Shooting for Non-Profits: Starfish One by One in Guatemala / by Kate Lord

  As the photographer for She's the First, a not-for-profit that raises awareness about girls education and encourages young people to creatively fundraise to sponsor a girl in the developing world, I recently had the opportunity to visit one of our partner organizations in Guatemala. Starfish One by One works with indigenous Mayan girls in middle and high school by providing tuition costs and placing them in a unique mentorship program. Each girl is placed in a group of 15 and is lead by an indigenous Mayan mentor who has herself graduated high school and beyond. This support system encourages the girls to push beyond the education level that their families could have provided for them. Most of them will be the first in their families to graduate high school, many the first to be educated beyond the 6th grade.

I was asked by Starfish One by One to document one girl in particular - 18-year-old Francisca Chiviliu Quinac. In October, Francisca will be the first person in her family to graduate high school. Amid studying and attending her weekly mentoring sessions, Francisca helps her mother and little sister Brenda complete many chores around the house, from making 70 tortillas three times a day by hand to harvesting corn in the family's yard to washing clothes by hand. I've included a few preview photos from the project below, but will be producing a short photo/video documentary about her to be completed in the coming weeks -- come back to check it out!

I also had the opportunity to meet some of the other girls in the program and their mothers at their homes, and to attend a few of the mentoring programs. You can read more about my trip with She's the First on our blog and more about Starfish One by One on their website.

Francisca Chiviliu Quinac (right), 18, and her sister Brenda Leticia, 14, prepare dinner in their home in Santiago, Guatemala.
Francisca Chiviliu Quinac (right), 18, and her sister Brenda Leticia, 14, prepare dinner in their home in Santiago, Guatemala.
Freshly laundered items on the Quinac’s line.
Freshly laundered items on the Quinac’s line.
Francisca hand washes the family's laundry in their front yard.
Francisca hand washes the family's laundry in their front yard.
Francisca pulls the kernels off freshly picked corn from her family’s garden. The family dries the corn and takes it to the local mill. They use the resulting meal to make tortillas for the family.
Francisca pulls the kernels off freshly picked corn from her family’s garden. The family dries the corn and takes it to the local mill. They use the resulting meal to make tortillas for the family.
Francisca laughs as she works on embroidery outside her home.
Francisca laughs as she works on embroidery outside her home.
The Quinac family women: Brenda and Francisca live with their mother, Nicolasa Quinac Tacaxoy (center), and their father and brothers.
The Quinac family women: Brenda and Francisca live with their mother, Nicolasa Quinac Tacaxoy (center), and their father and brothers.
Francisca in her classroom. She will graduate high school in October, and will be the first person in her family to graduate high school.
Francisca in her classroom. She will graduate high school in October, and will be the first person in her family to graduate high school.
Ana Teresa Julujuj, 13, poses at her home in San Isidro, Guatemala. She’s starting the 7th grade and is further along in her education than anyone else in her family. Full disclosure: I am sponsoring her education, along with my She’s the First coll…
Ana Teresa Julujuj, 13, poses at her home in San Isidro, Guatemala. She’s starting the 7th grade and is further along in her education than anyone else in her family. Full disclosure: I am sponsoring her education, along with my She’s the First colleagues Christen Brandt and Maisy Page.
Step farming in San Isidro, Guatemala, near Ana Teresa's home.
Step farming in San Isidro, Guatemala, near Ana Teresa's home.
Lake Atitlan, the largest lake in Guatemala, is surrounded by three volcanoes. The communities in the area have been deeply affected by eruptions and mudslides.
Lake Atitlan, the largest lake in Guatemala, is surrounded by three volcanoes. The communities in the area have been deeply affected by eruptions and mudslides.
Elena Mendoza Ajtujal, 14, works on her beadwork during a Starfish One by One mentoring session.
Elena Mendoza Ajtujal, 14, works on her beadwork during a Starfish One by One mentoring session.
Irma Josefina Ajcalon Cota demonstrates traditional weaving during a Starfish One by One mentoring session.
Irma Josefina Ajcalon Cota demonstrates traditional weaving during a Starfish One by One mentoring session.
Irma Josefina Ajcalon Cota demonstrates traditional weaving during a Starfish One by One mentoring session.
Irma Josefina Ajcalon Cota demonstrates traditional weaving during a Starfish One by One mentoring session.
Claudia Nimacachi Lopez laughs with her friends while she weaves a huipil (traditional Mayan blouse) during a Starfish mentoring session. She said it will take her about a month to complete.
Claudia Nimacachi Lopez laughs with her friends while she weaves a huipil (traditional Mayan blouse) during a Starfish mentoring session. She said it will take her about a month to complete.
Claudia weaves a huipil (traditional Mayan blouse) during a Starfish mentoring session. She said it will take her about a month to complete.
Claudia weaves a huipil (traditional Mayan blouse) during a Starfish mentoring session. She said it will take her about a month to complete.
Girls from the Starfish One by One “pioneer group” (the first mentoring group the organization put together) laugh and show one another the weavings on which they are working.
Girls from the Starfish One by One “pioneer group” (the first mentoring group the organization put together) laugh and show one another the weavings on which they are working.