Photo: Local nonprofit GCAC’s final program for 2024 was to Guatemala in October. A trademark experience of the travel service learning each time is discovering traditional dishes. Here Debbie Brady, McKenzie Baylor, Annaliya Shepherd, and Gracie Aird learn the step-by-step process and ingredients in a spicy meat stew.
By Karen Campbell, Global Citizen Adventure Corps
Dresden, Tenn.–Twenty West Tennesseans spent their October fall break immersed in the culture, cuisine, and communities of Guatemala. As participants in Global Citizen Adventure Corps and Bethel University’s Global Studies program October 13-20, many of the first-time travelers absorbed first-time experiences such as exploring Mayan ruins and exotic ecosystems, enjoying both cooking and eating traditional foods, and engaging with time-honored crafts. Ziplining, a hike to the top of a volcano, and volunteering at a child-focused outreach rounded out the adventure.
Stacie Freeman, director of BU Global Studies and Co-Founder of GCAC, the source for several of the students’ travel scholarships, led the excursion to Central America, the final 2024 travel service learning program offered by GCAC with college credit provided by Bethel. Joining Freeman were Spanish teachers Jon Shepherd, who served as Co-Leader and works in Weakley County Schools, and Jenna Patton, who teaches at Hollow Rock-Bruceton and coordinated communications in-country.
Patton, a GCAC board member and previous participant in the 2024 program in Costa Rica, noted, “Our excursions in Guatemala have allowed our students to experience the day-to-day life of a centuries old culture that has survived against all odds. The resilience and pride of the Mayan people is truly humbling. I wish every student could have at least one of these experiences.”
The journey began in Antigua, an UNESCO World Heritage Site, so deemed due to the city’s preserved ruins of the Baroque design of the 18th century and its still-in-use basic grid plan, one of the earliest examples of city planning in Latin America, dating from 1543.
Other stops included Lake Atitlàn surrounded by the Guatemalan highlands; the ancient Mayan site, Iximchè, capital of the Kaqchiqueles; Panajachel famous for Calle Santander, a street filled with Guatemalan crafts and lake views; San Juan la Laguna where T’zutujil villagers taught the process of natural dyeing, backstrap loom weaving, cotton thread spinning, and extraction of colors from plants, resulting in the participants’ tie-dyed creations.
The adventure seekers were also treated to ziplining through Atitlàn Nature Reserve, a 1,200-acre sanctuary of diverse ecosystems, including lush forests, vibrant wildlife, with panoramic views of the majestic volcanoes—San Pedro, Atitlán, and Tolimán. The final day included a hike along the petrified lava trails of Pacaya National Park, home to one of Guatemala’s three active volcanos, where, at the top of the volcano, participants were rewarded with Pizza Pacaya fresh from one of the first-ever lava cave ovens.
GCAC programs often included opportunities to try new foods, locally grown and traditionally prepared. Guatemalan travelers feasted on a Parrillada mix of meats, cheeses and scallions with tortillas, soups and casseroles in restaurants; cacao and coffee straight from the farm; and Pepian, a spicy meat stew they learned to prepare in homes, instructed by their host families.
“Cultural exchange is vital in fostering understanding and appreciation among people and communities. By immersing ourselves in the culinary traditions and practices of others, we not only expand our cooking skills but also build bridges of empathy and respect,” Freeman, who teaches sociology as dual enrollment classes in area high schools for Bethel, explained. “Each dish tells a story, and through experiences like these, we celebrate our shared humanity while honoring the unique flavors that make our world so vibrant.”
While thankful for the learning, Elaine Covington, a 17-year-old senior at Gleason High School, confessed that one of her most memorable takeaways from the trip will be an appreciation for American cuisine. “Many people say that American food is greasy,” she noted, “But I have a newfound appreciation for our greasiness.”
One of the first-time international travelers on the program, Covington also gained critical insights. “There is so much to learn around the world about different cultures. As I have traveled, I have seen the reality about the cultures instead of the assumptions,” she added.
“Many people believe that the United States is vastly different. What we as Americans don’t always realize is we have a lot of the common issues that are widespread in these areas like child neglect and abuse. Even though we as Americans do not always express it, it is always there.”
Seeing the children working in the streets of the city was a reality check for fellow volunteer Andrew Harrison, also 17 and from Gleason. “I thought back to when I was a kid in my room playing video games and when my mom and dad asked me to help, I didn’t want to. [The children in the streets] grew up so much faster than us. We got to live our childhoods while they don’t really have one.”
Yet, Harrison also is quick to observe a change of perspective prompted by the kindness of the Guatemalan people as a whole, “We take so much for granted. I have so much more than what they have, and they still have a great life.”
