My Paradise Dream
There is a prized piece of land tucked away behind a small, rural village in Guatemala. While it is not too far off of the main highway that connects Guatemala City and the Pacific coast, the tranquility of this place makes you quickly forget that you were on your way to anywhere. The owner of this land, Romero, has affectionately named the property, “My Paradise Dream.” When I met him and heard his story, it was evident that each word in this title holds special significance.
The reference to PARADISE isn’t hard to figure out. The surroundings here are lush with fruit-bearing trees, hanging vines, and wild flowers. In a place where privately-owned fresh water is scarce, there are also 22 ponds and a small river flowing through the center. It is so peaceful. Even the women who are sorting corn and the playful, tail-wagging puppies jumping in and out of the corn kernels seem to be doing so silently.
Paradise
Women quietly sift the corn
The word DREAM is significant as well. For Romero, owning this property just beyond the village where he was born feels like an impossibility. He was a young, barefoot boy with no education or future employment beyond subsistence farming when a Guatemalan pastor from the capital city heard the voice of the Lord. The pastor and his family arranged to take Romero out of the village to join them where he could get an education. Romero was treated like a son and proved that he was hardworking and smart. In time, Romero also heard God’s call to use his gifts for the benefit of others. He set as his goal to be college trained in the city and then to return to his village to make a difference.
Making a Difference
Romero HAS made a difference and is making a difference today, building local, successful businesses where villagers can be employed for a fair wage. He owns a restaurant, an auto parts store, a trailer leasing business, and a business that packages and sells hair care products. He also runs a tilapia farm on the “My Paradise Dream” property.
A villager, employed at the tilapia farm, catches lunch.
Romero provides Niteo travelers with a tour of his “Paradise Dream” before providing a tilapia lunch.
Niteo Tours is pleased to partner with Romero and his dream to see his village, and others like it, prosper through employment and education. Just by taking a Niteo vacation in Guatemala, you are investing in Romero’s vision and in the future of Guatemala.
Romero with Niteo’s Guatemala guide, Byron
