Great news! Friendship Bridge has officially launched Bridge to Success, a new program that will empower over 1,000 women entrepreneurs in rural Guatemala by 2025 with intensive business development training, individual loans, technical assistance, connections to peer networks, and access to new markets.

In this post, we’ll provide a clear explanation of this exciting new program and provide examples of the financial services and business training benefits women entrepreneurs in Guatemala will receive as a result of participating. We expect the impact of this program will play a key role in strengthening Guatemala’s economy and therefore address the root causes of migration in the Northern Triangle region of Central America.

“The new Bridge to Success program will be excellent. I will invest my loan more securely because I know there will be buyers and connections. This will bring more orders and more work. We can progress in our business and with a mentor’s help, it will be excellent.”

– RUTH, Friendship Bridge Client

What is the Bridge to Success program?

Bridge to Success is the newest of Friendship Bridge’s Microcredit Plus programs, focused on providing women entrepreneurs in Guatemala with intensive business development training and specialized loans. Supported by the financial backing of a $1 million grant, this new program will allow us to directly serve a specific segment of clients we call Entrepreneurs. These businesswomen, who manage what are known as “livelihood-sustaining enterprises,” are highly motivated, have an economically viable business model poised for growth, and are the drivers of economic development and new jobs in their communities. The program will grow significantly over the next five years, resulting in increased income for these entrepreneurs and job growth in Guatemala’s rural communities, where it is most needed.

The Bridge to Success program will provide two major benefits to clients:

• Financial Services: Individual loans offered to women entrepreneurs for working capital and purchasing fixed assets. Loan terms of 6-36 months, with fiduciary guarantees, possession rights, and mortgages, depending on the size of the loan. 
• Business Training: Evidence-based classes focused on business strategy, planning, and management, as well as leadership and community development. Some market services will be offered as well, such as branding, business formalization services, networking, fairs, and business competition, among others.

A Key Component to Our Mission and Strategy

Friendship Bridge is a nonprofit social enterprise creating opportunities that empower women in Guatemala to build a better life. The Bridge to Success program is a major component of our 2021-25 Strategic Plan, which will focus on: Responsible Growth, Innovation and Technology, Social Impact, and the launch of Bridge to Success. We use an innovative and high-impact approach to poverty alleviation by combining the tools of microfinance, education, and preventive health services. We call this Microcredit Plus. As a result of participating, our clients experience a combination of:

• Increased resilience
• Improved empowerment
• Accelerated business development

“Friendship Bridge is unique in Guatemala in that we combine our loan program with intensive business and leadership training, tailored to the needs of each woman,” said Karen Larson, Friendship Bridge President & CEO. “We will use this approach in our new program to directly serve a specific group of clients called the ‘missing middle’ who are underserved but have high potential to create jobs.”

Ready to Start!

Our President & CEO Karen Larson was able to travel to Guatemala in July 2021 to attend a training with staff on the methodology and techniques we will need to support our Entrepreneur clients and develop their businesses. The group included our individual credit facilitators, business developers, Business Development Services Coordinator, and Non-Formal Education team. The methodology of the Bridge to Success program was generated by our partners Swisscontact through an alliance transferred to Friendship Bridge.

Our 1st Workshop

We held our first successful pilot workshop in Quetzaltenango on Aug. 19, 2021 to recruit clients for the Bridge to Success. A total of 69 people participated (in-person and online) to learn how to do business using their cell phones and sell their products on WhatsApp and Facebook. The class was facilitated by a certified coach and specialist in business empowerment with more than 29 years of experience in sales.

How to Support?

Friendship Bridge is working harder than ever to increase economic opportunities for women in Guatemala and empower them to build a better life. Poverty, violence, natural disasters, malnutrition, and corruption are just some of the tragic challenges our clients face on a regular basis. The compounded effects of COVID-19 have only exacerbated their burdens, leading some to send their loved ones away from Guatemala on a dangerous and costly journey North. Our new Bridge to Success program is part of our long-term efforts to provide holistic solutions that counter the root causes of migration. You can support our work by making a donation today that will help us grow and improve women-led businesses, reducing household vulnerability, and increasing empowerment for thousands of women in Guatemala. Thank you for your support!

