2026 Annual Report
SEPA celebrates its 30th year of solidarity this year! Since 1997, the Santa Elena Project of Accompaniment has remained steadfast in its mission to support education in the returned refugee communities of Santa Elena 20 de Octubre and Copal AA La Esperanza in northern Guatemala, in addition to providing support for accompaniers working to protect human rights defenders through NISGUA (Network in Solidarity with Guatemala). This year (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026), we undertook the following activities in support of our mission:
Provided salaries for teachers and directors in Copal AA’s community middle school: SEPA provided funds for the salaries of middle school teachers, a school director, and a school accountant. In a report from February 2026, Rafael Coy Chocooj (the school’s director), along with the school board women's committee, farmers' committee, and the town council, shared that there are 90 students currently enrolled in the middle school from 17 communities.
Scholarships for Santa Elena students: Given that the government only funds an elementary school at Santa Elena, SEPA provides funds for students to continue their education past 6th grade by attending private middle and high schools in the nearest city. This year, SEPA provided in scholarships to 31 students (23 middle schoolers and 8 high schoolers). This is the largest number of scholarship students SEPA has ever supported!
Special projects in Copal AA: Funds permitting, SEPA sponsors special projects in Copal AA and Santa Elena at the request of the communities. In October of 2025, Copal AA made a request that SEPA provide funding for the construction of a new school kitchen, to provide a culinary element to their organic agriculture program. SEPA provided funds towards the material costs of the new Copal AA school kitchen, with citizens of Copal AA providing the labor.
Support to the communities: $32,070 provided this year between the 3 focus areas
Support for human rights accompaniers: SEPA sponsored a human rights accompanier, Kala Garrido, in April and May of 2026, funding two months of her six-month commitment. Her human rights work in Guatemala reinforces our connection to the community of Copal AA and helps our board to stay up-to-date with the political context of the country on the ground.
Here in Oberlin, we held a very successful annual fundraising dinner in March 2026, complete with authentic Guatemalan cuisine. We were overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from the community and edified by a presentation by Oberlin College Professor Emeritus Steve Volk. Our annual dinner raised $8,890 this year, breaking previous records!
We are also delighted to add several new members to our board. Kelly and Mike Prill joined the board in the summer of 2025, and Lizette Lopez-Ortiz (a rising Oberlin College sophomore), Jayen Pal (a Lake Ridge Academy high school student), and David Kelley (community member), have all been nominated to be voted onto the board at our annual meeting in July 2026. We are heartened and encouraged to have the energy and enthusiasm of these new board members as we celebrate 30 years of solidarity with returned refugees in Guatemala!
All of this work was made possible by your generosity. None of this work would be possible without you, our base of support.
Thank you for your support of Copal AA, Santa Elena, and the ties that connect us.
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