Rebecca, a shy young woman, turned to us to make the decision, but we responded that the nursery was their responsibility and they must decide. Finally, she called a meeting with her committee, and after about half an hour, she made the announcement that the women's group would open a bank account in the nearest city and would use the profits to expand their nursery the following year. We had been talking and laughing for a couple of hours, and they asked me if I wanted to go meet their parents. That was an incredible day. I wire funds each month directly to Guatemala.
Groups can contact the above address if interested.
All gifts are tax-deductible. The reason AIR's approach works so well is because, as I've said, the villagers work with the tree nurseries from the beginning. They're invested in the success. It's not like a big organization coming in and planting millions of trees that aren't tended to and the majority die. We plant fewer trees, but have very high survival rates.