• Served 29,294 clients and disbursed more than $14 million in new loans during 2020.
• When the 1st case of COVID-19 was reported, we immediately implemented a phone strategy to educate our more than 22,000 clients about the virus and provide emotional support and small business solutions. See the 2020 Timeline
• Identified that an estimated 30% of clients lost their business activity during the lock-down. Many clients showed incredible resilience and pivoted to a different activity with the help of our instructional videos and encouragement from our staff.
• Gave all clients a two-month grace period in April and May so they would not have to choose between their loan payment and buying food for their families.
• Executed an Emergency Food Relief Program, resulting in: $65,000+ in donations raised; Coordination of food purchasing and packaging; Disbursement of 3,300 food kits to clients and their families in rural areas of Guatemala; Effectively feeding more than 15,000 people facing severe hunger.
• Pivoted our Health for Life program to telehealth services so that clients could access health services with our nurses, even during the lockdowns.
• Served more than 9,900 clients with telehealth services.
• Qualified for the 3rd year in a row for the Citi Bank Award. Friendship Bridge artisan client Jacinta Xon Cali won 2nd place in the category of Entrepreneurs in Microcredit! Watch the Video
• Obtained outstanding results for client satisfaction and loyalty from our Client Survey conducted in the 4th quarter. 
• Provided technical assistance to 81.8% of our agriculture clients supporting the improvement of their crop productivity and income, including identifying agricultural risk with the use of fertilizers and pesticides.
• Implemented 2 tomato field schools, which combines theoretical training and actual implementation in demonstration plots. With this technique, clients learn best agricultural practices in order to replicate them in their own crops.
• Handmade by Friendship Bridge sold more than $80,500 products created by 33 artisan clients and their families and employees. $65,000 went directly to our clients and 129 people were employed by them.
• Sold more than $10,500 worth of face masks, sourced from our own artisan clients and their families.
• Raised donations for an additional 442 handmade face masks for field staff in Guatemala.
• Sold nearly 5,000 Handmade by Friendship Bridge items through our online store.
• With the help of a generous donor, provided 24 clients with new sewing machines to support the growth of their businesses.
• Non-Formal Education continued through the year despite the pandemic, both through automated and direct calls from staff, despite not being able to meet physically in much of the country.
• Implemented a pilot of virtual Advanced Training sessions to teach clients how to develop new products through Facebook with much success. We plan to expand this in 2021.

• Ensured all staff had the tools they needed to work from home during the pandemic and implemented home office and COVID protocols successfully.
• Purchased and shipped throughout Guatemala more than $25,000 of COVID-19 protective and sanitizing equipment for all our offices. As an essential business in the country, we continued to staff all offices following the initial 2-month lock-down.
• Launched Mi Puente, an internal online communications system serving as the main means of collaboration for all employees, critical to sharing information during the pandemic.
• Initiated a new online learning platform to provide staff with training and professional development tools from our internal Friendship University. Achieved nearly 13,000 hours of employee training during the year.

• Even during this crisis, our portfolio quality continues to be one of the best in the Microfinance industry with full-year write-offs of less than 3%, client retention rate of 76.8%, and PAR>30 of 2.03%.
• Nearly 95% of our clients were making their loan repayments by the end of 2020, exceeding our expectations and allowing us to plan for the future with a clear path forward.
• Secured sufficient liquidity during the year to ensure operations would not be interrupted by raising nearly $800,000 in new capital and rolling over our $1.6 million Private Placement investment.
• Automated a variety of manual processes with the digital transformation of 5 major internal operating processes, originally planned over 3 years.
• Obtained the Great Place to Work certification for the 2nd year, positioning ourselves as one of the best companies to work for in Central America
• Hosted 3 Virtual Insight Trips from Guatemala, allowing our U.S. supporters to virtually “visit” with our clients and staff, stay connected, and see the impact of our products and services.
• Published our 1st digital Annual Report in English and Spanish.
• Raised over $1 million in charitable contributions including donations, fundraising events, insight trips, and grants.
• Raised $154,500 with the support of 36 crowdfunders during our 6th Annual Health for Life Campaign.
• Raised $72,600 during our virtual Building Bridges Stay-at-Home Gala: Resiliency in the Face of Adversity.
• Achieved GuideStar’s Gold Seal of Transparency and the top rating of 4 Stars on Charity Navigator.
•  Circles Volunteers placed $8,800 in orders at our online store, Handmade by Friendship Bridge.

