You really do. Global Shore Opportunities is a movement of people partnering to expand the kingdom of God in Guatemala. You are a part of this collaboration and we couldn’t do this without you (we actually couldn’t). Your financial partnership allows us to fund the school for these students — some of whom would not otherwise be able to attend school at all.
Your student sponsor or staff partner would love to hear from you! Lexi, our Sponsorship Coordinator, receives letters or prayer requests through this contact form, which she will then translate and hand-deliver.
The prayer card you received is a good place to start for getting to know your sponsor student or teacher partner, but many family situations have sensitive information which may not appear on your prayer card. Please contact our Sponsorship Coordinator if you would like more information about your student or staff member.
Global Shore connects one student with just one sponsor in the amount of $38/month. Staff partners form a team of partners supporting and praying for that staff member, to a total amount of $300/month.
Yes! We encourage you to write to your sponsored student or staff member regularly through Global Shore Opportunities. Electronic communication is the most effective and will certainly make it to your student or staff member within the week! You can either write sponsorships@globalshore.org or fill out the online form above. Your note will be translated and passed along. (You are welcome to send photos or videos via email as well!)
There is no national postal service in Guatemala, so physical letters only reach our ministry location when we’re able to send them with a group from North America. It could be several months between mailing an item to our offices and its arrival in Guatemala, so we encourage you to communicate via this form or via email.
By signing up as a sponsor with us, you agree that you will not communicate privately with your sponsor student. This includes but is not limited to email, messaging applications, phone calls and social media. Do not connect with your student (or any other student under the age of 18 in our school) on social media.
Absolutely! We encourage gifts as appropriate. If you’re visiting, be in touch with our Sponsorship Coordinator for culturally-appropriate gift ideas. We will also be able to inquire for specific family needs which could be met. In most cases, an online donation will allow us to purchase a gift in-country which can then be wrapped, given, photographed and cherished.
You may also give a gift to a student or teacher’s class instead of an individual gifts. Not all students are sponsored and sometimes a whole-class party allows every student to feel celebrated. Depending on the donation amount, class gifts could range from a pizza party to a class set of books or a field trip!
Direct monetary gifts are not permitted.
Donations do not go directly to students, staff members or their families. Sponsorship donations are combined with the support of other sponsors and donors to fund the operational costs of the school. This allows the school to provide sustainable, long-term educational support to our students. Students are enrolled through a scholarship system that is made possible by your contribution. Parents pay a small tuition that can be adjusted based on financial need.
We love it when sponsors and partners visit! Sponsors and staff partners are welcome to join us on short-term trips. Some students regularly ask when their sponsor will come and visit, so it is very exciting for them when a sponsor can come!
If you’re visiting Guatemala on your own, please feel free to contact us and we will gladly schedule a visit to introduce you to your student or staff member and give you a tour of the school and ministry.
Global Shore Opportunities works to provide quality, Christian education for students from kindergarten through to Grade 12. When your student graduates, you are welcome to attend their graduation and celebrate with them! Once a student graduates, though, they are no longer part of our sponsorship program. At that time, you will be offered another sponsorship opportunity with another student, or can partner with a staff member.
Since our sponsorship program is school-based rather than community-based, we see more turnover as families move or students transfer to another school. Sometimes, parents will not meet the requirements necessary for their student to remain enrolled at our school. When students are no longer registered at our school, they are outside the ministry scope of GSO and can no longer be sponsored by our program.
When a student leaves our school, you will be informed and offered another sponsorship opportunity. If we don’t hear back from you within a couple of weeks, we will assign a new sponsorship.
When a student graduates, sponsors are invited to sponsor another student’s education, or partner with a staff member. If we don’t hear from you by the start of the next academic year, a new sponsorship is automatically assigned.
Global Shore currently works in Guatemala and has offices in Canada and the United States.
Yes. Global Shore is a registered charity in Canada and the United States, and issues tax receipts for all donations within those countries. Tax receipts are mailed out in February of the following year. We are not able to provide tax receipts for other countries.
GSO is not directly under a particular local church or under the umbrella of a denomination. The founders of GSO are committed Christians in their local faith communities. In Guatemala, we work closely with a local, apostolic church network called La Gloria Que Impacta, pastored by Jacobo & Julianna Pelaez.