Week 1 Day 4, 2015

Week 1 Day 4, 2015

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On August 5, 2015
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Dear Hope’s In community, We had another awesome day today! Though it was physically and emotionally exhausting, I believe we ended the day extremely inspired. Below is one account from our experiences: “Today we broke up into small groups to visit families throughout the community. One family that our group visited was an elderly woman with severe respiratory and heart problems. She wore a surgical mask to filter the polluted air, and could not afford the oxygen tanks that the doctor prescribed. She has trouble eating due to nausea. After a long tough life living in the garbage dump community, illness seems an unfair added burden. However, she is very […]
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Week 1 Day 3, 2015

Week 1 Day 3, 2015

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On August 4, 2015
  • 0 Comments
Dear Hope’s In community, “”The treasures of the Guatemala City garbage dump are just that, treasures. I am so blessed to grow up in the United States but unfortunately my level of appreciation can fluctuate depending on my circumstances. As we walk through the dirty alleys and cluttered streets there are so many smiling faces. I want to adopt these peoples outlook on life. So in a sense, I’ll be taking a piece of treasure home with me.”  -Hope’s In Volunteer Today was one for the books! The houses are ready for concrete to be poured tomorrow, the soccer camp was a blast, and the medical clinic saw more patients! […]
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Week 1 Day 2, 2015

Week 1 Day 2, 2015

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On August 3, 2015
  • 0 Comments
Hello Hope’s In community, Our team is off to an incredible start! We met the families we are building houses with this week and had successful first days for our medical and sports clinics. Today was very impactful and our eyes are being opened to the reality of the people living in the garbage dump communities. Though we discussed some of the things that broke our hearts today, we all agreed that there is an undeniable sense of joy in the people we are getting to know. Below are some notes to you from two of our volunteers!  “This is the first year I traveled to Guatemala with the Hope’s […]
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Week 1 Day 1, 2015

Week 1 Day 1, 2015

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On August 2, 2015
  • 0 Comments
Dear Hope’s In community, We made it! Tonight we are celebrating because all our team members expected to arrive today are safely checked into our hotel in Guatemala City! When our final team member arrives Tuesday there will be 22 volunteers ready to serve at Potter’s House Association (PHA) for the week. PHA is the local organization that is established in the communities and it is their hard work and dedication that allows us to be in the communities. We are so grateful for their willingness to host Hope’s In! Our team will be building two houses this week. We also have 2 medical staff with us who will be […]
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64. VIDEO: Hope’s in Style Student Fashion Show Raises Record Funds for Guatemala City Families

64. VIDEO: Hope’s in Style Student Fashion Show Raises Record Funds for Guatemala City Families

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On March 12, 2015
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The Barrington High School Students behind this week’s third annual Hope’s in Style fashion show fundraiser raised a record $43,306 which will enable them to build six new homes this summer for families who live and work in and around Guatemala City’s garbage dump. Sunday’s show at the Stonegate Banquet and Conference Center featured over fifty student models, sylists and volunteers, drawing an audience of more than 300 guests.  365Barrington TV reporter Tommy Derken talked with the crowd and shares more about the cause. Click here to read full article.
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Hope’s in Style Fashion Show in Hoffman Estates to raise funds for poverty-stricken families in Guatemala City

Hope’s in Style Fashion Show in Hoffman Estates to raise funds for poverty-stricken families in Guatemala City

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On February 26, 2015
  • 0 Comments
The Barrington community is rallying together for the third consecutive year to raise funds for the thousands of people living in the Guatemala City garbage dump. The giant fundraising effort, the Hope’s in Style Fashion Show, takes place Sunday, March 8 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Stonegate Conference Centre in Hoffman Estates. Created by Barrington High School graduate Courtney Quigley, Hope’s in Style has given many BHS students a chance to design their own outfits based on photos taken of the garbage dump community. This year, two Barrington middle school students and students from Loyola Academy in Wilmette and Warren Township High School in Gurnee are also participating. […]
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Hope’s in Style-Wool Street Event Raises Almost $15,000

Hope’s in Style-Wool Street Event Raises Almost $15,000

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On October 27, 2014
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Hope’s in Style, founded & championed by local teenager Courtney Quigley and her family, raises money and awareness to support Potter’s House Association build houses for families in the communities in and around the Guatemala City Garbage Dump. Michael Stathakis, so moved from his volunteer experience last August, reached out to his friends to help, which became a fundraising event this past week. Over 13,000 people in Guatemala City live in communities surrounding the Garbage Dump. These people build their houses out of scraps of garbage and many survive on the food they find in the trash as well. Hope’s in Style has raised funds to build five family homes […]
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New Beginnings and Hope For Three Beautiful Families

New Beginnings and Hope For Three Beautiful Families

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On August 12, 2014
  • 0 Comments
After a week of hard work, and well, heart work it was time for our team to say goodbye to Potter’s House and all the Treasures. However, not before giving away three new, beautiful homes. Each home was given to a family that had waited for that refuge for years. These home owners had lived in the garbage dump communities for a large quantity of their lives and this was most likely the first time they had plumbing and running water in their own home. This was the first house with a front door that locked, windows that slid open, and a roof that didn’t allow rain to fall onto […]
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Jim: Raul’s Story

Jim: Raul’s Story

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On August 11, 2014
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Raul was homeless and alone at age eight. Potter’s House has established a network of community leaders who are trained to support and encourage people in the community. It was a community leader that took in Raul and now introduces herself as his Mom. She is a true hero. These situations are common in a community where tragedy is routine and half the families are lead by single mothers. I worked and played with Raul every day this week and as our last day arrived I knew that I may not see him again. A lot happens in the garbage dump community and there is no guarantee I will return […]
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Allie: What a Guatemalan boy named Jesús taught me

Allie: What a Guatemalan boy named Jesús taught me

  • Posted by Courtney Quigley
  • On August 11, 2014
  • 0 Comments
Before going on this trip, I tried to prepare myself for what I would come to see in Guatemala. Of course, I had known about the tremendous poverty, but when I saw it with my own eyes, it moved straight from my head to my heart. This was the kind of thing you read about, maybe pray for every once in a while, but then move on with your thoughts. Right away, I knew God brought me here for a reason. I was part of House 2 of the three houses built. Oscar (25) and Linda (24) had a daughter named Lindsey (8) and a son named Steven (4). Their […]
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