We couldn’t travel with you to Guatemala this year, so we’re bringing Guatemala to you! We hosted three virtual events in 2020 to connect you with our clients and show how your support impacts our work on the ground. These “trips” have been recorded and we invite you to travel with us from the comfort of your home to meet Marcela, Elena, Estefana, and many others.

Reconnecting with Clients: August 27, 2020

See one of our monthly Trust Bank meetings in action in Panajachel + hear a thoughtful conversation with 7 Friendship Bridge clients, facilitated by our loan officer Cesar Arriola.

Artisan Program: Weaving Dreams for a Better Future: Oct. 1, 2020

Travel to Sololá and visit Marcela’s workshop where she makes beautiful, handmade artisan items as part of Handmade by Friendship Bridge + a weaving demo by Santos.

Health for Life in Times of COVID: Nov. 5, 2020

Meet the amazing doctors and nurses from our Health for Life program who provide preventive health services and education to our clients in partnership with Maya Health Alliance + meet Elena and her daughters.

Friendship Bridge clients like Marcela are adapting with brilliant resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Marcela was scared about the global pandemic. “I asked myself, ‘How are we going to survive?’ We live in Sololá and we did not have a place to go and buy things.” Even if the markets were open, Marcela thought to herself, she would not be able to buy anything without money. “That affected me a lot,” she said. But fear did not dictate Marcela’s resilient spirit. She had survived the armed conflict in Guatemala. She had become a business entrepreneur despite being widowed with young children. Again and again, she had outsmarted fear with resourcefulness and navigated hardship alongside a strong community of women. 

Only a few weeks after learning about the pandemic, she used her hard-earned skills to gain income again. “I made scarves and shawls to survive,” she said. “Sometimes my neighbors celebrated their daughters’ birthdays in lockdown… They came to my house and asked for birthday gifts.” As a trained artisan, Marcela was already selling her beautiful, textile woven products to an international market through Friendship Bridge’s online store, Handmade by Friendship Bridge. In March, she started investing more effort into selling to her nearby community to support her family during the earlier months of the pandemic. 

Marcela belongs to a Friendship Bridge Trust Bank made up of 18 women, almost all of who became widowed during and after the armed conflict in Guatemala. “They had no way out,” she said, noting that when she herself joined 17 years ago, she only had about three pieces of fabric. “I needed capital in order to make more.” All the women in her group have different interests; from artisanry to agriculture. Over time, they have acquired new skills through Friendship Bridge’s trainings that have allowed them to diversify their income, an especially useful skill for this year. Marcela, for example, now knows how to use a backstrap loom, as well as a foot loom. She also learned to collect recycled plastics that some stores throw away to make durable, reusable shopping bags. “We go to collect and wash them, and when they are dry, we cut it to the size we need.” 

As things slowly start to open and “normalize” in Guatemala, Marcela encourages women who are not yet part of Friendship Bridge to join. “They teach us about everything,” she said. “I feel that they are encouraging me again to create some products and deliver them. As they are asking me for orders, I feel that I am already getting out of this situation.” 

The microloans, education, business training, and health services we provide to women in Guatemala matter now more than ever. Because of your support, women like Marcela are able to continue supporting themselves and their communities through innovation and hard work amid a global pandemic.

