60 for 60:

Celebrating Our Past,
Shaping Our Future

For 60 years, ALDEA has supported community-led development in Guatemala, building on the work Dr. Carroll Behrhorst began to help communities create lasting, locally driven solutions. At the heart of this work are the voices, leadership, and priorities of the people themselves. Today, ALDEA works with the Guatemalan organization Asociación BPD (ABPD) to continue this legacy through an integrated program designed and implemented in partnership with local communities.

This October, we invite you to help us raise $60,000 to sustain this important work and carry forward a 60-year legacy of community-led development in Guatemala. Join us for 60 for 60 and help honor six decades of listening to, learning from, and working alongside Guatemalan communities.

Total Funds Raised To-Date: $0

Help us reach our goal of $60,000 by October 31. Fill out the form below to make your donation today!

about the fundraiser

This October, ALDEA is launching 60 for 60, a fundraiser celebrating our 60-year legacy of supporting community-led development in Guatemala. Our goal is to raise $60,000 to build a strong foundation for ALDEA’s next 60 years of impact and ensure that community-led development continues to thrive well into the future. To help us reach that goal, the first $30,000 raised will be matched by the ALDEA Advisors. Below, you’ll find stories from Advisors sharing their personal connections to ALDEA and why they remain committed to advancing our mission.

Why We Stand With ALDEA

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Pat Krause: Never would I have predicted that a 1971 summer volunteering at the Behrhorst “Hospitalito” would become the first steps of my long adventure of partnership with Mayas of Guatemala. Yet, that’s just what happened. I’m just one of many who were impacted by Dr. Behrhorst’s invitation to join with him, local Mayas, gringo allies, and others as partners, contributing to the well-being of women, men, and children in rural villages ( “aldea” in Spanish). Dr. Behrhorst’s deep commitment to the Mayas not only drove the establishment of institutions. It also changed a lot of peoples’ hearts and minds. His love and commitment were infectious. Many of us “caught the bug.” And we’ve kept spreading the infection, person to person, story by story, decade after decade. I celebrate this “contagious goodness” with each of you. What a partnership of health and well-being!
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Yvonne Gatz: Growing up in a small town in southwestern North Dakota, I was not unfamiliar with rural poverty, and later learned that poverty was not only a local problem, but it had deep roots nationally and globally. Nor did I realize its developmental impact on children, families and communities. This became crystal clear to me when I first visited the Mayan villages served by ALDEA in rural Guatemala in the late 1990’s. As an adult, educated Social Worker, my immediate response was , “how can I help to improve the well-being of these families ?“. In response to this question, I was drawn to the empowerment principle of Aldea’s founder, Dr. Carroll Behrhorst… that given adequate knowledge and support, people are capable of solving their own difficulties. That principle alone hooked me into becoming a 28 year supporter of this effective non-profit, utilizing a community development approach, that has improved and sustained the well-being of men, women and children in over 130 rural Mayan villages since its humble beginnings as a health clinic in Chimaltenango, Guatemala in the early 1960’s. I am grateful for this opportunity to support this effective, life-enhancing organization!
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Dale Gatz: Many things about my 20+ years of experience with ALDEA and our sister organization ABPD in Guatemala come to mind, but let me relate just one. My support for this work has, I believe, contributed to the well-being of many people far from us geographically, culturally, and economically. But what this experience has done for me over the years far outweighs what I have done through these years of involvement and support. It has broadened my perspectives, taught me to respect the dignity and humanity of people very different from me and my culture, and humbled me to experience a bond beyond my ability to express it. My life has been immeasurably enriched by the generosity of some wonderful people.
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Ana Chowdhury: I became a supporter of ALDEA in 2014 and have a personal connection to Guatemala, as I was born there. My interest in ALDEA peaked after I participated in the March 2019 ALDEA Tour. The tour included traveling around Guatemala, learning about its rich culture, food and meeting a local family. Additionally, I enjoyed seeing first hand the ALDEA/ABPD programs and the positive impact this work had on the every day lives of the families in the communities ALDEA supports. This is why I want to be involved with ALDEA: to provide needed support to these communities and create lasting change.
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Gordon Starkebaum: I spent 3 months in Guatemala in the spring of 1970 as a fourth-year medical student working with Doc Behrhorst in the Chimaltenango clinic. The experience changed my life: what was so impressive was the trust the patients had in Doc, his holistic approach to work with the people on their terms and his dedication to making their lives better. Not just treating acute illness…. I admire the wonderful work that has evolved into the current ALDEA/ABPD organizations that is grounded on Doc’s philosophy. It is a privilege to be a part of this work with my donations, time and energy.