About Us
Casa Colibrí is a nonprofit humanitarian organization that is dedicated to helping the Mayan people of northwest Guatemala. We work together with community leaders to address specific needs such as health, education, clean water, school books and supplies, disease prevention and treatment, and problem solving.
One of the most important things we do is provide medical care where there is none at present. Medical teams visit on a regular basis to treat common illnesses and find patients who are in need of surgery or other specialized treatment. We then coordinate follow-up care with surgeons and other medical professionals, providing transportation, lodging, food, and other essentials.
A sad fact of life for the people of that area is the high incidence of infant mortality and maternal deaths in childbirth. In an effort to address these problems, Casa Colibrí developed a training program for traditional birth attendants. In these workshops, we address the main causes of newborn deaths and provide hands-on training to save lives. Our organization is working closely with the new Helping Babies Breathe initiative, a joint project of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization.
The villagers in the outlying areas do not have access to health care and are vulnerable to illness and injury. People can die from a tooth abscess or infected wound because they do not have antibiotics available or they lack knowledge of how to prevent infection. Casa Colibrí is committed to training village health promoters to recognize and treat common illnesses and care for wounds. Our workshops have trained and equipped many local health workers, with successful outcomes.
We believe that education is the key to economic improvement and self-sufficiency, and we continue to work toward that end.