When you meet Angelina, her deep-seated strength is at first hidden behind her quiet voice and calm demeanor. Since the beginning of the global pandemic, however, she has been able to support herself and her children with great determination during these difficult months. By selling her products through our online store at Handmade by Friendship Bridge, she has continued paying her microloans on time and recently purchased monthly data plans so that her children can continue their education online. We spoke with Angelina yesterday to get to know her better and understand how she is adapting during this time.

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Angelina, tell us a bit about your childhood:

I was born in Chaquijya, Solola in 1985. My mom raised my 2 brothers, 2 sisters, and me. She received the support of my grandmother who took care of us while my mom worked on the fields. She worked farming celery and lettuce, packing vegetables and sending them to bigger cities. I did not get to meet my father as he separated from my mom when I was a newborn. Overall, I had a loving mother and grandmother who made a lot of sacrifices for us. I was able to study until sixth grade.

How did you learn to work with beads?

I learned how to make beaded bracelets when I was 8 years old. I wanted to support my mom financially. Learning how to bead allowed me to bring in some money and stay at home. She did not allow me to work outside of our house. I learned how to make beaded bags when I was 12 years old. I like creating jewelry, especially necklaces and bracelets. 

How did you learn to create your beautiful handmade baskets? 

My grandmother taught me how to create baskets and embroider them. When I was growing up, she spent her afternoons creating baskets to support our family. My grandfather passed away before I was born – and the creation of these baskets supported her financially for many years. I now buy baskets from neighbors and embroider them. 

When did you get married and how many children do you have? 

I married when I was 20-years-old. Emilio, my husband, and I met when I was working in Guatemala city. When I turned 16, I moved to the capital to find work and support my family. I was working as a clerk in a neighborhood convenience store. We are both from the same area, so we develop a friendship. I have three children (two girls and one boy),  my oldest daughter studies at Maia Impact School. She is currently in 7th grade, and my other two kids are in a public school close to home.

How does your husband feel about your small business?

He likes it when I stay at home and work from here. I have a little convenience store and my handmade business. He supports me, but I find it hard to convince him to let me go for the artisan training. Lately, he has seen how much it has helped our financial situation, so I hope he will let me go for the coming year. 

What are your dreams for your children? 

I want them to have a professional career. I will put on the hard work to make sure my children graduate from university and have the opportunity I did not have. My youngest daughter, Heyday, just started first grade. Bryan is in third grade and Jennifer received a great opportunity at The MAIA Impact School. I know it is a long road. My husband does not support this idea of my children focusing only on school. But I am willing to support them financially until they reach their dreams. 

How did Friendship Bridge come into your life?

My neighbor talked to me about Friendship Bridge and their Trust Bank, Tablon Central. She introduced me to the rest of the members. I am very happy with my Trust Bank. We support each other and my group members are on time with their payments. I joined in 2008. My first loan was Q1000 ($130 USD), now I manage a loan of Q10,000 ($1,300 USD). Currently, I am the president of our Trust Bank. 

How has your life been impacted by Handmade by Friendship Bridge? 

I joined Handmade by Friendship Bridge in 2018. I was invited to participate in the advanced artisan trainings and I liked the topics we learned. I have been using this knowledge for the orders I create. I am happy when I receive orders and develop new jewelry pieces. I have also been developing new designs for my baskets like flowers and words. I have met many new friends, women like me that are working hard to learn new things and put them into practice. 

What was your favorite part of the artisan training? 

I liked it when we learned how to take photos of our products and all the tricks to make our products shine. I also like costing because I realized how much I am profiting. One of my favorite experiences was the fairs and traveling with all of us together to Antigua Guatemala. I met another business in the fair that I have been working with during these past months. 

How is COVID19 affecting your business?

I was working on an order for a company and it got canceled right away when COVID19 started in Guatemala. The neighbors also stopped going outside. The sales of my small convenience store decreased a lot. To expand, I started selling vegetables and fruits, as many neighbors were not able to travel to Solola’s market. I received orders from you and another business. I also learned how to create fabric carpets; I am working on developing new samples in this category. 

