Huntington students, staff impact Guatemala agriculture

HUNTINGTON, Ind. — A team of nine people from Huntington University traveled to serve local communities through sustainable agriculture projects to Momostenango, Guatemala.

Led by faculty member Jessica Graves, they worked on greenhouse food production, sheep management and food dehydration and installed clean water systems in schools, making a lasting impact on the region. They teamed up with other students from around the country during the trip in May.

This initiative not only addressed immediate needs, but also promoted long-term solutions to hunger and poverty.

“Providing technical assistance in producing and preserving food enables families to thrive in place, improving their local economy and enabling those families to better support their own churches out of their extra income,” said Raymie Porter, director of the Haupert Institute for Agricultural Studies at Huntington.

“This is always better than delivering aid in the form of food produced elsewhere, which often undercuts the efforts of local farmers to produce food for their community and the marketplace.”

Trip Highlights

• On the outskirts of Momostenango, they provided technical assistance to grow tomatoes — a staple food for many families.

• Haupert Institute students Mary Beth Hostetler, Kylee Mumford and Abbie Timmer visited a local sheep farm, where they helped trim hooves and answer animal health questions from the farmers.

• The group presented a workshop about food dehydration. They taught others how to dehydrate beef, fruits, vegetables and seasonings for preservation.

• The group installed 13 water filtration systems in two local schools.

“The broader impact of this project is great,” said Jessica Graves, adjunct faculty member at Huntington.

“Refrigeration is a luxury that many simply cannot afford, so having the knowledge and skills to dehydrate foods allows families the opportunity to increase the diversity of their diet and helps alleviate hunger and malnutrition.”

The Haupert Institute plans to return to the Western Highlands region to continue investing in the community.

“Global hunger is a problem that governmental and nongovernmental organizations alike work to combat — and have for years,” Graves said.

“The United Nations acknowledges this challenge and even speaks to it directly in the Sustainable Development Goals by saying, ‘The food and agricultural sector offers key solutions for development, and it is central for hunger and poverty eradication.’

“I think we can all agree with this statement, but I believe, as followers of Jesus, a faith-based approach allows us to take capacity development to a deeper level addressing spiritual poverty, too.

“Further, Christians have been charged to fulfill the Great Commandment, Mark 12:30-31, and the Great Commission, Matthew 28:18-20. When we follow in His will and marry it with Christ-centered agricultural initiatives, we become the conduit for Christ to work through us to alleviate poverty and hunger in a way that is multi dimensional — that’s God’s economy.”