The voice of a 15-year-old Guatemala girl underscores the importance of #YAPGuatemalaLove, a fundraising campaign launched recently by Youth Advocate Programs (YAP), Inc. YAP’s goal with the campaign is to increase funding support for its Guatemala sister agency, Siembra Bien, to tackle hardships that lead families in Guatemala to seek U.S. asylum.

Providing safe, community-based alternatives to youth incarceration and other out-of-home placements, YAP supports and empowers individuals and families who have complex needs and face some of life’s greatest challenges. YAP operates in 100 U.S. communities in 23 states and the District of Columbia and globally in Ireland, Australia, Sweden, Sierra Leone and, through its partnership with Siembra Bien, Guatemala.

Brisseyda Hernandez’s testimony, shared with Siembra Bien, serves as narration for a video that describes the causes and effects of members of her family and community risking everything to travel north to seek asylum.

“#YAPGuatemalaLove recognizes the urgent need to raise awareness of the threats young people and families in Guatemala are escaping and how Siembra Bien is addressing those dangers,” said YAP International Programs Director Diana Matteson. “#YAPGuatemalaLove gives everyone an opportunity to help Guatemalan parents who seek what all families want -- peace, safety and the opportunity for their children to thrive.”

To learn more about #YAPGuatemalaLove and how you can support the effort, please share this story and click here to make a donation.