What are your dreams for your business? 

I would like to create new carpet designs and better the quality of my products. I also want to finish paying my loan and expand both my businesses. I dream of having a bigger convenience store and also receive many orders for my necklaces and baskets. I want to meet new international buyers that will help me expand my business. Thanks to you, I now know that my work is valued and respected in the whole world. 

Our ‘Here for Her’ email series was developed in early 2020 in an effort to keep our supporters connected to our artisan clients at the height of the global pandemic. We hope this series gives you the chance to learn more about the women we serve in Guatemala and the many ways their lives are impacted by our programs and services.

Handmade by Friendship Bridge (formerly the Artisan Market Access Program) provides artists and artisans with trainings designed to ready them to access new markets – in particular, the global market. Trainings focus on topics such as quality of raw materials, buyer expectations, and tastes and preferences of the North American market. Clients are also trained about product pricing to ensure they receive a fair wage for their work. Learn more

Meet Sandra

“Free,” said the loan officer on the other line of the phone. Sandra had just asked how much a medical appointment would cost her. “You will not be charged for the health services. And the nurse will come to your home.” Sandra was surprised and delighted. She had been a client of Friendship Bridge since 2015 but was new to the Health for Life program. For years, she and her Trust Bank met once every month in Chinique, a rural area of the Department of Quiche in Guatemala. During these meetings, a Friendship Bridge loan officer travels to her community to teach her and her group about a variety of important topics, from money and business management to women’s rights and health. The loan officer also provides loans to the women, allowing Sandra to grow her business and provide food and necessities for her husband and three children.

Last year, Sandra’s loan officer announced to the group that as a benefit of being a Friendship Bridge client, they were eligible to participate in the Friendship Bridge Health for Life program. At the time, Sandra was too busy to take part. But a few months later, right at the start of the COVID-19 crisis, her loan officer called her to check-in and explained again about the health services available to her. 

When she heard that these health services would be provided to her at no cost, she automatically felt motivated to try it. She became even more compelled to participate when she learned that the appointment would be safe and could take place in her home. Due to COVID-19, the nurses in the Friendship Bridge Health for Life program have updated the operations of in-home mobile clinic visits. To keep everyone safe, they are now making pre-screening phone calls and putting new safety protocols in place for home visits.

“Thanks to the glucose test, I know that my blood sugar is a little high and if I don’t take care of myself, diabetes can develop. I thank the nurse and Friendship Bridge for considering us and caring about our health.” – Sandra

Sandra was looking forward to prioritizing her health in a safe way. For millions of indigenous women in Guatemala, access to healthcare is inadequate and the most common diseases are preventable, such as hypertension, diabetes, and cervical cancer. “I am happy with this flexibility because it will allow me to be treated with privacy and special care in my own home,” she said. When the nurse visited Sandra’s home, she spoke in Sandra’s native Maya language to explain the range of benefits available through the Health for Life program. For the first time, she heard accurate information about COVID-19 and the necessary precautions she and her family needed to take. The nurse asked questions and started a new patient record for her. Diabetes is common in Sandra’s family, so her attention was drawn to the results of the blood sugar test. Her test results were high and the nurse recommended a healthy balanced diet. She reviewed the importance of daily exercise and advised Sandra to drink purified water more often. 

“I am very grateful to Friendship Bridge for coming to my house to take these tests, which I never imagined would be useful,” Sandra said. “Now I have to take better care of myself because, thanks to the glucose test, I know that my blood sugar is a little high and if I don’t take care of myself, diabetes can develop. I thank the nurse and Friendship Bridge for considering us and caring about our health.”

Lives like Sandra’s are forever changed after taking part in our Health for Life program, showing that even in the midst of a global pandemic, Friendship Bridge has continued to meet the needs of our clients. The women we serve are facing unimaginable hardship and right now, their need for healthcare and reliable information about COVID-19 is extreme. In 2020, our goal is to reach even more clients with in-home mobile clinic visits and expanded telehealth services. Will you donate now to help us continue providing women like Sandra with important health services? 

