Lauren Bush travels to Guatemala to see UNICEF "Sprinkles" programs!

Lauren Bush, Co-Founder and CEO of FEED Projects, UNICEF's Next Generation Steering Committee member and proud supporter of UNICEF, traveled to Guatemala with UNICEF to see the programs her company FEED Projects helps support through the purchase of their FEED Guatemala bags.

Lauren Bush, Co-Founder and CEO of FEED Projects, UNICEF's Next Generation Steering Committee member and proud supporter of UNICEF, traveled to Guatemala with UNICEF to see the programs her company FEED Projects helps support through the purchase of their FEED Guatemala bags. {C}{C}Lauren Bush, Co-Founder and CEO of FEED Projects, UNICEF's Next Generation Steering Committee member and proud supporter of UNICEF, traveled to Guatemala with UNICEF to see the programs her company FEED Projects helps support through the purchase of their FEED Guatemala bags.

 

Photographer & Next Gen Member Mia Baxter takes a picture of Kristina Fell, and Katy Wanserski from FEED, and Casey Rotter from the U.S. Fund for UNICEF while they pose with children in Guatemala.
Mia Baxter/2011
Kristina Fell and Katy Wanserski from FEED, Casey Rotter from the U.S. Fund for UNICEF with children in Guatemala.

 

Day 1:

We arrived late last night in Guatemala City. We started our trip by visiting the local artisans who have been producing our FEED Guatemala bags that benefit UNICEF. It is truly a 'cottage industry' in that the bags are made in several home workshops throughout rural Guatemala!

 

Kids sing and play games with Lauren Bush during her trip to Guatemala.
Mia Baxter/2011
Kids sing and play games with Lauren Bush during her trip to Guatemala.

 

Day 2:

We started our day at 6 am by meeting Dr. Maria Claudia Santizo, Nutrition Officer of UNICEF Guatemala, who showed UNICEF's micro-nutrient powder programs. After leaving Guatemala City, we headed to a school in Totonicapan. We are 5 in our group- myself, Kristina Fell, and Katy Wanserski from FEED, Casey Rotter from the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, and Mia Baxter, a UNICEF Next Gen member and our lovely photographer for the trip. The kids are so much fun! They requested that we sing to them and play games with them. Next we visited a home where a mom uses Sprinkles (or micro-nutrient powder) when she prepares meals for her adorable little boy named Lester. The mother is nice enough to allow our group into her kitchen to see where she prepares all her family's meals. We visited another house and the mother lets us watch her prepare a meal with Sprinkles for her little baby girl.

 

A mother demonstrates how she prepares all her family's meals using Sprinkles (micro-nutrient powder).
Mia Baxter/2011
A mother demonstrates how she prepares all her family's meals using Sprinkles micro-nutrient powder.

 

Day 3:

Today we went to see a UNICEF-funded mother-child nutrition lesson at a local clinic. Mothers gather in their bright, indigenous garb with little ones clinging to their skirts or strapped to their backs. A woman led the mothers through a lesson about how to cook a meal for babies and then for older children. The women gathered and watched attentively to her instructions. After the lesson, the women played a game where they are asked about what to feed their children. Then the moms lined up with their kids to be weighed and measured. These measurements are then plotted on a card so that UNICEF can keep track of how the kids are growing and developing in order to prevent malnutrition. After, we talked to a mother who tells us how much Sprinkles has helped her little boy. She said that he was sick and small and now he is much healthier. This makes us all feel very proud to be supporting UNICEF in their efforts to get micronutrients to children who need them in Guatemala.

 

Another mother demonstrates preparing a meal with Sprinkles for her little baby girl.
U.S. Fund for UNICEF/2011
Another mother demonstrates preparing a meal with Sprinkles for her little baby girl.

 

My experience visiting UNICEF-supported projects in Guatemala was moving and inspirational. It was amazing to see the wonderful work that UNICEF does and the incredible impact Sprinkles programs can have in saving and improving children's lives. It was great to see the FEED Guatemala bags come full circle - from the artisans making the bags in Guatemala to the actual children UNICEF is able to provide micronutrients to because of the donation that is generated through the purchase of the bags. It was truly an experience I will never forget!