Such insights are often prompted by another trademark of GCAC programs — the focus on locally initiated service projects. For these 20 volunteers, the location of service was Sueños, nonprofit dedicated to providing a safe space of empowerment and education programs for indigenous children of street vendors in Antigua – the children Harrison first saw upon arriving in the city.
“The vision of Sueños – which means dreams in Spanish” — is to provide the educational, social and emotional tools for children to complete primary education and acquire a skill set to achieve economic autonomy, allowing them to achieve their goals and stopping the cycle of child labor,” reported Freeman.
Patton reflected, “The obstacles these children face are heartbreaking. Their families come to Antigua trying to make a living. They work long hours in the streets of the city selling different products just to barely scrape by. This organization provides them an education, stability, a healthy balanced diet, and encourages retainment of their native culture/language. It gives these children who many have deemed “outcasts” a chance to break the cycle of generational poverty.”
After painting to improve the facilities, the volunteers also learned of other means to support the children:
- Donate school supplies: Mail items to 308 East Lancaster Ave (suite 235), Wynnewood, PA, 19096 for delivery to the school by traveling board members.
- Contribute financially: Your monetary donations atwww.suenosgt.orgdirectly support educational programs and resources.
- Spread the word: Raise awareness about the challenges these children face and the work they do at Sueños so that others can give.
When asked if their first international travel had proven beneficial, the students’ replies were enthusiastic and encouraging.
Annaliya Shepherd, a 16-year-old junior at Greenfield High School, saw hiking the mountain and enjoying volcano baked pizza as a “once in a lifetime” opportunity. For other students who might be considering but have yet to commit to a future program, she underscored, “The people you meet and the friends you make on these journeys are absolutely worth it.”
Covington agreed. “If they were iffy about the program, I would express that you are first of all in great hands with GCAC and that the world is full of new adventures that we should never miss out on. As well as, traveling is a way for us to not only learn what we love at home but appreciate it.”
For a list of upcoming programs in 2025 and 2026, see the GCAC website at www.globalcitizenadventurecorps.org.
Global Citizen Adventure Corps is a 501c3 nonprofit dedicated to cultivating global citizens through education, service, and travel. By offering transferable college credit and donor-funded scholarships, GCAC actively builds pathways between rural high schools, universities, and a robust network of global nonprofit partners to provide travel program opportunities to underserved students. For more information visit www.globalcitizenadventurecorps.org.
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Photo Captions:
<Group photo in front of fountain>
Twenty West Tennesseans spent their October fall break immersed in the culture, cuisine, and communities of Guatemala as participants in Global Citizen Adventure Corps and Bethel University’s Global Studies program. Seen here are (back row, left to right) Charles Covington, Gleason; Jon Shepherd, Greenfield; Michelle Holland, Jackson; Katherine Lancaster, Bruceton; Stacie Freeman, Dresden; Martha Lyle Ford, Brownsville; Izzy Hickman, Gleason; Debbie Brady, Big Sandy; Monica Whitman, Bruceton; Evan Joseph, Bruceton; (front row, left to right) Elaine Covington, Gleason; Andrew Harrison, Gleason; Keith Lancaster, Bruceton; Maddie Dean, Gleason; Karli Mercer, Gleason; Tori Shepherd, Greenfield; Jenna Patton, Camden; McKenzie Baylor, Bruceton; Annaliya Shepherd, Greenfield; and Gracie Aird, McKenzie.
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GCAC Co-Founder and Bethel University Global Studies Director Stacie Freeman says that on programs like the October 2024 experience in Guatemala “the world is our classroom.” Elaine Covington, seen here with father, Charles, both of Gleason can attest to much learning on her first-ever international journey. Among the new experiences was a day, guided by the skilled hands of Mayan women, of learning the intricate process of creating natural dyes from local plants, herbs, and insects and the delicate art of backstrap weaving—a craft passed down through generations. The rewards for their attention in “class” were new tie-dyed creations.
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Local nonprofit GCAC’s final program for 2024 was to Guatemala in October. A trademark experience of the travel service learning each time is discovering traditional dishes. Here Debbie Brady, McKenzie Baylor, Annaliya Shepherd, and Gracie Aird learn the step-by-step process and ingredients in a spicy meat stew.
<painting prep>
Andrew Harrison and Maddie Dean were among the 20 GCAC volunteers who helped brighten the facilities of Sueños, nonprofit dedicated to providing a safe space of empowerment and education programs for indigenous children of street vendors in Antigua. The freshly painted walls were acts of service and a thank you for the investment the teachers and administrators are making in changing the lives of these Guatemalan children.