Since 2015, over 9,500 women in Guatemala have received health education and services in our Health for Life program. In partnership with Maya Health Alliance, we provide culturally sensitive services using mobile clinics that travel to the villages where our clients live. Each clinic is staffed by highly-trained, female medical staff fluent in the indigenous languages our clients speak. This year, the pandemic has forced us to redesign our delivery of services. This year’s Health for Life Campaign will provide support for in-home mobile clinic visits, telehealth services via the phone, and a healthcare phone hotline for our clients.

Everything has changed. It’s true for the whole world and for the work we do at Friendship Bridge for vulnerable women in Guatemala. All our in-person operations have stopped and in just a few short weeks, we’ve turned everything around. How did we do it?

Like you, we are using technology in new and creative ways to continue providing invaluable services to our clients. We wrote 3 weeks ago about the steps we’ve taken to prepare and support them through this challenge from afar. Not only are we calling clients to address their concerns about COVID-19, we are also striving to continue regular business operations while treating staff responsibly.

We adapted quickly, but not without costs and challenges. With your help, we are now ready to take the next step and use this time to strategically strengthen our position and continue empowering Guatemalan women to build a better life.

• Although Guatemala is a poor country, many clients own a cellphone. When our facilitators call clients, they can continue their relationships with women who may be afraid and worried about how they will earn money. They can offer exemplary customer service, provide information that is accurate, show care, and comfort our clients during a time of uncertainty.

• Our calls in mid-March gave us real, on the ground information regarding the level of knowledge, clients have about the situation and their concerns. The calls gave us the opportunity to prepare clients to confront the situation, demonstrate our commitment to them, and get feedback on what might be the best solutions or interventions in response to the crisis.

• We have 11 nurses in our Health for Life Program who are ready to provide telehealth services to our clients to keep them safe and informed.
• In partnership with Maya Health Alliance, our nurses will be able to call clients to discuss symptoms, provide healthcare education, and direct women on treatments as needed. When reliable and trustworthy information is scarce in Guatemala, our clients will have access to accurate healthcare education and share it with their communities.

• We have over 170 staff in Guatemala who will begin using our new INTRANET, our new internal communications tool, to receive timely, imperative, and streamlined organization-wide communications from Friendship Bridge online.
• We are also using this time strategically to take advantage of remote learning opportunities during restrictive shelter-in-place orders. With the use of an online learning platform, staff will be trained on customer service, emotional intelligence, and responsible loan collections practices from the safety of their homes.

As you know, Friendship Bridge works with the poorest of the poor. We have a proven record of helping women and their families climb out of poverty and the need for microcredit will be greater than ever once this pandemic is behind us. To weather this storm, Friendship Bridge needs your help now.

Can you make a donation today? We’ll put it right to work by being Here for Her through technology solutions.

Giving Tuesday: #GivingTuesdayNow is a global day of giving and unity that has been moved up and will now take place on May 5, 2020 as an emergency response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19. Join the movement and donate to Friendship Bridge today.

CARES Act Charitable Giving Incentive: Includes a new above-the-line deduction (universal or non-itemizer deduction that applies to all taxpayers) for total charitable contributions of up to $300. The incentive applies to contributions made in 2020 and would be claimed on tax forms next year. The bill also lifts the existing cap on annual contributions for those who itemize, raising it from 60 percent of adjusted gross income to 100 percent.

ReFUND Colorado: Now you can give some or all of your Colorado State income tax refund to Friendship Bridge. Choose Friendship Bridge with registration number 20033005126 in the “Donate to a Colorado Nonprofit” line on your Colorado state income tax return or software. You may also share this information with your tax preparer.

Since 1998, Friendship Bridge has stared down multiple crises while standing steadfast alongside the women we serve in Guatemala. We persevered through those challenges and emerged more resilient on the other side. Now is no exception, even as the virus responsible for COVID-19 continues to spread worldwide, presenting unknown risks to all.

