the children, just us and them. All the workers here at the Center went to their homes more than 2 weeks ago. We also decided to close the hospital since the doctors aren't from here and also returned to their homes. There was only Sister Virginia and the nurses and we were very concerned about them continuing alone. There are already 2 or 3 doctors from here who are infected, those who saw the first cases in their clinics.

We are doing all that we can with the children. Thanks be to God, we have corn, beans, rice and nutritional drink for the kids because there is no market and all the streets leaving Patzun even to the outlying villages are closed.

The Guatemalan Ministry of Health has begun to go house to house examining people. We hope to God everything goes as well as possible. We can't go out. We are closed all day. Friday two children abandoned in Tecpan were brought to us. Thanks be to God, we are all well.

We ask you for your prayers and we and the children are praying hard for you and the entire world. Many blessings and thank you for all you do for the children and us.

Sincerely,
Madre Anna Mirian
from the Franciscan nuns that operate the nutrition center and hospital in Patzun, Guatemala