Because this crisis will be especially dire for our organization and our clients, we are more committed than ever to being here for them and their families now and, most importantly, after the crisis. The health and safety of our community, staff, and women in Guatemala are at the core of our decision making. In an effort to ensure the safety of all our stakeholders, we are being proactive, compassionate and thoughtful in our response to COVID-19.

Below is an update on the situation in Guatemala and a list of just some of the measures Friendship Bridge has implemented thus far, rooted in our core values.

When this was written on March 24, 2020, there were 20 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Guatemala and testing for the virus has been extremely limited. Testing is only available in the nation’s capital, Guatemala City, and health experts believe the number of cases is much higher and will only continue to climb as testing becomes more available.

Honduras and Guatemala are the countries most susceptible to a large-scale outbreak due to the poor quality of their health systems. The Guatemalan government understands this and they are implementing measures like closing borders, canceling all Semana Santa activities, and closing restaurants and schools until further notice.

Guatemalan economists believe that the country is already losing nearly $128 million every day to lost productivity. Also, remittances from the U.S. (which represent nearly 13% of Guatemala’s GDP) are a vital source of income to families across the country. Although they have remained steady up until now, economists predict they will soon plummet as the economic calamity becomes widespread and intractable in the U.S., which will disproportionately affect migrant laborers.

Communication, Education, and Support

Mainly through phone calls and What’s App messaging, our staff has been communicating with clients to disseminate information about the Coronavirus, often hearing about it from us first. The early calls were focused on how to stay safe with proper hygiene and social distancing, information on common symptoms, and who to call if someone is sick.

Loan Restructuring + Grace Periods

The containment orders have a direct and negative impact on our clients’ ability to earn income. In response to growing concerns of our clients, Friendship Bridge is offering clients the option to restructure their loans to include a one-month grace period.

We also are offering prepayments with no penalties and reduced interest and are prepared to offer a two-month grace period if needed. Clients should not have to choose between making their loan payments and buying food or necessary medical supplies.

Suspended Travel

We have postponed our Building Bridges Gala from May 1 to Oct. 8 knowing that large gatherings are not considered to be safe now and in the coming months.

We have also suspended all business travel between the U.S. and Guatemala and suspended all Trust Bank meetings, technical training, agriculture programs, health services, and nonformal education sessions. Some branch offices remain open for support, but with reduced hours and managed by only essential staff.

Working Remotely + #TogetherAtHome

Most of our employees in the U.S. and Guatemala, which is approximately 175 people, are now working from home where they remain committed to getting us through this crisis while still supporting our clients. While our most critical systems are cloud-based, access to the necessary information is available with an internet connection. Access to the internet can be a challenge for many employees in rural Guatemala, but most have smart phones and can access the internet that way. It is complicated!

Honored Agreements + Stopped Spending

Even though the economic climate in Guatemala is highly uncertain and risky, we are honoring our agreements for March 2020 and will disperse new loans to clients that were previously approved. And we will continue to offer new loans where longer-term clients still have viable businesses.

We have canceled all organizational spending and purchasing of anything not deemed essential.

Open + Accurate Information

Misinformation abounds in Guatemala regarding COVID-19 and we are doing our best to counter false messaging with accurate medical guidelines to keep our clients and staff informed and safe. We continue to be transparent with our clients about their loan status and with our supporters about the steps we are taking to respond as an organization. We are constantly reviewing various financial scenarios as we make some very difficult decisions about a future no one knows for sure. These are indeed difficult and sad times for Friendship Bridge and our clients.

You have always stood by our clients and now we need you here for her more than ever. Our clients continue to be at the forefront of our decisions. Our response to our clients’ needs through restructuring of loans and deferment of payments will not be possible without your ongoing support.

We ask for your continued support through a gift today to allow Friendship Bridge to continue creating opportunities that empower Guatemalan women to build a better life.

Please contact us by email if you have any questions and please take good care of yourselves.